Who is Kazuki Higa? 5 things to know about golfer participating at PGA Championship 2023

Kazuki Higa started the first round of the PGA Championship strong. After making PAR on his first hole (number 10), he strung together four birdies in a row to momentarily take the lead of the tournament.

However, he was unable to finish any other hole under PAR. Bogeys on holes 17, 7, 8, 9, and double bogey on 6, made him drop significantly in the leaderboard. He finished 2-over 72 and, for now, is in T27.

Nevertheless, his performance so far deserves to delve a little deeper into the career of this golfer, quite unknown in the PGA Tour circuit.

Here are five interesting facts about Kazuki Higa:

1. Kazuki Higa, 28, was born in Okinawa, Japan in 1995. He is 5´ 2" tall. However, he averages over 290 yards off the tee.
2. Higa started playing when he was a child in Okinawa. He attended Tohoku Fukushi University, the same Alma Mater as another professional golfer, Hideki Matsuyama.
3. Higa made the Japanese national team in 2016 and competed at the 2016 Eisenhower Trophy. His teammates were Junya Kameshiro and Takumi Kanaya. They scored 3-under 569 and finished 23rd.
4. Higa is sponsored by more than one firm. Bridgestone, Nippon, Ulticore, and Mitsubishi Chemical are his principal sponsors.
5. His career´s best ranking on the Official World Golf Ranking is 67th.

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Kazuki Higa's professional career

Kazuki Higa has not yet obtained his PGA Tour card. In this circuit he has participated in only seven events, making the cut in just three of them. His best finish is T36 at the 2022 ZOZO Championship.

Kazuki Higa getting ready for putting a birdie at the 12th hole. 2023 PGA Championship (Image via Getty).

Before teeing off at the current edition of the PGA Championship, Higa had participated in only two previous majors: the 2022 Open Championship and The Masters in 2023. In both of them, he was cut.

On the other hand, in the PGA Tour China, he participated in two events, making the cut in both. His best result was T28 at the 2018 Kunming Championship.

Most of Higa's professional career, which began in 2017, has been spent on the Japan Golf Tour. There he won six tournaments: the 2019 RIZAP KBC Augusta, the 2021 Shigeo Nagashima Invitational Sega Sammy Cup, the 2022 Japan Tour Order of Merit, the 2022 Kansai Open Golf Championship, the 2022 BMW Japan Golf Tour Championship, and the 2022 Shinhan Donghae Open and Dunlop Phoenix.