Photo = Yoon Seok-woo (49 Visual Studio)
Nayeon Choi, known for her easy-going personality and being nice to people, is especially sensitive when it comes to clubs. As the saying goes, “New wine in a new bottle,” he changed clubs after a long time. The club that is like a friend to share a new life with after retirement is ‘Xexio X’.
●●● It’s already been 8 months since last year’s retirement game. You are living a second life after retirement. How have you been?
Retired is living a real life. There weren’t many retired players around me. They say that after hanging out with close players during the off season, they all leave when the tour season comes, leaving a feeling of emptiness. After hearing that, I deliberately stayed busier. In order to live a new life, he continues to meet many people and receive a lot of advice, and is living a hectic life. I recently went to the US Women’s Open, and there were feelings that passed without me noticing that I was focused as a player. Now, when I take a step back and look at the players, I feel very sorry for them. It’s cold and raining, but I have to focus on the competition and do well. I came back with one more thought that I was really good at quitting (laughs).
●●● After retiring from active duty, I’m curious about your relationship with Xexio. Predictably, Park In-bi or Kim Ha-neul? Whose recommendation is it?
Originally, I was very close with those two friends. Even during his career as a player, he sometimes felt the desire to play a little bit of the club that Inbi Park played. Inbi is a very good player, but his swing is so comfortable. He said, “If you hit it with this, maybe you can hit it well like you?” As for Inbi, he has something of pride in playing the Xexio club. I think it’s because he’s been with them for so long. That’s why he always said, “It’s good” and recommended it to his friends. He recently retired and had many opportunities to play rounds with Kim Ha-neul, but even then, he continued to hit with the Xexio club that Haneul hit. It looked pretty, and it felt really good. That’s how I became connected with Zexio.
●●● Did you change clubs often when you were a player? It must have been a long time since I changed clubs.
If I like anything, it’s a style I write for a really long time. However, I tend to change clubs often. In particular, the driver and putter were changed a lot. It’s been a while since we changed the club brand. I think it’s about 7-8 years old. Now that I have officially retired, I don’t practice as much as I did when I was a player. Unbeknownst to me, I kept looking for a more comfortable club. When I was a player, I was very sensitive, and there were times when that was shown as an advantage. Now that my playing career is over, I prefer comfortable clubs where I can get good performances without having to practice for a long time. It seems like it’s been a week since I haven’t picked up a golf club. I always thought of wanting to have a comfortable club from my address, and at that time, what was in my head was Zexio.
●●● Different tour pros have different club selection criteria. Do you have your own standards?
I like to see a lot of what the club looks like. Just as first impressions are important to people, they greatly prefer the look of a club when they first hold it or the comfort at address. When I was a player who demanded accuracy, I had no choice but to be sensitive enough to practice by 1 yard, so I used a smaller club head, but I gradually found it more comfortable to have a larger head. I didn’t know because I hadn’t even tried it before, but as I tried out Xexio X this time, I realized that there is a club that can be comfortable and demand accuracy.
●●● I’m curious about your first impression of Xexio X. From the exterior design to the address and performance, what attracted you?
To be honest, when I first saw Xexio X Driver, I was surprised that he was more handsome than I thought. It was really nice to feel the weight of the club head well when swinging. Drivers don’t like deep faces. Xexio X is a shallow face. So, when he held the driver and stood at address, he hit the ball high and felt comfortable that he could hit it well. First of all, the high trajectory was the best. When I was on tour, I deliberately changed my swing or adjusted the loft to get a higher trajectory. The Xexio X Driver has a shallow face, so I felt like it would fly high. Even when I swing really comfortably without having to deliberately hit it up, the trajectory came out so well that I was very surprised.
●●● The amount of practice has decreased compared to when he was an active player. Was the comfortable feeling of Xexio X really helpful?
I definitely don’t practice, so even though I’ve been playing golf for over 26 years, there are a few cases where I don’t hit right. There was no big difference in distance between when Xexio X was hit and when it wasn’t. They say that this is a club with good forgiveness, but since I am no longer a player, I think it is definitely necessary. Now it seems that I have no choice but to get away from sensitivity and sophistication little by little and find comfort. It is also a routine where the most difficult part after retirement has disappeared. As a player, I usually warmed up an hour to an hour and a half before teeing off, hit a practice ball, and hit my first tee shot with everything ready. But now, driving in the morning, going to the golf course, eating, and immediately going to the first hole and swinging the driver is too burdensome. Now I have faith that this driver will give me comfort instead of that burden.
●●● In particular, I know that you have been using hybrid clubs for a long time. You made a drastic change this time, is there a reason?
For me, changing a hybrid is a really big change. Probably 13 years with one club. This club is very important to me. It is also a club that I have been with since the first championship. I remember hitting at least 50 hybrid clubs during that time. Didn’t change though. I’m trying to change it this time. Since the existing hybrid has a special meaning, I plan to keep it in my house and try it with the newly changed Xexio X. To be honest, I haven’t played the Xexio X Hybrid in the field yet. I only hit it at the practice range, but the data results were really good. I like the look of the club head, and it feels good at impact.
●●● Why would you recommend the Xexio Club to an amateur golfer?
There are so many recommendations around. An amateur golfer, male or female, cannot practice like a pro. Even if you deviate a little from the regular hit, the club that can mitigate that amount of mistakes is considered Jexio and is highly recommended to those around you. It is to the point that even acquaintances who use sensitive and difficult clubs are told to change clubs. Amateur golfers should choose clubs that they are comfortable hitting and have good forgiveness.
●●● After Park Inbi, Kim Ha-neul, and Choi Na-yeon, who will be the next V157 member to play Jexio?
There are many players who are still playing active duty. I would like to recommend it because I am close to Lee Jeong-eun and Ryu So-yeon, but both are too sensitive than I thought. Since I am also on a path that is free from sensitivity, I think it would be okay to recommend these two players. In particular, since So-yeon Ryu is a player who moves regularly and deliberately, I would like to recommend her, thinking that it might be okay to let go of that sensitive part once in a while. There aren’t many players left. When the V157 members go round with each other, 3 out of 7 players play Xexio. If we lead one more player to Xexio and the score is 4-3, wouldn’t everyone want to play the Xexio club (laughs).
●●● Second life with Xexio, what kind of picture are you drawing?
Nothing concrete has been decided yet. For 26 years since he was young, he has been walking on a single path called golf. Now that I am trying to do something new again, I am very worried and burdened. My age now is not the age to retire, but the age at which I can start anything anew. I want to do a lot of things, such as broadcasting, becoming a leader, and nurturing junior players. I don’t know what I like yet, so I think it’s time to think more carefully. One thing is certain now. “I play Xexio. Choi Na-yeon also plays Xexio.”
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2023-08-02 13:06:12
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