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Beyond the Fairways

Positive force
   of Feng’s way

The second women’s major for the year might prove to be a tournament that changes the picture of international golf. KAREN HARDING reports on the new face of the sport.
So, the name Shanshan Feng has been inscribed on the 2012 Wegmans LPGA Championship trophy and the story told of her first major, also her first LPGA Tour win. It is a great story, as the stories of all winners are, but there is more to it than just that. The story of Feng’s journey from promising young player to major winner is also the story of the development of golf in her homeland, China.

China has long languished behind its Asian neighbours Japan and South Korea when it comes to golf. Japan, of course, has had some notable players through the years, including Chako Higuchi, who won this event in 1977, and a number of current stars on the LPGA. South Korea’s emergence was headed by Se Ri Pak whose three LPGA Championships (1998, 2002, 2006) remain, surprisingly, the only ones captured by this now

Shanshan “Jenny” Feng flew the flag for China at the
Wegmans LPGA Championship

dominant golfing country.

To give an idea of where China stands, for instance, consider this: South Korea reportedly has in excess of 6000 – yes, 6000 – women professional golfers while China has less than 100. And the first golf course in China was opened in 1984, just five years before Feng was born. At 22, Feng is considered a young major winner but the game of golf in China is, relatively speaking, still in its infancy.

What has been achieved in its 27 years, however, is nothing short of phenomenal. Visionaries such as David Chu, the man behind Mission Hills, have paved the way for golf to thrive. Despite a 2004 directive from the Ministry of Land and Resources banning further golf course construction because of land use concerns, the number of courses built since has trebled to around 600, over 100 of them in Beijing.

The growth of the Chinese economy created, amongst other things, an expanded middle class with the resources to enjoy golf. It is estimated that there are around 600,000 golf club members on mainland China with this figure tipped to increase each year in the foreseeable future by 20%. This is despite the average membership fee coming in at approximately $US38,000.

There are a number of junior programs underway and high quality coaches are in demand. Hank Haney, for example, has opened a golf academy at Mission Hills Haikou.

The fledgling China LPGA Tour, established in late 2008, hosted six events in 2009 and is hopeful of 20 events in 2013. Its aim is to emulate the success of the South Korean model, grooming players

Shanshan “Jenny” Feng flew the flag for China at the
Wegmans LPGA Championship

in their numbers for success on the world stage.

Which brings us back to Feng. When she was growing up, there were few golf coaches available and practice facilities were limited. From 12 years of age, Feng, whose father worked for the local golf association, attended school from 8am till 5pm before being driven to the local range where she would hit 200 balls in two hours while she and her father tried to work out her swing. Despite these limitations, she won the China Amateur Tournament three times as well as the China Youth Championship.

It was not until she moved to America in her late teens, however, firstly attending the International Junior Golf Academy and then hooking up with Gary Gilchrist, that her game began to move forward in leaps and bounds. Gilchrist, incidentally, is also the coach of Yani Tseng, against whom

Feng has competed since she was 13; he now has the distinction of coaching the last two LPGA Championship winners.

Since her 2008 LPGA Tour debut aged 19, Feng, who likes to be known as Jenny Feng – “Don’t I look like a Jenny?” – has shown steady improvement but in 2011 reached a new level, losing a third-hole playoff for the LPGA Mizuno Classic, winning twice

in Japan, running second in the China Ladies Open and reaching 13 on world rankings.

Her win in the Wegmans LPGA Championship caught some spectators by surprise but not those in the golfing know. Earlier this year, Feng became the first Chinese player to win on the Ladies European Tour and on the LPGA Tour has had three top-10s and made every cut. When you’re

Shanshan “Jenny” Feng flew the flag for China at the
Wegmans LPGA Championship

as consistent as that, sooner or later victory comes a-knockin’. And now it has, big-time.

Feng joins Pak and Tseng as players whose first win was also this particular major and moves to fifth on world rankings. Just as Pak’s success ignited interest in golf in South Korea, Feng hopes to inspire her countrywomen.

“Hopefully it’s going to help golf in China,” she said after her historic victory. “I want to be a model that the other players can follow my steps and get on the LPGA.”

Can China overtake South Korea? “There are good players from China, right now. I became the first but I’m sure there will be a second, third, more people winning in the States and winning majors. I believe in the future China will be one of the strongest countries in golf,” said Feng, smiling broadly.

Boy, Zhang's a talent

In the same week that Shanshan Feng created history, a 14-year-old boy further emphasised China's position as the coming force in world golf.

Andy Zhang became the youngest person ever to qualify for the US Open and took his place in the field against Woods, Furyk, Els and other icons of the game.

Born in Beijing, Zhang showed such promise that at ten he moved to Florida to attend the David Leadbetter Golf Academy.

After a nervous start with a triple bogey on the first and shooting eight over in his first five holes, Zhang showed composure to be only one over for his final 13 holes in an opening round 79. He followed with seven over 77 – but nobody really expected him to do any better.

Zhang is following Liang Wen-Chong into a professional career. Liang had a top ten finish in the US PGA Championship of 2010 and when he won the Thailand Open soon after, he moved to a career high world ranking of 57. He's done little since and has slipped to number 387 but was the first male player from China to break into the top 100 – it's a good bet he won't be the last.

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