Monday qualifiers: Sony Open in Hawaii

The PGA TOUR’s first open qualifier of the 2022 calendar year commenced Monday at Hoakalei Country Club in Ewa Beach, Hawaii.

BJ Doucett was medalist after a bogey-free, 9-under 63. Prior to this week, his only PGA TOUR start came at the 2019 Farmers Insurance Open, missing the cut with rounds of 71-75.

Hawaii native Jared Sawada was the second qualifier after posting a 6-under 66. Sawada has made four prior PGA TOUR starts, all coming at the Sony Open, in which he competed in 2014, 2017, 2019 and 2020. His best finish was T69 in 2017.

Sawada has played most of his professional golf on mini-tours such as the Bo Tour, Golden State Tour and Swing Thought Tour. It hasn’t been the easiest way to make a living, he said.

“There’s no money,” Sawada said of the mini-tour grind. “There are no players, and the fields aren’t big enough. There are only 10 to 30 players most of the time.”

Koichiro Ishika and Andy Ogletree were the final two qualifiers after posting 5-under 67s.

Ishika, former standout at Arizona State, saved par on the final hole out of a greenside bunker. He’s currently in his fourth month of professional golf and has already seen the ebbs and flows of the profession. Ishika has been caddying and grinding on mini-tours in Japan after failing to advance through Second Stage of Japan Golf Tour Q-School.

Ishika finishes caddying around 3 p.m. each day, and sunset is at 6 p.m. He said the short window of golf opportunity has helped him practice more efficiently.

“I feel like when I was amateur and played with guys in college, they made some birdies but also made a lot of bogeys,” Ishika said. “Professionals don’t make bogeys, and that’s what I’ve been learning the past four months.”

Ogletree is coming off a T51 finish at the Sanderson Farms Championship where he posted three rounds of 67 or better. The 2019 U.S. Amateur champion seemingly has returned to form after recovering from hip surgery in the offseason. He linked up with one of the PGA TOUR’s best swing coaches.

“When I was cleared after surgery to start swinging again, I started working with Scott Hamilton, and we made some adjustments to my backswing to the alleviate pain in my hip and lower back,” Ogletree said. “I feel like I am swinging more efficiently and, more importantly, pain-free.

Hamilton has worked with the likes of PGA TOUR winners Chris Kirk, Russell Henley, Harris English, Boo Weekley, Steven Bowditch and Brendon Todd.

A closer look at all four Sony Open in Hawaii qualifiers ...

BJ Doucett (63)

Age: 32

College: UC Riverside

Turned pro: 2018

PGA TOUR starts: 1

Cuts made: 0

Notes: Played college golf at University of California – Riverside and had multiple NCAA Division I scholarship offers to play basketball. Quit golf for a short period after college. Returned to golf in 2018 and qualified for the 2019 Farmers Insurance Open just 100 days after picking up a club again. Missed cut in his one PGA TOUR start. Failed to advance through 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament. Qualified for the Korn Ferry Tour’s 2019 Dormie Network Classic at Briggs Ranch and Nashville Golf Open Benefitting the Snedeker Foundation.

Jared Sawada (66)

Age: 31

College: University of Hawaii

Turned pro: 2014

PGA TOUR starts: 4

Cuts made: 1

PGA TOUR earnings: $12,000

Notes: Will make his first PGA TOUR start since the 2020 Sony Open. Will be his fifth time playing in the event. Earned conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour after advancing to Final Stage of Q-School. Missed cut in his only start on the 2020-21 Korn Ferry Tour at the Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank. Made two cuts in 16 Forme Tour starts in 2017-18. Never averaged better than a 77.2 scoring average at University of Hawaii. Qualified for the 2008 U.S. Amateur Public Links.

Koichiro Ishika (67)

Age: 23

College: Arizona State University

Turned pro: 2021

PGA TOUR starts: 0

Notes: Will make his first PGA TOUR start at the Sony Open. Turned pro four months ago. Failed to advance through Second Stage of Japan Golf Tour Q-School. Now caddying and playing on various Japanese mini-tours. Carried a 72.1 scoring average in three years at Arizona State University. Had 19 rounds in the 60s. Attended IMG Academy prior to college. Reached as high as No. 13 on the Rolex AJGA Rankings and was an AJGA second-team All-American in 2015.

Andy Ogletree (67)

Age: 23

College: Georgia Tech

Turned pro: 2020

PGA TOUR starts: 7

Cuts made: 1

PGA TOUR earnings: $20,952

Notes: Will make second start of the 2021-22 PGA TOUR season. Finished T51 at the Sanderson Farms Championship. Missed three cuts in four starts during the 2020-21 season. Finished T46 at the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba in 2020. Was named two-time All-American by the Golf Coaches Association of America and by Golfweek Magazine while at Georgia Tech. Was the 2019 U.S. Amateur champion. Was low amateur at the Masters. Competed on the 2019 U.S. Walker Cup and Palmer Cup teams.

2021-22 Monday qualifier statistics

Top-25s: Grant Hirschman (T17, Sanderson Farms Championship); Patrick Flavin (T17, Butterfield Bermuda Championship)

Best finish: Grant Hirschman (T17, Sanderson Farms Championship); Patrick Flavin (T17, Butterfield Bermuda Championship)

Most times qualified: Kyle Wilshire, 2

Last event’s qualifier results (The RSM Classic): Kyle Wilshire (MC), Carl Yuan (MC), Mickey DeMorat (T47), Kevin Yu (MC)

Next qualifier: Farmers Insurance Open qualifier at Bear Creek Golf Club in Murrieta, California (January 24, 2021)