Colombian Nico Echavarría Makes Emotional Call to Parents After Winning PGA Tour in Japan
INZAI, JAPAN - OCTOBER 27: Nico Echavarria of Colombia hits his tee shot on the 17th hole during the final round of the Zozo Championship 2024 at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club on October 27, 2024 in Inzai, Chiba, Japan. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
For Nico Echavarría, winning the 2024 Zozo Championship was big. Being able to share his win with his parents, however, was even bigger. Echavarría, who is from Colombia, was able to call his parents and celebrate with them that he had not just won, but he’d defeated one of the best players in the world to do so.
“My parents are at home in Medellin and it’s pretty late there. They stayed up all night watching the golf and I’m glad they did,” Echavarría said after his win, according to Golf Week. “Yeah, very happy and emotional just being able to talk to them because my parents are the reason I play this beautiful sport.”
Echavarría won his first PGA Tour title last year, at the Puerto Rico Open. The Zozo Championship is his second PGA Tour title. To win, he shot a 3-under 67 at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Inzai City, outside of Tokyo, Japan.
It hasn’t been a great season for Echavarría, who has only placed in the top 10 in one tournament and has missed three cuts in his last four. However, the Zozo Championship seemed to be just what the doctor ordered for his confidence, as he shot to 64s and then a 65 for a two-stroke lead going into the final day. And then, when the pressure was really on, Echavarría managed a 67 to edge former world No. 1 Justin Thomas and rookie Max Greyserman by one shot.
He finished the tournament with a 20-under 260, breaking the previous mark set by Tiger Woods in 2019.
His parents were very, very happy to hear from Echavarría, who called them right after he clinched his victory. “We are very happy,” his mom can be heard saying in the video as he cries. “We are going to Augusta,” she also says, as she tells him to cry if he needs to. The Augusta comment is a reference to the Masters Tournament, one of the four men’s major golf championships in professional golf. Players who win a major championship are typically invited.
“I love you guys,” Echavarría tells his parents, visibly trying to hold it together, before ending the call.
