The Big Island Candies Scotch 4-Ball Championship, the Aloha Section PGA's first major championship of 2007, tees off Sunday at The Club at Hokuli'a on the Big Island. Opening round begins at 11:30 a.m., with the final round Monday.

Kevin Hayashi, of Mauna Kea Resort, and Lance Taketa, Hilo Muni, won the 2006 title. They opened with a best-ball 68 and followed up with 78 in the final day's alternate-shot format to move into a four-way tie for first. On the first playoff hole (361-yard 18th), Hayashi's drive stopped right of the green. Taketa chipped on and Hayashi sank a 15-foot birdie putt for the win.

The Hayashi-Taketa team also won this event in 2002 and 2003. Oahu Country Club head pro Andrew Feldmann and Hawai'i Golf Hall of Famer Larry Stubblefield, who have dominated team events the past few years, are also among the 22 teams.

Joe Root, Aloha Section Pro of the Year in 1996 and '98, is back in Hawai'i after working in California the past several years. He will play with Hilo Muni's Rodney Acia. Root is now general manager at Kohanaiki Golf & Ocean Club, which is under construction on the Big Island.

The winning team gets $3,500 and earns points towards Governor's Cup selection and Section PGA Player of the Year.

PRINCEVILLE AMONG 100 GREATEST COURSES

Princeville's Prince Course is the lone Hawai'i property in Golf Digest's biennial survey of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses.

The Prince is 39th on the list. Pine Valley Golf Club in New Jersey remains No. 1, followed by Shinnecock Hills and Augusta National.

Established in 1966, America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses is the oldest ranking in the game and is based on the "extensive play and scrutiny" of thousands of courses by Golf Digest's course evaluation panel.

The 100 Greatest is dominated by private courses. Four years ago, Golf Digest established a ranking of America's 100 Greatest Public Courses to showcase top courses open to all golfers. Pebble Beach Golf Links ranks No. 1 in that list a third straight time, followed by Pacific Dunes and Pinehurst's No. 2 Course.

Prince is ninth on that list, with Mauna Kea 31st, Kapalua Plantation 33rd, Ko'olau 51st, Kaua'i Lagoons Kiele 56th and Po'ipu Bay 77th.

The America's 100 Greatest package, which also includes America's 100 Greatest Public Courses and the Best Courses in Each State, appears in the May issue, due out April 10.