In the same year the World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, a Thai golfer named after world football’s governing body Fifa will make his Major championship debut at the Masters.
Fifa Laopakdee’s father, a devoted football fan, named his son after Fifa – and that name will be on the tee sheet when the year’s first golf Major gets underway tomorrow at Augusta National.
“My dad is a huge soccer fan, and he as choosing between Fifa from Fifa World Cup and Uefa from Uefa Champions League,” Laopakdee said. “So luckily it ends up with at Fifa.”
Laopakdee earned his Masters invitation by winning the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Dubai last October, becoming the first Thai player to claim the title.
He went into the final round six strokes off the lead but birdied the 17th and 18th holes to force a playoff. He then birdied all three playoff holes to win, securing spots in this year’s Masters and British Open.
On his arrival at Augusta national this week, the 21-year-old Laopakdee was greeted by a locker wedged between those of five-time Masters champion Tiger Woods and two-time Major winner Bryson DeChambeau. “To be walking into the locker room today, and my locker is between Tiger and Bryson. That’s a lot to soak in,” he said. “I definitely took a picture of that.”
Laopakdee had a January practice session with Jon Rahm, the 2023 Masters winner, and other former Arizona State stars.
That helped him keep his cool during his first official Masters practice round.
“I was pretty calm and collected on the course. I didn’t feel a lot of nerves because I was trying to go out there and have fun, be myself,” he said.
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