A competition near the Hawaiian coast is always a windy one, and this week’s LOTTE Championship is no exception. Located less than one mile inland from the Pacific Ocean, the winds have truly been a factor at Hoakalei Country Club. Some players said they had practiced low-trajectory shots well before they made the long flight West.
“You expect like it's going to be windy in Hawaii, so I actually practiced a lot of low shots towards the target when I was in Orlando, so that really helped,” said Haeji Kang. “I think I could use that really nicely.”
“I got out my launch monitor on Tuesday and we practiced a lot of low sort of fades, a lot of low draws,” said Australian Sarah Kemp. “There's quite a lot of crosswinds out here, too, so you've really got to flight your ball certain ways.”
“I would say it's so tough, you know, because it's really windy. Especially like even I play in the morning yesterday it's still really windy,” added. “I just have to keep my ball low and like adjust like the wind and, you know, just play with the wind.”
Scottish native Gemma Dryburgh joked that the conditions were like being back home, other than the sun and heat. But for Ariya Jutanugarn, she’s chosen to focus as much as she can on the club in her hand rather than the wind at her back.
“I'm not really thinking about like practice my low shot, because I kind of think if I want to do it I be able to do it,” she said. “So it's just like, you know, make sure I have a good decision, like what club I'm going to hit to the green.”
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