1. use CPAN! This includes using CGI as well as the strict and warnings pragmas.
2. Insert the items by columns then rows -- not by rows and then columns.

use strict;
use warnings;
use CGI::Pretty qw(:standard);

my $total_cells   = 517; # would be recordset
my $display_cells = $total_cells / 15;
my $row_count     = 10;
my $col_count     = $display_cells / $row_count;
my $col_lable     = 1;
my $nav_count     = 15;

my @table;
for my $c (0..$col_count) {
   for my $r (0..$row_count-1) {
      $table[$r]->[$c] = ($nav_count < $total_cells)
         ? a{href=>"mypage.html?nav=$nav_count"},$col_lable
         : '&nbsp;'
      ;
      $col_lable += 1;
      $nav_count += 15;
    }
}

print header,
   start_html('Build Table.pl'),
   table({cellpadding=>4,border=>1}, map {Tr[td[@$_]]} @table),
   end_html,
;
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jeffa

L-LL-L--L-LL-L--L-LL-L--
-R--R-RR-R--R-RR-R--R-RR
B--B--B--B--B--B--B--B--
H---H---H---H---H---H---
(the triplet paradiddle with high-hat)