Mel started playing after his service with the US Air Force in 1967. He was self-taught and eventually achieved a handicap of -7. He shot a scratch round of 72, multiple times in his lifetime including a notable round at Griffith Park Golf Course in 1977. He never took putting ‘gimmes’, finishing out every hole and abided by official USGA rules.

Melvin Masao Higa. November 17, 1943 – January 19, 2024. Rose Hills Obituary linked here.