FILE: GOLF - Sixteen year old Tadd Fujikawa , youngest ever golfer to turn professional on the PGA Tour practices for his debut

Tadd Fujikawa will become the youngest player ever to makes his professional golf debut this week in Reno, Nevada. Standing 5 foot 1 (1.55 meters) as a result of being born 3 1/2 months premature, sixteen-year-old Hawaiian Tadd Fujikawa will tee off in the Reno-Tahoe Open on Thursday as the youngest golf professional ever. Fujikawa played in last year's U.S. Open at Winged Foot after earning a spot at a sectional qualifier in his native Hawaii. He played a practice round on Tuesday (July 31) and pronounced the course in great shape. "I'm not nervous at all. My games looking pretty good. I'm feeling pretty confident. Just few more adjustments and hopefully I can do pretty well. I'm really excited about it. It's my first time as a professional and it's in the PGA Tour and there's no better place to be. The course is looking really nice and I'm really looking forward to it," he said after his round. Despite his small stature, Fujikawa, a high school junior, can power the ball 320 yards in a straight line with remarkable consistancy. In addition to his other accomplishments Fujikawa became the youngest player in 50 years to make the cut on a PGA Tour event when he beat the cutline by three strokes in the 2006 Sony Open in Hawaii. Many will be watching him closely this week in light of the struggles and difficulties of Michelle Wie, another young Hawaiian golfer in the spotlight. Wie, who was expected to take the golf world by storm, has been plagued by injury and poor results of late. Asked what his goal is for the week, Fujikawa replied, "Just to hit quality shots, just do the best that I can and hopefully I can make a few putts and a few birdies." The Reno-Tahoe Open runs through Sunday August 5th.

ITN Source | August 1, 2007

Tags:. .source. .line. .ever. .tuesday. .thursday