The "master" from China, with the most beautiful memories of Augusta

Cheng Lixin boarded the Hogan Bridge and walked towards the 12th cave green of "Amen Point". Suddenly there were footsteps behind him, and the caddy trotted all the way over and handed the putter, Bi Gongbi, to him.

It turns out that everyone who can kick off the green on this par 3 can enjoy the courtesy of "walking up hogan bridge with a putter". "I didn't know Augusta still had this tradition until the caddie told me." Cheng Lixin said, "In the future, every time I watch the live broadcast, I will pay special attention to the stars on the bridge, and this is really the case!" ”

The caddy suggested recording the moment, so on the famous small stone bridge, Cheng Lixin took his own pure wooden putter and left a precious souvenir photo for the second trip to Augusta. For a long time after that, he used this as a WeChat avatar.

Next to that avatar, there is an IT high ball circle ringing elegant number - Master A.

Go to Augusta with Spieth

The A in "Master A" is Augusta.

Cheng Lixin and Augusta

"It was 2011, the first time I went to the Masters, I remember it was Char Schwartzer who won the championship." Cheng Lixin recalled, "At that time, my friends asked me to open Weibo and take a screen name, and I thought I was watching the Masters, just call it 'Master'!" As a result, the name master was taken by someone else, and I happened to be in Augusta, and I added an A in front of it, so there was 'Master A'. ”

Being linked to the word "master" is not as simple as vassal style. Cheng Lixin is one of the few golfers in the Chinese who has really played at Augusta National Golf Club!

Moreover, he has played 4 games.

Cheng Lixin first threw Augusta in October 2014. At the time, Randall Stephenson, AT&T's ceo and Augusta member, flew from Texas to Play in Georgia with three guests. One of the guests was Cheng Lixin, then general manager of ZTE's North American terminal business; the other was Jordan Spieth.

Cheng Lixin and Spieth have met many times

"Spieth wasn't a Grand Slam champion at the time, but everyone remembers that in 2014, he lost to Baba Watson and finished second." Therefore, on the trophy in the lobby of the Augusta Clubhouse, the name of the runner-up Spieth of that year was engraved. Cheng Lixin once pointed to the trophy and said to Peter Pan, "Jordan, if it is you who win this year, at the age of 20, you will break the record of the youngest champion of the Tigers." ”

Spieth, who was still very young, replied, "Yes, Mr. Cheng." But unfortunately, I will be 21 years old at the Masters next year, a few months older than the Tigers, and I will not be able to break this record. ”

A few months after the exchange, spieth, 21, did win the Masters and become the second youngest green jacket winner in history.

Augusta in autumn

Every year after the Masters, Augusta closes the court from May to October to protect the lawn in the hot and humid weather of Georgia. With the arrival of autumn, from late October until the Masters in April of the following year, the stadium will be open to members, and one "Green Jacket" member can bring up to 3 guests to the field.

Before the first intimate contact with Augusta, Cheng Lixin was still a little nervous. After all, Georgia in autumn already has a bit of winter feeling. In order to adapt to the conditions of Augusta's venue, Cheng Lixin deliberately went to the nearby Atlanta Capital City Club a day in advance.

"As a result, the grass on the pitch was all yellow and only the greens were green." Cheng Lixin was a little discouraged at one point, "Is this also the case with Augusta?" Will it all be yellow too? Wouldn't that be disappointing? ”

A master photographed Augusta with his mobile phone

The next day, when the driver drove Cheng Lixin into the famous iron gate of augusta National Golf Club, a pleasing familiar green instantly came to the fore: "The outside world is yellow, but as soon as you go inside, it is turquoise and turquoise, very very beautiful!" It's exactly the same thing you see on TV every April. If there is a difference, it is just that the flowers are less. ”

Cheng Lixin arrived at Augusta at 10 a.m., and a group of people were placed to rest in a cabin in the club. One bedroom per person in the cottage, two downstairs, two upstairs, kitchen and living room, very comfortable. But Master A, who dropped off his luggage, couldn't wait to enjoy the dream 18 holes.

In 2014, Cheng Lixin threw Augusta for the first time

"I don't remember the results of the first game very well, I just remember not playing well. Because of the patronage and enjoyment of this course, it is difficult to calm down and play every shot. "Augusta has only two serves, one is The Grand Slam Master Tee, which is more than 7400 yards; the other is our member Tee (Members' Tee), more than 6300 yards." ”

"In fact, Augusta is a stadium, the fairways are not very difficult, and it does not feel particularly long. The key is the green, which is very, very difficult and extremely fast. Cheng Lixin was impressed by the Augusta green that made countless heroes such as Els, Norman, and McIlroy bend over, "For example, the flagpole may be on the right, but the caddy will let you push to the left, of course, you will not know, so in Augusta, listening to the caddies is definitely not wrong, these when the earth children are very powerful." If you can guarantee two pushes here, the results should be very good. ”

Although on the Hogan Bridge, Cheng Lixin left a commemorative photo of the putter in his hand. But the first time He went off augusta, he only shot 98. After handing in his cards, he went to play the par 3-hole course where the "par 3 challenge" was held every year, until he finished playing the equally famous small 9 holes, and when it was dark, he returned to the hut, washed up, changed into formal clothes, and came to the clubhouse to enjoy dinner.

Cheng Lixin at the Augusta Clubhouse

Compared to other gate clubs in the United States, the dining at Augusta Clubhouse doesn't have much of a specialty. "It's basically Anlanta-style barbecue, but their wine is good." Cheng Lixin recalled, "There was an underground wine cellar in the ball, where you can see a lot of wealth, and the most valuable bottle of wine I saw was 1897." And they made the fallen Eisenhower tree into a long table and put it in the cellar, which was very interesting. ”

After dinner, the "Green Jacket" members took Cheng Lixin on a tour of the clubhouse, and climbed up to the "Crow's Nest" on the top floor of the clubhouse, a place dedicated to amateur golfers every year, and went inside to have a look." The room was small enough to accommodate three or five people. But there's a picture of Phil Mickelson there, very young, looking like it was '91 or '92. It's particularly impressive. ”

Walking out of the clubhouse, it was nearly late at night, but Cheng Lixin noticed that Augusta in the night was shrouded in a layer of fluorescence or fog on the fairway. "Then I was introduced, and the ground heating system was installed under the whole stadium, which can ensure that the grass of the whole stadium in the winter is very good."

In 2017, Cheng Lixin, who swung Augusta again, handed over a 93

After dinner, everyone went back to the hut, chatted, played cards, drank and drank, it should have been a time of relaxation, but Master A from China was still haunted by the stadium around him. The next morning, after breakfast, he played another 18 holes in Augusta, and although he still could not break nine, he was finally satisfied.

In 2017, Cheng Lixin, who has been promoted to CEO of ZTE's terminal division, came to Augusta again. This time in November, almost the same time as the Masters three years later during the pandemic. He almost repeated the whole process of the last time he played Augusta, played 36 holes here for two days, and locked the number of personal bests here at 93.

Cheng Lixin has 24 years of experience, and has left a swing trajectory in the first Pine Valley in the United States, as well as st. Andrews Old Stadium, Kingsban, Pebble Beach, Free Nations, Dubai Emirates Club and other famous goal clubs. But Augusta always held the most special place in his golf career.

In February 2018, Master A swung at St. Annol's Stadium

"A lot of people have asked me what it's like to play at Augusta." Cheng Lixin said, "I want to come and go, and there is only one word. ”

"That's heaven!"

Chinese on the PGA Tour

From the high ball circle to the mobile communications world, Cheng Lixin's name enjoys a higher reputation than Master A. In 2011, he led the ZTE team to start from scratch in the US market, with sales from 20 million US dollars to 2 billion yuan in 6 years, becoming the only Chinese brand to enter the TOP4 smartphone manufacturers in the North American market such as Apple and Samsung!

As a sports fan, Cheng Lixin's investment in the sports industry market is also unique. From 2014 to 2017, ZTE selected the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers as NBA partners for three consecutive years, and as a result, the two teams won their first NBA championships in more than 50 years after 40 years. In 2016, Cheng Lixin signed New Zealand Korean golf star Danny Lee, just signed on Tuesday, and On Sunday Lee Zhenming won the first PGA Tour title of his career!

(From left) Zhang Xinjun, Cheng Lixin, Monahan, Dou Zecheng

"A lot of people who play golf well are also very good in other fields; elites who excel in other fields must have their own unique understanding and achievements in golf." Master A is such a representative. Wu Lei, who once worked with Cheng Lixin and was the former head of global sports marketing at ZTE, said, "He is different from ordinary avid fans, and his understanding of golf integrates his thinking about business and life." ”

On October 4, 2017, at the scene of Dou Zecheng and Zhang Xinjun's competition as the first PGA Tour members in the history of the Chinese mainland, Cheng Lixin and PGA Tour President Jay Monaghan held a joint press conference to announce ZTE as the first official smartphone partner of the PGA Tour. At that time, the photos of the two Chinese players in the same frame as Master A and the president of the PGA Tour became a classic moment to record the Chinese national brand landing on the world's highest level golf tour.

"As a consumer brand in the United States, we must make our high-end flagship machine feel that it is an honor to buy it, so we must find a landing point." Whether it's community or sports, the PGA Tour is a great place to combine and match the consumer target demographic of our phones. Recalling the cooperation with the PGA Tour, Cheng Lixin said that the two sides began to talk since 2013, and after two presidents of the PGA Tour, it took four years to talk before the two sides finally signed the contract.

Cheng Lixin and the two presidents of the PGA Tour: Monaghan and Finchen

Cheng Lixin also remembers that at that time, he also put forward some of his own suggestions for the "China strategy" of the PGA Tour from the perspective of golf enthusiasts.

"Whether it's Finchen (the former president of the PGA Tour) or Monaghan, I say to them: You must provide more convenience for Chinese golfers to the PGA Tour. Whether it's for young players or professionals, whether it's through the PGA TOUR China or other tour tournaments, give them more opportunities to play. Cheng Lixin recalled, "If the PGA Tour wants to develop in China, it must have a face from China." If there are Chinese players based on PGA Tour, it is very beneficial to the promotion of golf. ”

Zhang Xinjun, who came out of the PGA TOUR China and worked the PGA Tour for 3 seasons, was equally impressed when he talked about Master A.

Cheng Lixin and Zhang Xinjun

"Mr. Cheng is particularly good and cares a lot about Chinese players. He was also very supportive of the PGA Tour, where he rarely saw Chinese brands, but he did. Zhang Xinjun said, "We often communicate on the phone, and every time he will encourage me, feel like one of my predecessors." ”

Recently, Cheng Lixin returned to China. During the isolation of the hotel in Shanghai, he spent a lot of time studying the putters, and at a distance of 6 feet, he pushed 54 consecutive pushes on the push pads.

"I love golf because when I used to work under a lot of pressure, playing golf was the best way for me to relax. Moreover, golf is actually very close to doing business. Master A sighed.

Cheng Lixin once led ZTE to expand its business scale by 100 times in six years

"I used to tell the team that the biggest difference between professional golfers and amateurs is that the master is 'which to play', and the amateur player is 'which to play'. When we do business, we must also reach the realm of 'which to fight'. ”

"It's not like some people or companies that suddenly succeed, don't know what the reason is, and think that success is just a chance." It's like a good ball, after playing you don't know why, there is no repeatability, and such a player is difficult to succeed under higher pressure. In the same way, companies that are 'which to fight' are unlikely to succeed in the long term. ”

Lucky Augusta mark

On December 18, 2020, Cheng Lixin scored a hole in the United States. However, due to the epidemic, he did not hold a celebration party at his home until a full year later to entertain all kinds of golfers. At this time, it also coincided with the imminent return to China, so Cheng Lixin generously took out the souvenirs purchased and collected by major clubs in the United States and gave everyone a lottery.

Cheng Lixin shot the Eagles several times in the United States

"In terms of money, these things are not of high value; but the commemorative significance is relatively large. For example, Augusta's ball mark, although it is made of plastic, but this can not be bought, only those who have played there will have. Every time I played there, I would take some and collect them. So that day, it was the final special prize. ”

As a result, luckily caught AugustaMark's golfer and put it in the bag. Two weeks later, I even hit a hole!

"He messaged me and said, 'You're like a married bride throwing a flower ball, whoever throws it wins the lottery."' Speaking of this, Cheng Lixin smiled very happily.

It seems that despite the suspension of Augusta, the legend of Master A and here continues.

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