On Friday, LPGA sensation, Yani Tseng, sat down with the media to discuss her two major victories, her golf career, the world rankings, and the affect of her wins upon life back home in Tawain.
Q Yani, you're coming off a major win, second major of the year. How do you feel about how you're playing?
YANI TSENG: I still feel very excited, still my emotion, from the British Open. So I need to kind of get mentally ready for this week. But I'm really excited to come out here, having two weeks off. It's a great golf course for me, I think, and I just need to have fun and get my mental ready for this week.
Q Three of your wins are majors. Do you approach majors any differently than any other event?
YANI TSENG: No. I wish I could win more events. I don't want to just win majors, I want to win more tournaments. I don't know, probably majors just make me more focused and it's like I know everybody is going to have a mistake, but there are tournaments I play very, very good. It just feels different for me. But now, I think, I have a feel what different looks like and I will just put it on the same label as the majors because every tournament is very important.
Q Yani, you have two majors this year, but you're not number one in the world. Is that kind of confusing? It confuses me. Does that surprise you?
YANI TSENG: I was just surprised after the British Open I didn't jump off my spot, I was still number five. I know my points are getting close, but I was a little surprised. But I don't know how you work on that where it's ranking, so I know I just need to keep winning tournament and keep rating in the top ten, and maybe this year will be number one.
Q Is that a goal for you?
YANI TSENG: Yeah, that's my goal for me. Since when I was young, it's my dream. But when I turned pro to gain this big family, I know I had a chance to become getting close, so that now is my goal, for me to be number one.
Q You were saying you feel like the golf course fits you pretty well. Is that because of your length or how does the course fit you well?
YANI TSENG: Yeah. I think because I think on this golf course you need to make a whole different shot. It's not just hitting straight, hitting far. And then number 8 and number 9, and then ten is a par 5, it's kind of reachable for me so I didn't think it would be a big obstacle for that. And then I think that's how it is.
Q When you play that 8 9, and 10, do you feel like maybe you'll birdie every one or do you have like you want to go two or three under or four under?
YANI TSENG: No. I just try to go one shot at a time. You've just more chance to make a birdie. That three holes there, you don't want to stay over because you didn't make birdie, you just -- your mind like feels bad or something, you just focus on one shot at a time and just think it right now instead of thinking ahead or thinking behind.
Q You played I think pretty good here last year. I think you had one bad hole. Looking back at your score card from last year, the second round you made I think a triple bogey on the Par 3, number 11?
YANI TSENG: I can't remember. Maybe. I know I didn't play well here last year.
Q You didn't play well?
YANI TSENG: But this year is a new year for me, it's a new tournament, so I'm really looking forward to play with a win. And the course seems in really good condition right now. So it was really nice.
Q Since you didn't play well last year, how have you changed your approach in preparing this year with practice rounds?
YANI TSENG: No, I didn't do any different, because it was just the one bad tournament for me last year, so I still was looking, the good news going to come to me. So I wasn't thinking negative thing, I was just prepared, what I'm doing right now and see what I got.
Q With your length, how do you approach your strategy on number 17, particularly with the tee shot?
YANI TSENG: Yeah, I don't know, like last year, on Sunday woke me up. So I think everybody is going to go for it, everybody has to go for it, everybody has their chance, now you have to use your driver; it's like 5 wood or 3 wood, so it's -- I don't know, it was very hard, especially when you're under pleasure. If you're not under pressure, who cares, you know? So when you were under pressure, it was really hard to make a decision there. But I always have a goal if I have a chance and I just stay in the same strategy and don't think too much.
Q Yani, what to you is the difference in emotion at major championships? What is the difference between them and other tournaments?
YANI TSENG: I think the pressure is so much different. And I think also, in the British Open, I got so emotional because I never had the lead to win in a tournament, I always come from behind. It's my first time to lead after three rounds and I'm winning the tournament. And then that pressure was so much different. Especially in the Canadian Open. I was in a four-shot lead on Sunday, and lost the tournament. I don't want to do that again. That was kind of in my mind, too. And I was just -- I really want to look when she's playing, but I can't. It was so nervous for me. And then I feel that pressure was really, really tough. So, but I'm very happy I did. And I feel that I'm doing my best. I feel I'm doing awesome on Sunday, even though I'm one over, but she just played awesome. She played great. She pushed me a lot. I think it was a really, really good experience for me, too.
Q How big a news is your success back in Taiwan?
YANI TSENG: I think it was news. Lots of people was crying because I was crying on the 18 green. Even the golfers was crying and says "I was crying because you were crying." It just feel like a team, like, oh, Taiwan was supporting me in British Open, everybody was watching like overnight. It feel very good for me because it was like I feel like lots of people supporting me back in town.
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