Jasmine Wong and Alexa Takai are close friends who also happen to be among the best amateur golfers in Hawaii.
Wong won the girls state high school golf championship in May and Takai topped the competition at the Jennie K. Women’s Invitational.
It’s no coincidence they play practice rounds together at Oahu Country Club multiple days each week. Their commitment to the sport spills into the details. Every drive, chip and putt doesn’t go unnoticed for what went well and what could be improved.
Wong calls it “smart golf,” synonymous with the concept of course management. Ultimately, success is the best translation.
Today, Wong and Takai will go head-to-head in the women’s division quarterfinals of the Manoa Cup match-play championship. A 9:33 a.m. tee time will inevitably turn friends to competitors for a few hours.
“She’s definitely a lot farther (along) than me,” Takai said.
“It’s a little intimidating playing the state champ, but I’m just going to go in with the same mindset … just play my own game, and don’t worry about her too much.”
Neither Wong nor Takai had too much trouble in the round of 16.
Wong never trailed in her 4-and-2 finish against Arianna Bell, a high school junior who takes online coursework at the International Virtual Learning Academy. And although Hawaii Baptist Academy junior Jacey Kage led Takai through five holes, Takai recovered to find herself in control for much of the remainder of the match en route to a 3-and-2 win.
“I would say, since high school is already over, this is a tournament to prep me for upcoming college NCAA tournaments,” said Wong, a Gonzaga signee.
In her senior season at ‘Iolani, Wong learned how to more confidently play the percentages. Maximizing misses and allowing for a healthy margin of error on shots were points of growth she acknowledged as critical in the latter stages of her high school career.
Suddenly, the “hero shot” was no longer necessary. She has the history — the first individual girls golf state title in ‘Iolani history — to prove it.
“It takes wisdom from a lot of people and not being too cocky to kind of take your medicine and just make sure you do what you’re supposed to do,” Wong said.
“In reality, you’re only going to hit that shot one out of 20.”
This year’s women’s division is loaded with top Hawaii high school talent.
Beyond Wong and Takai, Kahuku’s Ava Cepeda qualified atop the 31-player pool and hasn’t looked back. Mililani’s Kate Nakaoka, the 2024 Hawaii State Amateur women’s division champion, battled her sister, Mia, for 19 holes before earning the quarterfinal spot against Cepeda. Kalani alumnus Kara Kaneshiro, a former back-to-back Hawaii State Amateur winner and Colorado State rising sophomore, is in the mix, too.
And yet, amid an intensely competitive week, they all still appear set on lifting each other up.
“We’re all just one big group, pretty much,” Takai said. “We’re all friends.”
