Will Bradley Shigezawa be this year's Tadd Fujikawa in the Governor's Cup?

"No question, Tadd put the Governor's Cup on the map," said Ron Castillo Sr., captain of the pro team in the 35th Gov. John A. Burns Challenge Cup next Monday and Tuesday at the Mid-Pacific Country Club.

Fujikawa didn't lose a match in last year's Governor's Cup and went on to beat out the rest of his teammates to gain the lone amateur spot in the special qualifying for the Sony Open in Hawai'i.

Using that Governor's Cup exemption, Fujikawa made golf history by becoming the youngest in 50 years to make the cut in a PGA Tour event, finishing tied for 20th place.

Now the spotlight turns to another high school sensation in Shigezawa, a 6-foot Punahou sophomore. He's the one to beat among the 12 making this year's amateur team. And he can't wait for the Governor's Cup and the Sony Open qualifying on Dec. 17 at the Waialae Country Club.

"I'm excited," said Shigezawa, who impressed PGA Tour professional Dean Wilson when they played together in the last group in the final round of the Hawai'i State Open last week.

Wilson won with a 9-under 207 and Shigezawa finished three shots back to take low-amateur honors.

"There's no reason why he couldn't have won," Wilson said.

No reason indeed. Shigezawa even took the lead at one point, going 10-under after sinking a 10-foot putt for eagle at the par-5 sixth hole at the Hawai'i Prince Golf Club's B Course. But two double-bogeys coming in cost him a chance at victory.

Still, the long-hitting youngster didn't let up, nailing what Wilson called drives of "ridiculous" distances of 346 yards into the wind at the 17th hole and 379 yards at the downwind par-5 18th.

Shigezawa also impressed Kirk Nelson, Makena Golf Club's head golf professional, at the Hawai'i State Open.

"I played with him the first two days," said Nelson, who will run into Shigezawa again in the Governor's Cup next week.

"Hopefully, I don't have to play him," said Nelson, who hasn't lost a Governor's Cup match the last three years. "I wanted to play Tadd last year but I didn't. I wouldn't have been unbeaten if I did."

Now that he's a pro, Fujikawa would have been a captain's pick for Castillo. But the Moanalua High School junior is in Japan to play in the Casio World Open this week.

Castillo is still scrambling to fill his 12-man pro team.

"I'm not worried. I'll get my 12 guys," said Castillo, who selected Shane Abe, winner of the Aloha Section PGA Assistants Championship, as a captain's pick.

Joining Nelson and Abe are John Lynch and Joe Phengsavath, who finished runner-up to Wilson last week, as well as Ron Castillo Jr., Brad Bowen, Lance Taketa, Andrew Feldmann, Kevin Carll, Regan Lee and Matt Pakkala.

Kevin Hayashi, the Aloha Section PGA's player of the year, won't be playing in the Governor's Cup because of commitments as teaching pro at the Mauna Kea Resort, saying that it would be too much time off from work. He just returned from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where he played in a TaylorMade Pro-Am. He was tempted, though, because two of his students, Pono Calip (Kamehameha-Hawai'i) and Henry Park (Waiakea High School), made the amateur Governor's Cup team.

Veteran Brandan Kop, Chan Kim, who's returning from Arizona, Lorens Chan, Taeksoo Kim, Jonathan Ota, Alex Chu, Alex Ching and University of Hawai'i senior Ryan Perez are also playing for the amateur team, which hopes to end a four-year losing streak to the professionals in the Ryder Cup-like event.

Kurt Nino (University of San Francisco), who got an exempt spot by winning the Manoa Cup, and Oregon's Sean Maekawa both had to decline from playing because they could not get clearance from their schools. Amateur team captain Phil Anamizu selected veteran Paul Kimura to fill the final spot.