SEATTLE — Avi Singh’s approach to golf is much like his famous second cousin’s.
He practices all aspects of the game every day. And then practices some more.
Singh hits balls for two-and-a-half hours after practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Puetz Golf driving range on Aurora Avenue North in Seattle. On Wednesdays, he works at Puetz. He also spends an hour on the putting green daily and hits 700 range balls on a typical weekend.
Singh believes golf is a game that when you’re under pressure you either make a shot or miss a shot.
“I don’t want to miss. That’s why I practice so much,” said Singh, who also scours the Internet and watches The Golf Channel to add to his knowledge of the game.
The Shorecrest junior’s intense work habits mirror those of his mother’s cousin, Vijay Singh, the Fiji-born touring pro, known for his attention to detail. Singh has won three PGA majors and supplanted Tiger Woods as the world’s top-ranked player for 32 weeks in 2004-2005.
Avi, 16, also born in Fiji, had watched golf on television and followed Vijay’s career, but didn’t take up the sport until a week before the season started his freshman year
As a freshman, Singh played bogey golf and was named Shorecrest’s most improved player. He loved it and started practicing regularly. Since then, he’s knocked about 10 to 15 strokes off his 18-hole average, Shorecrest coach Brian Story said.
“It’s a testament to his practice regimen, his diligence,” Story said. “He practices twice as hard as the other guys.”
If Singh has a bad round, he’ll hit a few hundred balls with the club that’s been giving him trouble, Story said.
The most important thing for Singh is to establish a rhythm with his swing.
“When your rhythm is off you can’t do what you want to do,” he said.
Singh shot par to earn medalist honors for the first time in his career, March 13 at Ballinger Lakes Golf Course. He had two birdies in the round.
“That was a big one for me confidence-wise,” he said.
Last year, Singh was an alternate to state. He barely missed a putt on the second hole of a sudden death playoff at the 3A Northwest District tournament at Bellingham Country Club.
He traveled to Spokane to practice at the Creek at Qualchan Golf Course, the site of the 3A tournament, and watch teammate Jens Bracht compete. Vijay sent a friend of his to help Avi with his game before state. Those experiences made Avi more determined to earn a trip himself this season.
“I saw the players and saw how good they were,” he said.
Bracht, a sophomore and junior golf veteran who has played in invite-only tournaments in Arizona and California, said Singh has dropped his scores from the mid 80s to the high 70s on 18 holes.
“He’s learning a lot, improving all the time,” Bracht said.
Shorecrest, led by Bracht and Singh, finished third in the Western Conference South Division last year. The Scots’ varsity five are only two strokes back of perennial power Jackson after two league matches this season, Story said.
Singh plans to transition into Washington Junior Golf Association events and other junior tournaments after the high school season.
“My summer is packed with junior events week after week,” he said.
Avi’s family came to the United States from Fiji, a south Pacific island group of about 900,000 people, in April 2000.
There are only three golf courses in Fiji, Avi said.
Avi’s aunt, Neelam, who lives in Shoreline, sponsored his father, Ranjeet, and mother, Arun, when they immigrated to the U.S. to provide better opportunities for Avi and his two brothers, Aran, 19 and, Ravi, 11.
“They wanted me to get a good education and wanted me to be successful,” said Avi, who along with the rest of his family became an American citizen last month.
His interest in golf has taken off quickly and “we’re all supportive of it,” said his brother Aran.
Avi said he drives well, has a decent short game and sometimes struggles with putting.
He studies video clips of Vijay’s drives and said he tries “to do some things he does with my game.” However, Avi, who stands 5-foot, 10 inches, four inches shorter than Vijay, usually uses players his size to model his swing after, such as Retief Goosen.
The last time Avi spoke to Vijay in person was at a relative’s home in California two years ago. Singh rarely makes it up to the Northwest and the PGA Tour doesn’t have a stop here this season. However, Singh won his first major, the PGA Championship, at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish in 1998.
Vijay was a five handicap at age 18, noted Avi, who is a five-handicap right now. He dreams of following in his cousin’s footsteps as a pro someday.
“I wouldn’t practice so hard if I didn’t have a big goal,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what tour it is. I just love playing golf.”
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