University of North Texas Athletics
Getting To Know: Patricia Sinolungan
7/31/2020 9:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
DENTON - In an ongoing series, members of the UNT women's golf team will tell fans a bit about themselves, answering some questions about golf and some about off-the-wall topics. This week's installment is with junior Patricia Sinolungan, who talks a bit about her unique home country of Indonesia and shares similar thoughts with her teammates on who has the worst taste in music in the program.
Q: How old were you when you started playing golf?
A: I started playing golf when I was 7 years old.
Q: Why were you initially interested in playing golf?
A: I was curious about the game, as my dad and brother used to go to the range on the weekends. I tagged along one day, had fun, and have been playing ever since then.
Q: Why did you keep playing golf? Was it just a matter of realizing you were pretty good or was it something more than that?
A: I kept playing because there is always a challenge in this game, and there is no perfect. I found that there is always something new to learn, whether it's a technical thing for my swing, or a trick to hit a plug shot to a tight pin. There is always something to learn and accomplish, and I think that is what keeps me driven to play the game.
Q: What is your favorite thing about the game?
A: The lessons, opportunities and friends the game has given me.
Q: What is your favorite club in your bag?
A: My putter.
Q: What is your favorite golf memory?
A: It was a hole-out eagle on the second day of the 2018 Women's Amateur Asia Pacific at Sentosa G.C. in Singapore. It was uphill, so I couldn't see the hole from where I was hitting. A spectator told me it was in the hole after I pulled out my putter looking for the ball. It was also my last hole, and I later found out in the clubhouse that it was to make the cut, which was cool. My parents flew out the next day to watch me play the weekend.
Q: What is the best course you've ever played?
A: Mission Hills, Dinah Shore Course.
Q: Who has been your biggest inspiration through the years?
A: I don't think I have one single inspiration through the years that I look up to, as I mostly am inspired from the people I surround myself with like my teammates through the years and the work ethic they have.
Q: Why did you choose UNT?
A: I chose UNT because I heard a lot of good things about the school, program and Coach Akers. I believed that UNT would be a great place for me to accomplish my goals - both in golf and academics.
Q: What is your favorite hobby when you're not playing golf?
A: Yoga, climbing and running.
Q: If you could have dinner with three people - dead or alive - who would it be?
A: Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi and Albert Einstein. I would love to simply learn and hear their wisdom.
Q: You can take three things with you to a deserted island, what do you take?
A: A knife - protect myself and help me make a raft, a flare - to attract attention for help and a compass for navigation, once I set sail.
Q: What is the best movie ever made?
A: It is ever-changing for me, but I will say Happy Gilmore for now.
Q: What is your favorite TV show?
A: Right now, it's The Last Dance.
Q: How long did it take you to watch Tiger King?
A: Zero, I have yet to watch it.
Q: Who is your favorite band or musician?
A: That's hard, but this is my top 3: Harry Styles, LANY, Hindia
Q: Who on the team has the best taste in music aside from yourself? Who has the worst?
A: Best: Audrey. Worst: Coach Akers.
Q: Are you a dog or cat person? Do you have any pets?
A: Dogs. I have two of them, named Mars and Moly!
Q: What is your favorite food from your home country?
A: Fried Goroho with Rica Roa (Goroho is a type of banana native to North Sulawesi, and Rica Roa is a spicy chili paste made of chili peppers and roa fish).
Q: What is one thing you'd tell people about Indonesia who aren't familiar with your country?
A: I think I would tell someone that isn't familiar with Indonesia that you have to got to see it to believe it. Haha. Because with so many cultures, over 700 native languages and 17,508 islands, Indonesia is really diverse. Oh also, we have dragons! (Not on the golf course though) but we do have cobras and other snakes roaming around naturally, as I think they have been there long before my course was built.
Q: What is your favorite type of other food?
A: Japanese! I love sushi!
Q: You just won the Par 3 challenge, which restaurant are you picking for the champions dinner?
A: P.F. Chang's.
Q: You have one day left on Earth, what's your last meal?
A: Nasi Uduk
Q: Favorite type of dessert?
A: Brownies and ice cream.
Q: What was the biggest adjustment for you coming to the United States and what has been your favorite thing so far about being here?
A: The biggest adjustment is adapting with the fast-paced routine my first weeks here, because everything was so new at the time. But the help of support coming from the many resources at UNT, as well as the team has definitely really helped me. My favorite thing so far is traveling to compete in tournaments and all the fun we have during them.
Q: Which of your teammates' home countries would you most like to visit and why?
A: Marija's! I have heard Latvia is really pretty, and Europe is on my bucket list.
