Faith Vui aims for the top after her big win

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — It just takes a little faith when stepping up to the first tee of a big tournament. Just ask 18-year-old Faith Vui, who recently claimed the New Zealand amateur championship title, making history in the process.

Vui, who hails from Apia, became the first person of Samoan heritage to win the championship. Big events make her nervous, but she knows she’s got the skills to not only win tournaments, but to turn professional.

“I just take a big breath and try to relax myself,” she says of stepping up to the very first tee.

“But it feels good … when you hit it straight down the middle [of the fairway], because of all the pressure and nerves.”

While she wasn’t expecting to win at Hamilton Golf Club’s St Andrews course, she was “there for a reason”.

“I kept telling myself ‘one shot at a time. One person at a time’. In golf, anything can happen, right!” she says.

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