Michael Castillo, his first Sony Open… at 60

The great story of the day is that of Michael Castillo told on the PGA Tour website.

Head pro in Poipu Bay for 12 years, it is on this course that he knows like the back of his hand that this sixty-year-old (!) qualified on a regular basis by winning the PGA Aloha Championship in September.

Suffering from colon cancer, detected five years ago, which then migrated to the liver and lungs, he devoted the following weeks to further chemotherapy. His last rays, he suffered them in November.

This week, Michael Castillo, rather accustomed to veteran competitions, faces young pros like Tom Kim, 20, who could be his grandson, and Jordan Spieth, a three-time Major winner.

Michael plays in front of his entire family, including his father, Ron Castillo, who has participated in the Sony Open 10 times, and two of his brothers who also took part in the ritual Hawaiian stage of the PGA Tour, but failed to make the cut.

His sister Lori had won the US Junior Girls in 1979 and the US Women’s Amateur Public Links in 1980. Enough to appear in the Hawaii Golf Hall of Fame with her dad.

Michael Castillo, statements

“I thought my luck had run out many years ago,” Michael Castillo told the Associated Press (AP). “I played the PGA Aloha Championship because it was being played in Poipu. All the guys told me: you have to play it. I played well, I putt well, there was 40 km/h of wind and I birdied on 18 to win.

After his last treatment, this fall, Michael Castillo felt fit. And last week, while welcoming in Kapalua the 39 sizes of the Sentry Tournament of Champions, he found time to putt to prepare for the Sony Open in Waialae. Whatever happens on Friday night, he will have brought honor to his whole family.

LIV Golf, also known as the Super Golf League, is a professional golf circuit. It was founded in 2022, with the sponsorship of the Public Investment Fund (it is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia) 1. The circuit rivals the PGA Tour (United States) and the DP World Tour (Europe), offering substantially higher prize money.

The name LIV refers to the total number of holes to be played in each event (54 in Roman numerals, corresponding to 3 rounds of 18 holes), as opposed to the usual 72 holes (4 rounds of 18 holes) on other tours. Alternatively, 54 is the score obtained by scoring a birdie on every hole on a par 72.2 round.