Homecoming Hero

After an absence of eight years, Vijay Singh returned to the islands of his birth to participate in the Fiji International, the first notable professional event to have ever been staged in the country

The course's stunning seaside locale

Singh however hopes the Tour’s five-year commitment to hosting the Fiji International can provide the catalyst for golfing growth across the Pacific islands - evident through the tournament’s venue, the exceptional Natadola Bay golf course.

"We designed the course with the aim to host a future major tournament,” says Singh, who acted as a consultant before leaving the process in 2006 with the ocean-side course still unfinished. “I’m very happy with how it’s turned out.

"We wanted to create a tough but friendly course and I think the beautiful surroundings help distract you from the difficulty of it.”

Recalling fond memories of his golfing enthusiast father, who still plays the game aged 80, Singh followed on the coattails of his brothers by adopting the game as his first sport, shunning the advances of rugby and soccer for brotherly competition and family togetherness.

But for the Big Fijian, when it comes to golfing success, he drastically remains the exception, rather than the rule.

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Written by James Henderson

Photography by Photos courtesy of the Fiji International

Click here to see the published article.

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