An Olympic Bronze medalist, winner of six LPGA Tour titles, six Ladies European Tour titles and so many more trophies have already made Shanshan Feng a powerhouse in golf. Coming to the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters as a defending champion the 27-year-old is aiming to have fun and and play with minimum pressure. Worldwide Golf caught up with her ahead of the tournament at Emirates Golf Club.
Worldwide Golf: Tell us about your partnership with OMEGA and how it benefits you career-wise as well as on a personal level.
Shanshan Feng: I would say the OMEGA makes really good watches, and since I am with them I get to choose some of the watches that I really like. The watches can go with all different outfits, like when I play golf I would wear one with a leather straps which looks more sporty and when I go to parties I would pick one which would be more sparkly to suit my dresses. After I signed with OMEGA it really brought me a lot of good luck; before I signed with them I won two tournaments and after partnering the company I won 15 tournaments worldwide, including a Major! And of course I got a Bronze medal at the Olympics. I think OMEGA and I grew up together and also one of the things that inspire me about the company is that even though they are such a great business they always aim to be better.
I follow the same path; I may be one of the top five in the world but there is always a room for improvement. Right now I can only give myself 90 out of 100 as I still think that I have space to grow up. We are a great match and we get along very well and hopefully we are going to grow up in the future.
WWG: You have won a Bronze medal at the Olympics, how was your experience there and what were your aims at the time?
SF: Actually before I went to Rio I did not set any goals because I did not play very well on the first half of the year and my World Ranking dropped outside of the top 10 and I did not expect to finish the Games with a medal at the end of the week. But I knew that all of the Chinese people would be watching because this time golf is back in the Olympics so it would be displayed on all the media outlets in the country.
I made sure that even though my form was not great I would be smiling, and because of I was not expecting much from myself I was more relaxed and I brought my A game again, and maybe OMEGA brought me good luck because they were the official time keeper of the Olympic Games.
WWG: How well are you prepared for the OMEGA Dubai Ladies Masters?
SF: After the Olympics my confidence level went high and recently I have been playing very well. I have had some really good memories here after winning the title multiple times in Dubai. But coming back as a defending champion I know that more pressure will be on me than the others and a lot of people are expecting me to win again. However, I really like playing in this golf course and my plan is to enjoy the ride and hopefully I will be in good form. This year we have a lot of top players in this tournament and that will make things more interesting and I am sure that it is going to be a fun week.
WWG: It has been a very successful season for you, how do you keep up your good form?
SF: Personally I do not work out that much but I do have my physiotherapist who travels with me to all the LPGA tournaments. Having him with me helps me to avoid injuries to make sure that I can play as long as I want, so I feel great physically. I make sure that I have enough time to rest, eat well and sleep well. When I am in my hotel room I always watch funny TV shows that would make laugh to relieve the pressure
So happy to come back and especially have my Chinese fellow golfer Muni He here this year! #odlm @omegagolfdubai pic.twitter.com/9nadpVHgVZ
— Shanshan Feng (@shanshanfengCHN) December 5, 2016
During tournaments I do not look at the leaderboards, I woud only want to know where I am at on the final round. When I set goals I do not aim for the win, I aim for a top five finish, it is a very comfortable goal which will keep me patient and focused but more importantly I will not be burdened by the pressure.
WWG: What are your targets for the next season?
SF: I want to win at least one more Major. I know that I have already got one but that was four years ago. I have not played well in Majors this year. So my main aim to claim one Major at least, which will help me qualify for the Hall of Fame.
