LPGA star Charley Hull has famously quit smoking.
She even went so far as to bet a fellow pro $10,000 that she would stay away from cigarettes.
In the process, it seems Hull has found other ways to unwind.
After landing in Utah this week ahead of the Black Desert Championship in Ivins, Hull headed for the hills, hiking Snow Canyon State Park outside of St. George.
“I like to learn about the different rocks. Obviously everything here is just pretty cool,” she said about her unorthodox preparation. “There were some ... petrified sand dunes. It was pretty cool. Like we were walking on them and I just love being out there. I’m definitely a hiking kind of person.”
This is Hull’s first trip to Utah, as it is the state’s first time hosting an LPGA tour event since 1964. And the world’s 14th-ranked golfer said she was stunned by the burnt orange vista surrounding the area.
“I’m obviously from England and I love green grass and trees. It’s a bit of a shock to the system seeing the red rock,” she said. “But it’s pretty unbelievable to look at every morning. You just keep on staring at it.”
We’ll see how much Hull and the rest of the field enjoy the scenery after the weekend’s competition.
Black Desert, which opened last year and hosted a PGA Tour event in the fall, is cut out from an ancient lava field that saddles almost every fairway, making it a challenging stop.
“Have to be very accurate obviously because of the lava around it,” Hull said. “I think I’ve only hit four drivers. That’s all it’s been. So it feels quite weird. I went until the seventh hole yesterday without hitting a driver.”
It wasn’t a problem for Korea’s Haeran Ryu, who shot nine-under to take the early lead on Thursday.
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Spectators travel the course during the second round of the Black Desert Championship PGA Tour golf tournament in Ivins, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024.
Hull, meanwhile, shot two under par to move into a tie for 40th.
But as for the views, maybe another hike will help.
“It’s proper strange,” she said. “Obviously used to looking at green grass, and out here you [don’t have] like normal color mountains. You’ve got the red rock, the black as well, around the golf course. It’s pretty mind-blowing when you look at it. It’s definitely a really, really cool place to come.”