A shot above the Maui wildfire, my grandparents’ hometown “I run with the utmost faith”

Interview with Morikawa, who hit his ‘first tee shot’ at the first tournament of the 2024 PGA season, wearing a red ribbon hat to ‘help fire victims’ Buddy – Every time I catch an eagle, I raise money for the recovery fund. “Maui will always be in my heart” “I want to have Byeonghun Ahn’s driving skills.”

Colin Morikawa wore a red ribbon on his hat (in a circle) to comfort the victims of the forest fire on Maui Island, Hawaii, and participated in ‘The Sentry’, the opening match of the 2024 season of the PGA Tour. The PGA Tour office entrusted the first tee shot of the tournament held on Maui to Morikawa, whose grandparents were from the island.

“It meant more to me because this was Maui.”

Colin Morikawa (27, USA), whom I met on the 9th at Kapalua Resort on Maui Island, Hawaii, USA, said this about his feelings about hitting the tee shot to open the season at ‘The Sentry’, the first tournament of the 2024 PGA Tour.

Maui Island is where Morikawa’s parents’ house is located. Morikawa’s grandfather and grandmother were both born and raised in Lahaina, Maui, and ran restaurants there. His father was also born here. Lahaina, the capital during the Kingdom of Hawaii, lost about 100 people during the Maui forest fire last year. Considering these circumstances, the PGA Tour office, which is contributing to the local reconstruction project, gave Morikawa the opportunity to hit his first tee shot of the season.

Morikawa, who participated in the interview wearing a hat with a red ribbon to express his condolences to forest fire victims, said, “Maui Island is like a ‘symbol’ to me. When I compete here, my desire to do well is even greater. “So it felt even more of an honor to have the opportunity to hit my first tee shot of the season on Maui,” she said. Morikawa, who accumulated a recovery fund every time he caught a birdie ($2,000) and an eagle ($4,000) during the competition, finished the competition in a tie for 5th place with Seongjae Lim (26) and posted on Instagram, “Lahaina will always be in my heart.” He also left a message saying:

Morikawa said, “This honor of hitting the first tee shot of the season on Maui will be a great psychological help as I go through the season,” and she said, “My goal for this season is to win at least three games.” Morikawa, who debuted on the PGA Tour in 2019, has a total of 6 wins, including 2 wins in major tournaments. He has won at least one win every season except for the 2021-2022 season, but has never recorded three wins in a season yet.

Morikawa said, “I always approach the game with the belief that ‘I am the best in the world.’ From a young age, he always had the desire to win competitions, so he trained constantly. “That training helped me believe that I could be number one again,” he said. “Rather than trying to be good at everything, I tend to try to maximize my strengths. In this way, I was able to refine my iron shots more precisely. “The secret to winning is to reduce the number of strokes through iron shots,” he said. Morikawa’s green hit rate last season was 71%, ranking 7th among PGA Tour players. He also dropped the ball at an average distance of 10.3m from the hole with a wedge shot, which ranks 5th in this category.

On the other hand, the average drive distance last season was 296 yards (approximately 271 m), ranking only 134th. Morikawa said, “I don’t think my performance will change much if my drive distance increases by a few yards,” but added, “I would like to have An Byeong-Hoon’s (33) drive skills if I can.” Byung-Hoon An ranked 8th in average driving distance (316 yards) on the PGA Tour last season.

He chose Lim Seong-jae as his favorite Korean player. Morikawa said, “Lim Seong-jae rarely misses shots. “The way Lim Seong-jae plays the game is often interesting,” he said. “I envy Lim Seong-jae’s unwavering putting skills.” Morikawa has experience playing rounds with Seongjae Lim at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

Morikawa also reiterated that he has no intention of joining LIV Golf. He said, “The PGA Tour is where the world’s best players gather and compete. He also said, “It is the best tour in the world with all the conditions, including fantastic courses all over the world,” adding, “There is no better place than this.” 스포츠토토맨