Turned professional in 2011 at 16 years of age, making his professional debut at the 2011 Australian PGA Championship.

When he first moved to the U.S. in the mid-2010s, lived in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida (45 minutes outside of Orlando metro), where he played and practiced at Bishops Gate Golf Academy (now known as the International Junior Golf Academy).

Has played golf with eight-time NBA All-Star Yao Ming.

The Athletics (in Oakland at the time) invited him to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at a 2015 game when Haotong was in nearby Hayward, California for the Korn Ferry Tour's Stonebrae Classic. He had never thrown a baseball, so he practiced throwing in his hotel parking lot the night before. He had an early tee time Friday and then put on the A's jersey and threw out the first pitch Friday night prior to the A's-Twins game.