Terrence Ng

Congratulations on your recent win up at Mission Hills. What do you think was the key to your victory and what did you learn from the event?
Thanks! The course was very short, so the key to winning the tournament was hitting my short and mid irons accurately to the greens. Obviously I had to also putt well and my short game had to be top notch. If you have a good short game, and you are putting well, it is not unlikely to shoot something like eight-under-par or even lower. Overall I am extremely happy with how I played. I struggled a little bit in the second round but was able to get through that and come out with a win. I really realized from winning this tournament just how important a solid short game is if you want to be a great golfer – it can really save you from a bad round, which is obviously important if you want to win.

What does your summer season look like and what are your short-term goals?
I have a really busy schedule. I’m going to the States for four weeks to play in some tournaments including the Callaway Junior World Championship. After my trip to the US I will go to Thailand for the Asia Pacific Junior Golf Championship. After that, I’m heading to Fiji for the Nomura Cup. My goals for this summer are to make the cut at the Junior Worlds, to improve my overall game, and to gain more weight. [With rounds of 80, 76 and 80 Ng finished in a tie for 117th at the tournament].

Gain more weight? So you believe that fitness is essential to success in competitive golf?
Yes, fitness is very important for all golfers. Most of the tournaments that I play in are three days or even four days long. After the first two days most people will think that they are okay, not tired at all. Even after day three most people will be fine. But when you are coming down the stretch with a chance to win a tournament, you don’t want to be focused on keeping tiredness at bay, you should be focused on what you need to do to win. An effective fitness routine can help you to maintain the same amount of energy throughout the tournament, and that’s very important to playing consistently.

How often are you in the gym?
I usually go to gym two or three times per week. The [HKGA international] squad has a trainer that helps out our entire team by telling us what we should be working on, how to do specific exercises, and other stuff like that. It’s really fun. Usually I warm up by running for a little while, and then I do some weight training. For example bench presses, squats, other exercises like that. I will then do some bodyweight training, so sit-ups, pushups, and then some balance exercises. I end my workouts by doing some cardio and then stretching.