Ahead of the 2017 Foshan Open europeantour.com caught up with local professional Chen Zihao who tells us what to expect this week at his home course.
Nice to meet you Chen. How excited are you for this week?
It is great to have a tournament here again. It is my fourth year here as a professional and I love it. It is my third time playing here and last year I finished in sixth place as the top Chinese player – hopefully I can do even better this season.
How do you think the course has changed over the years?
The course, the grass, the greens everything just keeps getting better every season. Everything about the venue, even the clubhouse, continues to get better year after year and I am sure that all players will really enjoy it this year.
The layout of the course itself hasn’t changed much but I know from past seasons that it will still provide a very tough test for all those taking part this week.
Which is your favourite hole?
For me it has to the 18th. It is a par five which is not too long, around 545 yards, and if you are aggressive you can get there in two. That is not easy though, and there is a lot of water in front of the green, but if you are really accurate off of the tee you should be able to make a birdie or better on the final hole.
If you are in contention on Sunday will you be going for the green?
Absolutely!
Which is the most difficult hole on the course?
The 17this really tricky. You’re second shot on the par four is very difficult as the green is so small so you can’t really go straight for the pin. If you can save par at that hole then it is a really good result.
Best score at Foshan?
I have made a seven under 65 here before – that was a very good day!
Finally which score do you think will win this week?
I think around 20 under par will take home the title. If we get some rain that may change things but if the forecast is correct and we have good conditions then I think it will take a really low score to win this week.
The competition this year is very strong and it is going to be really interesting to see who finishes in first place – hopefully it will be me!
