Hawai'i's David Ishii took eighth at the Japan PGA Senior Championship this month. Ishii opened with a 76, but rallied for rounds of 71-71-73 to finish five shots out of first. He won approximately $10,000.

Ishii, 51, will play the Japan Open Senior event the last week of the month and two smaller senior tournaments before and after. Then he plans to try the third stage of the Japan Golf Tour Organization qualifying. As a 14-time winner on the tour, he can skip the first two stages of the four-stage process.

"The third stage is probably harder than the final because I don't know how many they take," said Ishii, who has never had to play the third stage before. "In the final, you play four days and they make a cut to 80 or 90 players. The third stage, they probably just take 30 or so."

FOUR MOVE ON TO NATIONALS

Brett Komoto, Christian Yagi, Ciera Min and Trevor Arashiro advanced to the National Championships of the Mutual of Omaha Drive, Chip & Putt recently at Turtle Bay Resort.

The competition was open to golfers between the ages of 7 to 14, with the top three in each age division locally moving on to the regional. Boys and girls competed in the same age division.

The Big Island qualifier, at Waikoloa Kings' Course, attracted 61 juniors. A field of 45 from O'ahu played at Turtle Bay and 40 Kaua'i juniors competed at Kiahuna. There are qualifiers in 105 cities this year.

Winners were based on a combined performance in driving, chipping and putting. The national finals are in Orlando, Fla., later this month.

SLAM TICKETS AVAILABLE

Discounted tickets for the 2006 PGA Grand Slam of Golf will be available through the end of the month for Hawai'i residents. The tournament will again be played at Po'ipu Bay Golf Course on Kaua'i, Nov. 20 to 22.

Regular price for the Champions Clinic and Pro-Am Tournament on Monday (Nov. 20) is $10. Competition day tickets for Tuesday and Wednesday (Nov. 21 and 22) are $20 per day. A Season Grounds Ticket for all three days costs $40. Hawai'i residents can purchase Season Grounds Tickets for $20 before November 1. Proof of Hawai'i residency is required for the kama'aina discount.

The PGA of America has introduced a limited-edition commemorative lenticular (printed image that shows motion as the viewing angle changes) season ticket. It features an image of the champions in action and comes in a protective sleeve on a lanyard. The ticket is $50, or $30 for kama'aina before Nov. 1.

British Open and PGA Championship winner Tiger Woods, U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy and alternates Jim Furyk and Mike Weir, first and third on the 2006 Major Champions Points List, will play this year. Woods and Furyk are past Grand Slam champions.

The purse will increase from $1 million to $1.25 million, with the winner receiving $500,000, the runner-up $300,000, the third-place finisher $250,000 and the "loser" $200,000.

The 36-hole stroke-play event will be televised by TNT.

Tickets can be purchased at (800)-PGA-GOLF (742-4653) or www.PGA.com.

CHAMPIONS TOUR BACK

The 2007 Champions Tour schedule, announced this week, includes 29 official events and prize money of $54 million. The average tournament purse will grow to a record $1.86 million.

For the 11th year in a row, the senior season officially begins with the MasterCard Championship at Hualalai, Jan. 19 to 21 on the Big Island. It will be followed by the Turtle Bay Championship, the first full-field event, Jan. 26 to 28 at Turtle Bay's Palmer Course.

Loren Roberts won both events this year.

The Wendy's Champions Skins Game, an exhibition played at Wailea's Gold Course on Maui, moves out of its traditional Super Bowl Weekend slot this year. It will be played Jan. 12 to 14, opposite the PGA Tour's Sony Open in Hawai'i.

All official tournaments will have national television coverage, with 22 airing daily coverage on The Golf Channel. TGC will also have complete coverage of the Mercedes-Benz Championship, which opens the PGA Tour season Jan. 4 at Kapalua's Plantation Course on Maui.

The new broadcast team will have Kelly Tilghman as play-by-play announcer and Nick Faldo as lead analyst, with Rich Lerner, Kapalua's Mark Rolfing, Dottie Pepper, Rocco Mediate and Jerry Foltz. The Golf Channel will also broadcast the Sony Open the following week from Waialae Country Club.

BRIEFLY

Makalei Golf Club has a special early-bird entry fee for its inaugural Makalei Amateur Championships, scheduled for Nov. 11 and 12. For those who enter this month, the fee is $125, or $50 off the regular entry fee. Early entrants also get a free practice round that can be used Nov. 1 to 10. Additional practice rounds are $25 each. Proceeds from the tournament and its Saturday Nite Luau will go to Friends of the Children's Justice Center of West Hawai'i and Kona Junior Golf. The 36-hole stroke-play event has a shotgun start both days. There are Championship, A, B and C flights. Special room rates are available. Entry forms are available at makalei.com, the Makalei pro shop and other Big Island golf courses and businesses. For more information, call 325-6625 on the Big Island.

Ka'anapali Golf Courses will have a free Demo Day Saturday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at its driving range. Golfers can try the latest equipment from vendors such as Nike, Titleist, Cobra and TaylorMade. There will also be free 15-minute swing analyses available from Ka'anapali's staff, using its new video equipment. Golfers who try all different vendors and get a video analysis are eligible to receive a half-off weekend greens fee pass good through the end of the month. Lunch will also be available. For more information, call 661-3691 on Maui or visit www.kaanapali-golf.com.