KPMG Women's PGA Championship
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KPMG Women's PGA Championship Wednesday, June 23, 2021 Atlanta, Georgia, USA Atlanta Athletic Club Shanshan Feng SHANSHAN FENG: Well, I think it's playing longer, but the good thing about it is the greens are very soft, so it allows Press Conference us to really go for the pins. Even though maybe I'm using like a 3-wood on to the green but still my balls can stop. I mean, it's good or not. THE MODERATOR: Here with Rolex Rankings No. 17 Yeah, but I would say that I've had a few good weeks this Shanshan Feng, here as our 2012 KPMG Women's PGA season so far. Had a little chance at the U.S. Open, also, winner and the Olympic bronze medalist. It's been a hot so I'm kind of confident about my game right now. couple days here in Atlanta, but you said you're just going to practice today. How are you feeling as you get ready for I'm just really enjoying all the time that I can spend on the this major championship? course with my boss and all the other playing partners in my team because I had like 14 months off. Really missed SHANSHAN FENG: Well, I came in Sunday night, and I everything on the Tour. So now I'm just trying to enjoy, played nine holes on Monday and 18 holes in the pro-am and I'm note focusing on the results. yesterday. I think this is a really, really beautiful golf course, and I knew that they actually held quite a few PGA Q. What is it like to see the fans back out there? It Championships here before, but it's the first time for the was such a strange year and all the fans at Olympic ladies here, so I'm very honored to be here. Club and last week at Meijer and now coming back here, that's going to be a good feeling to see everyone It's a very challenging course, especially with all the outside the ropes again. moisture on the ground. All the rain that they got in the past, I don't know, few weeks, and the course was playing SHANSHAN FENG: Well, I wasn't at Meijer, so I didn't really long yesterday. I would say it would be a very know that. We actually had fans at Meijer? challenging week and also a very exciting week. Q. We did, and so many fans around that final green at THE MODERATOR: You mentioned the fact that there's Olympic Club. been so many PGA Championships here. How important is that to you to see the level of course being elevated as SHANSHAN FENG: Oh, yeah. I was really surprised we go to events like this and Congressional next year and because actually that was my first tournament to see the Baltusrol and Aronimink last year and the Olympic Club fans after like a year and a half, and I wasn't sure what I and Pebble Beach, to see those elite courses coming into would do. Maybe I would feel really nervous. play. But actually seeing the fans back actually made me more SHANSHAN FENG: Well, I think it's a good thing. That excited and made me -- like gave me a little more drive to means people are seeing how good the ladies are, and I make me want to play better because they came all the do think that we actually deserve to play on the same way here and they waited for so long, and finally they can courses as the men do. Yeah, so I think it's a great chance watch us play live. You know, I thought it was a positive to play on these fantastic golf courses like the top courses thing for our Tour and for all the players and sponsors. in the world, and yeah, I'm pretty sure we're going to play more and more, so it's a great thing for ladies golf. Yeah, I believe everything is going to get better and better, and everything is going to be on the right track. Q. You mentioned how long it is certainly because it's wet and we hope it dries out, but how do you think Q. This is the final week for Olympic qualifying. I just Atlanta Athletic Club fits your game? wondered what your medal, your Olympic medal, what 109142-2-1002 2021-06-23 16:29:00 GMT Page 1 of 3 kind of impact that had on golf in China. oh, yeah, maybe she won a big tournament, that was it. They didn't really understand what a major meant in golf. SHANSHAN FENG: Well, I would say that -- well, there are more and more junior players playing. I would say I think the Olympics was still the most important thing that's the biggest difference, because I think before the because that would let everybody to get to know about golf Olympics like 2015, I think like the registered junior players first, and maybe more and more people would start playing in China -- like all those players if they want to play in a it, and then they'll know more about the game and they will tournament in China, they would have to register with the understand what winning a major means. CGA first, so like I think there were only like three -- a little more than 3,000 junior players in 2015. Q. Do you understand why men would opt out of the Olympics? It seems like it was one of your best And then I think the number now is maybe 100,000. So it's experiences ever. There are many -- well, there are a -- I don't know, after these five or six years, it really handful of top men who have opted out. No top changed. women have opted out. Why do you think that is? I believe that when we only had like 100 -- probably 100 or SHANSHAN FENG: Well, first off, I have to say that I don't 200 ladies pros and we can have a bronze medal medalist actually know many of the male players, and I would say at the Olympics and also maybe 10 players on the LPGA, the last Olympics was the same thing, that I know that a lot well, I think Chinese are really good at playing golf, so if we of the male players actually pulled out from the Olympics, can have more people starting to play golf now, I believe but ladies, almost everybody went because I think it was a that we're going to have more and more like world No. 1s great chance for us to actually play on the same golf and Olympic medalists coming up. course as the men's and just to show the world how good the ladies golfers are and how much we really want to Q. How does that make you feel personally knowing support the ladies golf to grow. that your direct result had such an amazing impact on growing the game? I think including what the LPGA has been -- has done a great job providing like this great Tour for us to showcase SHANSHAN FENG: I wouldn't say that it was only about ourselves, I think we should do everything that we can to my result. I think it was because that golf was back in the support the game and ladies golf. Olympics. To allow people to actually get to know what golf was and Chinese can be good at golf, because before I wouldn't be surprised to see maybe most or even all of then I would say most of the Chinese, they would be like, the ladies that get in would go to Tokyo. oh, golf, it's -- like it's a sport for maybe foreigners, like not Asians, because they didn't really show our tournaments Q. I'm curious about television. How many events are on TV. So people didn't really know that we actually had televised in China now? Has it changed since the pretty good golfers from the country. Olympics? Because golf was in the Olympics at 2016, people were SHANSHAN FENG: Well, to be honest, I think this year like, ooh, actually -- oh, maybe it's different to what I was they are showing the LPGA tournaments on one television thinking, and maybe we should start playing golf. channel, but I think in the past three to four years, I didn't think so. They only showed the men's European or the Q. Are you saying that what made the difference is men's PGA. people back home tuning in to watch diving, see golf, see one of their own do well and get hooked, because Even though we were maybe playing well over here, but you're a major winner, so they should have already the people back home didn't get to see it. known that there are Chinese golfers who are quite talented. Q. Why do you think they're doing it now? SHANSHAN FENG: Well, the first thing is they didn't even SHANSHAN FENG: I think it's a good thing that they are know what a major was because if you don't know anything doing it to let people to see us perform in China. about a sport, you wouldn't even know what LPGA or PGA meant and what a major win means.