Armanini

Chris Armanini used the time off afforded to him by the devastating wildfires in West Maui to work on his golf game, and it paid off over the weekend at Poipu Bay Golf Course on Kauai.

Armanini, a Baldwin High School and University of Hawaii at Hilo graduate, finished second in the Aloha Section PGA Professional Championship to grab a spot in the PGA Professional Championship in Frisco, Texas, April 28-May 1, 2024.

Armanini, a teaching pro at Kaanapali Golf Courses, shot 73-68–141 to finish 3-under par, one shot behind champion Hunter Larson of Big Island Golf.

“This is the biggest tournament of the year for us PGA professionals here in Hawaii — the top finisher qualifies for both the PGA Professional Championship and the Sony Open, and the PGA Professional Championship takes the top two finishers,” Armanini said Monday. “I finished one shot back, shot the low round of the tournament, 68. Hunter Larson, who is an awesome friend of mine on the Big Island, he kind of came down the stretch, birdied the last hole and edged me out by one,”

Armanini was happy to see his friend grab the lone spot available in the Sony Open — the first full-field event of the PGA Tour season held at Waialae Country Club — but he knows well that golf is always a story of what if.

“He totally works hard for it, he totally deserves going,” Armanini said of Larson. “Yeah, that could have happened or what could have been, that’s always what golf is, but it’s cool to see that my game is still there. I just needed a month off, really, to kind of work on my game and to see what I could do with my golf game.”

His teaching and coaching duties usually only allow Armanini a week or two to prepare for one of the Aloha Section’s biggest events, but “this year not working because of everything going on with the Lahaina fires, not working with Kaanapali being closed, I got the time to work on myself and on my golf game.”

Royal Kaanapali Golf Course and the driving range will reopen next week, while the Kaanapali Kai Golf Course will take a little while longer to reopen.

Armanini did a lot of his work to prepare for the tournament at The Dunes at Maui Lani and King Kamehameha Golf Club.

“Just kind of staying on this side and working on my game,” Armanini said. “Also got to go to California to visit some family there and got a little bit of golf in when I was out there.”

The 35-year-old Armanini said it has been since college that he has played this well. He graduated from Baldwin in 2006 and UH-Hilo in 2010.

“It’s funny to see that if you just get some time in, kind of tame your thoughts while you’re out there on the course a little bit, you can change your results,” Armanini said, adding that he believes this success will help him be a better teacher/coach in the future.

“Oh definitely, every experience that you get out on the golf course is going to help the next golfer out there,” Armanini said. “Going to a national tournament like this one potentially could lead into the PGA Championship, so who knows where it could go?

“I’m just going to take it day by day, kind of take my game a little more serious right now and work hard like I coach my players into doing it. I’m going to have to walk the walk right now and get more work in.”

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com