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Octogenarian fires 78 at COP
Shinya Miyamoto, third from left, shows the certificate he received from being the Age Shooter Senior Golfer from Coral Ocean Point general manager Kim Tae Ho, left, and Sales and Marketing manager Park Taewon, right. Kimiko Abe, second left, Masayo Miyamoto, and Noriko Togawa are others in photo. (Jon Perez)
That’s why the longtime CNMI resident, and two of his companions, was surprised to learn that he shot a 78, which was unusual for an 80-year-old especially at the 6,994-yard Larry Nelson-designed championship layout.
COP presented a certificate to Miyamoto for his achievement becoming the first “Age Shooter” and “Senior Golfer” to achieve the feat he made on June 24 of this year.
“In my more than 40 years of living on Saipan, that was my first time to shoot that score. COP, for me, is the best golf course on Saipan and I play here twice a week,” said Miyamoto, who taught himself how to play the sport after graduating in college.
“I just watch videos and read books. That is how I taught myself to play. I also played golf in Japan but failed to win any tournament. I even joined an amateur tournament in Japan when I was 40 years old but I missed the cut,” said Miyamoto, whose farthest driving distance was 200 yards.
Miyamoto, whose automobile parts business supplies Honda cars, added that he considers COP’s 447-yard par-4 Plumeria (No. 2) as the toughest hole.
“The layout is flat, it will be not so hard for some but the distance of the hole will challenge you,” said Miyamoto, who also regularly joins golf tournaments on the island.
He became friends with perennial ladies title contender Noriko Togawa, who also gave him pointers on how to improve his game.
“I am lucky and happy to have met [Noriko]. She is one of the best amateur golfers from Japan. She acts like my coach,” said Miyamoto with a laugh.
Miyamoto said that he has no plans of beating his own score but if ever he has the chance, he will try to shoot lower.
He added that his age won’t stop him from playing golf until the day he kicks the bucket.
“I’ll keep playing golf and maybe do it again if I still can. I have nothing more to do and I enjoy playing golf and I will die on the golf course.” (Jon Perez)
