The story behind Ricky Castillo’s puka shells and the rookie’s special connection to Hawaii

Ricky Castillo was in second grade when his dad, Mark, took the family on vacation to Hawaii.

For the Castillos, the trip had special meaning.

Mark Castillo (pronounced Ca-still-e-o) was around Ricky’s age when he briefly lived in Kauai after his parents, Orlino and Lydia, returned to the island from Southern California to stay with Lydia’s mother in the town of Hanamaulu, near the Lihue airport. On the west side of Kauai sits Kaumakani, where both Orlino and Lydia worked on sugar cane plantations with their families after immigrating from the Philippines post-World War II.

For Mark and wife Kim, both teachers, it was a chance for their three kids – Derek, the oldest; Ricky, the middle child; and Kelli, the youngest and only girl – to experience their hardscrabble roots.

“I just remember being grateful just seeing the houses that my grandparents lived in,” Ricky remembered. “They were rundown. … It wasn’t the most glorious life. It was kind of dirty and old, but they made it work and worked hard for us to get to where we are today.”

Added Mark in a New York Times article in 2020: “I wanted our kids to see the plantation before they tore down the houses. I wanted them to understand the people who came before us worked very hard so you could have what you have.”

Ricky Castillo, now 23, finds himself, for the first time since that family vacation, back in Hawaii for this week’s Sony Open on Oahu, the island just east of westernmost Kauai. It’s not Castillo’s first Tour start – the former All-American and Walker Cupper out of the University of Florida played in the 2020 U.S. Open and last season’s Valspar Championship – but it’s his debut as a full-fledged member after graduating from the Korn Ferry Tour last year.

Ricky credits much of his golf success to Lydia, who was a constant presence at the boys’ junior golf tournaments. When Mark and Kim needed help funding an expensive national schedule, Lydia would handle the bill. She’d also pick the kids up from school most days and drop the boys at the golf course to practice until their parents got off work.

Lydia Castillo passed away in 2014 at age 71, when Ricky was in middle school.

“She was super, super influential on my life,” Ricky said. “You know, sad that she is not here and can’t be here to watch this. I’m happy that my first start is going to be able to be out here in Hawaii and feel like a part of her is always with me.”

It usually is. When Ricky was 5 years old, Lydia once brought a puka-shell necklace back from Hawaii. While the necklace has been replaced multiple times over the years, Ricky has not taken the puka shells off. It’s become his trademark.

“I get some backlash from it at times,” Ricky said, “but I love wearing it, and it’s cool that I always feel like she’s right here.”

Mark and the family planned to fly out Wednesday morning from Yorba Linda to Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, where they’ll reunite with Ricky and Derek, who hopped on his brother’s bag last July, and some relatives who still live in Hawaii, including one of Ricky’s uncles.

“There is a bakery that is really close to his place, and I’m having him bring some ensaymadas,” Ricky said, referencing the popular Filipino pastry.

Even more to make him feel at home.