Shoply "Proud of Olympic Gold"..."Dad's Heart is at Ease~"

At the FedEx St. Jude Invitational Press Conference: "My Brightest Moment"

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] "The brightest moment."

Zander Shofley (USA, photo) proudly showed off his Tokyo Olympic gold medal. On the 4th (Korean time), at a press conference held ahead of the World Golf Championships (WGC) FedEx St. Jude Invitational (total prize money $10.5 million) opening at Southwind Golf Club in Memphis, Tennessee (par 70, 7,233 yards), he immediately took the gold medal out of his pocket and hung it around his neck as soon as he sat down. Everyone, including reporters and staff, gave a round of applause.

Shofley joked, "My father likes the gold medal so much that I think it will be hard for me to keep it," and explained, "Actually, it means more to my parents than to me." Shofley's father, Stephan, was a decathlete in Germany but missed the Olympics due to a traffic accident. His mother was born in Taiwan and moved to Japan at the age of two. His maternal grandparents still live in Tokyo. In a way, he fulfilled his father's unachieved Olympic gold medal dream in his mother's hometown.

The FedEx St. Jude Invitational has intensified the competition with the addition of many 'Olympic non-participants' such as world No. 2 Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka (both USA). Justin Thomas is defending his title, and 'The Open Champion' Collin Morikawa and 'Masters Champion' Hideki Matsuyama (Japan) have also joined. Shofley said, "The Olympic gold medal has been a great strength for me," and added, "I am ready to win again on this stage."