(CARLSBAD, Calif.) – Full Swing, the industry leader in pioneering sports technology, announces that Kihei Akina, standout freshman for Brigham Young University (BYU), has joined Full Swing as a player ambassador, strengthening the brand’s commitment to rising golf talent and next-generation performance innovation.
Since arriving at BYU, Akina has emerged as one of the nation’s most impressive players. During the 2025-26 season, he has posted a team-leading 68.95 scoring average through 13 events and 40 rounds, recording two individual wins, seven top-5 finishes and 10 top-10s, while shooting a career-low 63 during competition. His 21-under-par score at the Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational set a school 54-hole scoring record and highlighted his standout spring campaign.
Akina’s excellence has earned national recognition. He was named 2026 Big 12 Freshman of the Year and selected to the All-Big 12 First Team, while climbing as high as No. 6 in the NCAA individual rankings. He also posted an 8-under-par runner-up result at the Big 12 Men’s Golf Championship.
Born and raised in Hawaii, Akina was recently selected to represent the United States on the 2026 Arnold Palmer Cup team, a prestigious Ryder Cup-style international collegiate event that will be played at Ireland’s Tralee Golf Club this summer. He is one of five freshmen nationwide to make the squad.
In addition to his collegiate success, Akina has already tested his game at the professional level, making the cut and finishing tied for 16th at the PGA TOUR’s 2026 Puerto Rico Open.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Kihei to the Full Swing family,” said Jason Fierro, President of Full Swing. “His rapid ascent in the college ranks combined with his competitive drive and commitment to performance improvement embodies the spirit we celebrate in our ambassadors.”
“The Full Swing KIT is critical to my practice regimen,” said Akina, who joins No. 1-ranked junior player Miles Russell as one of Team Full Swing’s elite amateurs. “It’s helped me to better understand my swing and identify weaknesses across my bag so that I can continue to improve and play my very best.”
Named “Best All Around Golf Launch Monitor” by Sports Illustrated Golf and winner of the “Best Shot Detection” category by Golf Monthly, the fully portable Full Swing KIT can be used both indoors and outdoors. Easy to set up and powered by a 5D micro-Doppler radar, KIT delivers 16 points of precise club and ball data to help golfers analyze and improve every aspect of their game. Players can capture high-resolution, sharable video replays of every swing, view their stats on the vivid full-color OLED display and explore their progress in the Full Swing App’s 3D Virtual Range.
Premium Full Swing app subscribers also have access to Clippd Shot Quality scores. Clippd is an AI-driven performance platform used by coaches, club players, pros and more than 200 leading college golf programs. Shot Quality builds on the advances made by the popular Strokes Gained statistic, but factors in additional layers of all-important context like distance, start lie, end result, course conditions, weather and altitude.
For more information about Full Swing, visit the new Full Swing Sports website, fullswingsports.com, @fullswingsimulators (Instagram), @fullswingsgolf (YouTube).
About Full Swing
Full Swing, a proud partner of Bruin Capital, is the industry leader in pioneering sports technology. Its lineup of trailblazing golf and baseball products entertains users around the world while helping them to practice with purpose.
As the Official Licensed Simulator of the PGA TOUR and an Official Technology Partner of TGL presented by SoFi, Full Swing simulators bring unmatched real-ball-flight data to golf and 30 other immersive multi-sport experiences. The company’s KIT Launch Monitor, tested and trusted by Tiger Woods, is an indoor / outdoor practice solution that uniquely combines 16 points of club and ball data with high-resolution video. This groundbreaking technology has now been extended to baseball so KIT can calculate both pre- and post-impact data performance insights like Squared Up Rate and Potential Exit Velocity. Full Swing’s impressive roster of champions is highlighted by PGA TOUR stars like Woods, Jordan Spieth and Xander Schauffele as well as Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Steph Curry.
Stephen Reynolds
Reynolds Media Group
stephen@reynoldsmediagrp.com
703-344-6031
