Location, location, location.

It's what sells in real estate. And it's also a pretty persuasive pitch when deciding on a college.

Ayaka Kaneko was sold on Pepperdine after visiting the California university with an ocean-front view in Malibu. She plans on following up her verbal commitment to play collegiate golf for the Waves by signing a letter of intent during next month's early signing period.

"I went to Pepperdine University and talked to the coach. I really liked that school," said Kaneko, who also visited USC and Arizona State.

Pepperdine's smaller enrollment — around 6,000 students — also played a part in the family decision, according to Katsumi Kaneko, Ayaka's father.

"The size is very comfortable for her. Not huge, not too small. She doesn't like a huge school," he said.

What finally sealed the deal was Pepperdine women's golf coach, Laurie Gibbs.

"The coach is a very nice person. Very warm-hearted," Katsumi said.

Starting her 14th year at Pepperdine, Gibbs certainly landed a prized catch in Kaneko. But the 2005 NCAA women's golf coach of the year can't make any comments about Kaneko until she signs her letter of intent.

The Sacred Hearts Academy senior was one of the two most highly sought recruits nationally, both from Hawai'i. The other is Punahou School's Stephanie Kono, who committed to UCLA.

"It's kind of neat, amazing, because Hawai'i is a small island but there are some good golfers," Kaneko said.

For Gibbs, landing Kaneko follows on the heels of getting another blue-chip recruit, Taylore Karle, from Arizona. A freshman, Karle is expected to be Pepperdine's go-to girl this season.

Karle, who played in the SBS Open at Turtle Bay on a sponsor's exemption earlier this year, also chatted up Pepperdine to Kaneko when they played for the winning West team in this summer's Canon Cup.

"We really had a good time. She said it is a good school," Kaneko said.

We caught up with Kaneko at the Waialae Country Club practice range just across the road from her home.

It was a school day, but she wasn't playing hooky. She's home-schooled, using the Internet and meeting with tutors daily. She goes to Sacred Hearts Academy's Wai'alae Avenue campus only to take exams.

"I study about six hours a day," says Kaneko, who likes the arrangement because it gives her a lot of time to work on her game.

She works with David Ishii, the 1990 Hawaiian Open champion, when he's home from Japan.

Kaneko admits her game needs improvement. It's the main reason why she decided to play collegiate golf instead of turning pro out of high school.

"I was thinking about it. But I thought I should improve my game more," she said.

She missed trying to qualify for the two LPGA events here earlier this year — the SBS Open at Turtle Bay and the Fields Open in Hawai'i at Ko Olina. She also failed to qualify for the U.S. Women's Open, which she played in the previous year.

They were good learning experiences, according to Kaneko. And one thing that sank in was that she needed to practice more and improve because the "professionals are so good. I'm not good enough to play with them."

Kaneko, who turns 18 on Jan. 24, felt she played "pretty good overall" on her three-month tour of the Mainland this summer.

She finished runner-up to Kristen Park in the U.S. Junior Girls Championship and qualified for the U.S. Women's Amateur only to lose in the first round to Kimberly Kim. Kaneko also won the AJGA Bluegrass Championship in Ashland, Ky., the week of the U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links.

As a member of a private country club, Kaneko is not eligible for the public links championship. But she had a measure of satisfaction by beating Mina Harigae, the 2007 WAPL champion, in the U.S. Junior Girls.

Her two remaining events this year will be the Turtle Bay Amateur against the men next week and her final appearance as a junior golfer in the Polo Junior Classic, an event in which Kono and Kim are also entered, next month in Florida.

Kaneko plans to Monday-qualify for the Sony Open in Hawai'i and then test her game in the Hawai'i Pearl Open. She'll apply for exemptions to play in the two LPGA events at Turtle Bay and Ko Olina or at least hopes to get invites to try to qualify for them.