The hilarious story of how Masters competitor got the nickname 'Fifa'
· Yahoo Sports
AUGUSTA, Ga. — Fifa Laopakdee has perhaps the most interesting name of the 2026 Masters.
Visit moryak.biz for more information.
The junior at Arizona State is one of six amateurs teeing it up this week at Augusta National. He earned his spot in the field thanks to his victory at the Asia-Pacific Amateur, where he won on the third playoff hole with a birdie. He's the first Thai amateur to play in the Masters, as well.
He goes by the nickname "Fifa," but his birth name is Pongsapak. He got the nickname from his parents, and Laopakdee told the hilarious story of how he got his nickname on Monday, April 6, during his pre-tournament news conference at the Augusta National Golf Club.
"My dad is a huge soccer fan, and he was choosing between Fifa from FIFA World Cup and Uefa from UEFA Champions League," Laopakdee said.
"So luckily (I) ended up with Fifa."
It's the second straight year an amateur from Arizona State has been in the Masters field. In 2025, Josele Ballester made his debut as the defending U.S. Amateur champion.
In addition to Ballester, there have been plenty of former ASU players for Laopakdee to rely on for advice ahead of his first start at Augusta National.
"There's a lot of ASU alumni that have played this event," Laopakdee said. "I'm lucky enough to talk to them and talked back in ASU, like Josele, and I played with Jon Rahm at the start of January. It's been an honor to have those kinds of guys in town and practice alongside you and give you any answers. They're happy enough to answer all my questions, all my concerns, and give me all the tips and other strategies to use this week."
Perhaps Fifa can avoid red cards this week and hoist a trophy for Low Amateur come Sunday, April 12.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Hilarious story of how this Masters competitor got the nickname 'Fifa'