Toni Hakula Explained

Toni Hakula
Birth Date:27 September 1991
Birth Place:Espoo, Finland
Height:5 ft 10 in
Weight:165lbs
Residence:Austin, Texas
College:University of Texas at Austin
Yearpro:2014
Tour:PGA Tour Americas
Extour:PGA Tour Canada
PGA Tour Latinoamérica
Prowins:3
Award1:Finnish Junior Golfer of the Year
Year1:2009
Award2:Big 12 Newcomer of the Year
Year2:2011

Toni Hakula (born 27 September 1991) is a Finnish professional golfer. He has three victories in PGA Tour-organized third-tier tours in Mexico, Ecuador and the United States. As an amateur, he won the 2012 NCAA Championship with Texas and was runner-up at The Amateur Championship in 2013.[1]

Early life and amateur career

Hakula was born in Espoo, Finland, and started playing golf when he was four years old.[1] As an amateur, Hakula pulled off two runner-up finishes on the Nordic Golf League, at the 2008 Visma Masters, 2 strokes behind Magnus Persson Atlevi, and again at the 2010 Willis Masters. He was competitive at the 2008 Junior Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Florida and finished top-20.

Between 2007 and 2013, Hakula represented Finland in international team competitions, including four European Amateur Team Championships and twice at the World Amateur Team Championship for the Eisenhower Trophy. He was runner-up individually in strokeplay at the 2008 European Boys' Team Championship, a stroke behind Lucas Bjerregaard. In 2009, he played for Europe in the Jacques Léglise Trophy, as they beat Great Britain & Ireland 14–9 at the Ganton Golf Club.

Hakula attended the University of Texas at Austin from 2010 to 2014 and played with the Texas Longhorns men's golf team. As a freshman, he was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year. In 2012, he helped Texas win the 2012 NCAA Championship alongside a three later PGA Tour players, Jordan Spieth, Dylan Frittelli and Kramer Hickok, contributing a 2–1–0 record.[2]

In 2013, Hakula was runner-up at The Amateur Championship at Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club, losing the 36-hole final to Garrick Porteous of Scotland by 6 and 5.[3] [4] He lost a six-hole playoff against Kyle Westermoreland at the Patriot All-America Invitational, and finished T-49th in the U.S. Amateur strokeplay, but lost in a playoff round to not qualify for the 64-player match play field.

He tied for 9th individually at the 2014 NCAA Division I men's golf championship, and was named to the 2014 Ben Hogan Award watch list.[5]

Professional career

Hakula turned professional in 2014 and joined the PGA Tour Canada in 2015. He played on the PGA Tour Latinoamérica between 2016 and 2023, where he won twice, in Mexico and Ecuador.[6] He also won a tournament in the 2020 LocaliQ Series in Florida.

In 2024, he joined the newly created PGA Tour Americas.

Personal life

His younger sister Anne also played golf at the University of Texas and is married to golfer Kramer Hickok.[1] [7]

Amateur wins

Source:[8]

Professional wins (3)

PGA Tour Latinoamérica wins (2)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner-up
110 Jun 2018Bupa Match Play7 and 6 Sebastián Saavedra
27 May 2023Kia Open−16 (64-76-65-67=272)1 stroke Julián Etulain

LocaliQ Series wins (1)

Team appearances

Amateur

Source:[8]

Notes and References

  1. Song . David . Toni Hakula's globe-trotting golf journey spans Europe and the Americas . 2 December 2024 . Golfweek . 29 October 2020.
  2. Web site: Men's Golf Roster: Toni Hakula . The University of Texas at Austin Athletics . 2 December 2024.
  3. Web site: R&A Championships and International Matches 2013 . 4 December 2024 . The R&A . 24 February 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230224075317/https://assets-us-01.kc-usercontent.com/c42c7bf4-dca7-00ea-4f2e-373223f80f76/5adbc123-28b7-4151-aa1b-db079606b173/2013%20Results.pdf . live.
  4. News: Porteous wins British Amateur Championship . 4 December 2024 . The Irish Times . 22 June 2013.
  5. Web site: Men's Golf senior Toni Hakula named to 2014 The Ben Hogan Award Watch List . 4 December 2024 . 2 May 2014.
  6. News: Kuivasaari . Marko . Hakula taisteli latinokiertueen turnauksen voittoon Ecuadorissa: "Olin täysin kontrollissa omasta pelistä" . Hakula battled to win Latino Tour tournament in Ecuador: "I was in complete control of my own game" . 4 December 2024 . Golfpiste . 8 May 2023 . fi.
  7. Web site: Toni Hakula Bio . PGA Tour . 4 December 2024.
  8. Web site: Toni Hakula Player Profile . World Amateur Golf Ranking . 4 December 2024.