Inside the ropes with: Feng Shanshan

Feng Shanshan chips the ball during the third round of the ANA Inspiration golf tournament at Mission Hills Country Club in California, on April 3, 2021. PHOTO: REUTERS/USA TODAY SPORTS

Age: 31

Country: China

Former world No. 1 and 10-time winner on LPGA Tour


Q: Favourite athlete not in golf?

A: Li Na (retired Chinese tennis player). As a professional athlete, I understand how hard it is out there. She's an Asian but she was able to beat the bigger Europeans and won two Grand Slams. She's a very good role model.

Q: Did you pick up any new skill or hobby during Covid?

A: I started to play more games on my Nintendo Switch, like Overcooked, and that got me through Covid. I also slept a lot, sometimes up to 14 hours a day.

Q: Best putting tip for amateurs?

A: Spend more time practising your distance control. If it's good, you won't have many three-putts. For amateurs, three- or four-putts are killing them. If you can two-putt and sometimes get lucky and make just one putt, that's going to help your game a lot.

Q: Favourite for gold medal at Tokyo Olympics?

A: (Defending champion Park) In-bee is looking good right now. She's playing really well. And Lydia (Ko) is also playing much better since she changed her coach. Both of them I'm expecting to do really well. For the younger ones, I think Nelly Korda is another to watch out for.

Q: Holiday destination when the pandemic is over?

A: I'll want to visit my family in China and spend time with them at home.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.