Mission Hills Country Club
Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Second round notes and interviews
April 1, 2011
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Jane Park -6, Rolex Rankings No. 207
Yani Tseng -6, Rolex Rankings No. 1
Brittany Lincicome -6, Rolex Rankings No. 18
Morgan Pressel -5, Rolex Rankings No. 14
Michelle Wie -3, Rolex Rankings No. 9
Overnight co-leader Stacy Lewis maintained her lead going into Saturday’s third round at the season’s first major. Rolex Rankings No. 28 Lewis recorded three birdies and one bogey at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif to move three-strokes ahead of Yani Tseng, Jane Park and Brittany Lincicome following rounds of 66-69. Lewis is looking to become a Rolex First-Time Winner this week.
Former winners making a run: Defending champion Yani Tseng fired a 4-under 68 in Friday’s second round of the Kraft Nabisco Championship to jump into a tie for second place with Jane Park and Brittany Lincicome. The three-time major champion recorded seven birdies and three bogeys to end the day three strokes behind second-round leader Stacy Lewis. 2007 Kraft Nabisco winner Morgan Pressel also made a charge on Friday, shooting 69 to move into a tie for fifth with Amy Yang at 5-under.
First round co-leader Brittany Lincicome recorded four birdies and four bogeys en route to a second-round even-par 72. Lincicome, ranked No. 18 in the Rolex Rankings, heads into the weekend three shots off the lead after firing rounds of 66-72. A three-time winner on the LPGA Tour, Lincicome took home the Kraft Nabisco title back in 2009.
In search of her first LPGA victory, Jane Park finds herself in the hunt going into the weekend of the year’s firsts major. Park, whose previous best finish on Tour was a tie for second at both the 2008 SBS Open at Turtle Bay and 2008 P&G Beauty NW and Arkansas Championship Presented by John Q. Hammons, shot rounds of 68-70 to move into a tie for second. She recorded her best finish at the Kraft Nabisco Championship as an amateur, tying for 24th at the 2004 championship.
Moving on up! Rolex Rankings No. 9 Michelle Wie began Friday’s second round in a tie for 54th. After shooting a blistering four-under par 32 on the front-nine, Wie finished the day with a five-under par 67. The six birdies and one bogey round catapulted her into a tie for eighth going into Saturday’s third round. Wie’s previous best finish at a major came when she finished runner-up at the 2005 LPGA Championship.
Staying on for the weekend: A total of 75 players made the cut which fell at five-over-par 149. One early favorite to win this year who missed the cut was Cristie Kerr, who finished at 6-over-par for the first two rounds. Kerr, a two-time major champion, had made 36 consecutive cuts in major championships before this week's Kraft Nabisco. Her last missed cut in a major was the 2001 Women's British Open.
“Finish Strong for Japan”: Yesterday’s first round brought in a total of $3,400 for “Finish Strong for Japan”. In an effort to help all of the children affected by the recent tragedies in Japan, the Members of Mission Hills Country Club along with ClubCorp will participate in the “Finish Strong for Japan” fundraising effort this week during the Kraft Nabisco Championship. They will donate $100 for every birdie, $500 for every eagle and $1000 for any holes-in-one that are made on holes #17 and #18 during all four rounds of the Kraft Nabisco. All of the proceeds from this week’s fundraising effort are going to UNICEF. The “Finish Strong for Japan” program was initially launched by title sponsor RR Donnelley during the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup on March 18-20.
Low amateur…Ariya Jutanugarn from Thailand, the only amateur to make the cut, fired rounds of 74-73. Jutanugarn fired a three-under par 33 in her first nine holes but struggled down the stretch to finish the day at one-over par.
Of note…Giulia Sergas withdrew prior to the second round due to a pulled neck muscle…Suzann Pettersen recovered from a first-round 73 to shoot a second-round 71 and go into the weekend tied for 36th…Rolex Rankings No. 2 Jiyai Shin carded three birdies and three bogeys to fire a second-round even-par 72…Two-time winner on the LPGA Tour in 2011, Karrie Webb heads into the weekend at 1-under par after shooting rounds of 69-74… The heat continued to be a big topic of conversation during the second round of the Kraft Nabisco Championship. With the temperature reaching 102 degrees in Rancho Mirage, caddies were again permitted to take off their jumpsuits during Friday’s play.
Stacy Lewis, Rolex Rankings No. 28
THE MODERATOR: Stacy, thanks for coming in. Another good round today, 3 under 69. Can you tell me a little bit about your round?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah. My round was I was all over the place, but I made some really good up and downs and stayed really patient on the back nine, and fortunate to get away with a couple of pars that I probably shouldn't have and posted a good number, I think.
Q. Yesterday you said the course is getting a little baked out, but you were playing in the afternoon. Did you get the sense that it had come back a little bit this morning or is it still pretty crispy out there?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah. It definitely came back. Actually had ball marks today and this morning, so I didn't have those at all yesterday. The hole locations today, though, were tucked in the corners, and they were hard to get to. So I almost think it played a little tougher this morning, I guess.
Q. Can you tell us a little bit about the par that you thought you were lucky to save, where were they and what happened?
STACY LEWIS: Well, 6 through 9. 6 I made a pretty good up and down, had to make a three foot slider down the hill, but 7 and 8, I mean 8 I made probably an eight footer for par.
Q. And where had you been before?
STACY LEWIS: I was just right in the rough and just had a hard shot. And then 9, I hit it behind the tree off the tee and still had 200 yards in for my third shot and hit it just perfect just short of the green and got up and down for par, so I mean it could have been a huge swing there. I could have been 4 over easily.
Q. Was it a creative shot? What did you hit? How did you conceive of what you were going to do?
STACY LEWIS: Well, I mean it was just a hard shot. It wasn't I mean I don't know. Just not ideal. It's not what you want.
Q. What club did you hit there?
STACY LEWIS: I had a hybrid.
Q. Stacy, you were on a giant stage a few years ago at the U.S. Women's Open. Can you kind of tell us what the journey has been like and what you've learned?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah, I thought coming off that Open it would be kind of instant success and I'd be rolling right along, but kind of hit a rut a little bit at the end of my rookie year, and I was kind of lost. I was like what am I doing out here, and didn't really know what to do. And I found a new instructor to start the year in I guess will be a year ago in January, and since then I've just been working hard, and it's all about the process. I mean people say that all the time, but you gotta work hard. You gotta prepare every week, and I don't know. It's been pretty cool, though.
Q. Can you tell us how you got lost or what made you feel lost?
STACY LEWIS: I was well, it didn't help I was halfway across the world by myself playing in Japan and Korea and all that for the first time, and I wasn't playing good golf. And I didn't really have a coach at the time, so I didn't know what I was doing with my swing, and it was kind of like why am I doing this, like what am I doing out here. So talked with my parents and they're like, you need to get a coach, you need to get a team together. You need a group of people that have the same goals that you do.
Q. Who is your coach again?
STACY LEWIS: Joe Hallett.
Q. You chipped in on the first hole?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah, I did. I was in the left rough off the tee and was trying to just bounce the shot in there, but it came up just a little short and chipped it right in the center.
Q. How far were you?
STACY LEWIS: I think the flag was probably 10 on, so it was probably 30 feet.
Q. With your experience at that Open just a few years ago, what did that teach you in terms of dealing with the kind of pressure in a major championship and coming in with the pressure and all that?
STACY LEWIS: It helped me on the back nine today because I was really frustrated making the turn. I mean I was exhausted. And just helped me to stay patient and just keep every shot's important, and one swing can completely change a round. And that's what I found out at the last round at Interlochen, that looking back it was just a couple swings early in the round can completely change the momentum, so I was just trying to stay positive and stay patient.
Q. What did your new coach do with your swing? Did he do anything dramatic to it? Where had it gone haywire?
STACY LEWIS: No, not really. It was just kind of it was just little things that like I could fix it myself, but it would take me a week to do it where if you have somebody with another set of eyes, they can help you fix it in a couple days, and that's what you have to do out here. Not really any big changes. It's kind of just been a process over the year.
Q. Betsy King was in here earlier and talking about you and your mom accompanied her to Africa, and she said you got to meet your sponsored child and she imagined it was a life changing event for you. And could you just tell us about that?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah, I went with my mom and Betsy, too. We went to Rwanda, and that's where I met a little girl, her name is Alene that I sponsor. And I mean I saw things there I never thought I'd ever see in my life. It was such a shock to me that people live the way that they do, but they are so happy and so grateful. It just makes me thankful for everything that I have, and it gave me a renewed purpose of what I'm doing out here.
And the better I play golf, the more I can help other people, the more I can inspire people. So it just gave me a new purpose to what I'm doing.
Q. Is there one snapshot of just something you saw that has stayed in your mind that you never thought you would see?
STACY LEWIS: Just the kids, I think. Driving alongside the road you see kids with these huge buckets of water bigger than them. They had to walk probably miles to the wells to get water. And I don't think that picture doesn't really go out of your head, especially when you go to turn a faucet on or something.
Q. Do you think your physical issues growing up, how has that helped form your personality? Do you think that makes you any more willing or wanting to go out to places like Rwanda or meet kids with scoliosis?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah. I mean I feel so lucky to be just to play golf, and so I don't know, I just feel like I'm put in this position for a reason and that's my purpose and that's what I'm here for. But it also taught me just to persevere and to get through things, and it helps me with my golf, too.
Q. And you talk quite a bit about your parents. What are their names, and how important are they to you? Are they a big part of your golf still?
STACY LEWIS: Dale and Carol. My dad's here. He's been here all week, and my mom's coming in tonight. I mean they've been there 100 percent the whole way, and especially my mom during the surgery was awesome. And I don't think my dad, he never missed a college golf tournament. So he loves it. He actually caddied for me a little bit.
Q. Is he a golfer at all?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah, he's a 5 handicap, so he knows what he's doing.
Q. So he can beat you?
STACY LEWIS: He hasn't beat me in a long, but don't tell him that.
Q. Your first year on Tour when you're talking about all the stuff you didn't have and everything that you have in place when you're in college, and I was wondering if that's when you sort of learned to appreciate all that you had in college with the structure and the resources and the coaching and whatnot.
STACY LEWIS: Yeah. That was a big change, because in college you have your coach, your coach did your schedule for you. Your coach told you when you needed to be there. All you had to do was pack your bag and show up, and they did everything else for you.
So that was definitely a change coming out, having to figure out how I was getting from point A to point B and when I was getting there. That was definitely part of why the first year was so hard.
Q. Besides getting the coach, what else have you done to kind of change that team? Do you have more people working on the road helping you or manager?
STACY LEWIS: I mean I got when I started working with this instructor, I also started working with like a strength and conditioning coach and I've gotten stronger over the last year. And me and my caddie, I've had the same caddie since I've been on Tour, so we've been working really well together. And I don't know, I just feel like I have a really good group of people around me right now.
Q. Brittany talked about going to dinner with you and hanging out with you. How are you guys able to separate your competitiveness when you get off the course and maintain those friendships?
STACY LEWIS: Yeah. When we go overseas, we stay together all the time and go to dinner a lot. I think you need it out here. You need somebody that knows what you're going through. When you're frustrated you can talk to them, but as soon as you get it out, we're over and we're done with it. Whenever we finish a round, she's going home to take a nap and I'm figuring out what I'm going to do, but it's nice to have somebody that knows what you're doing. I mean when we're on the golf course, we want to beat each other, but we're also cheering for each other, too.
Q. To follow that, some people would feel like they were making themselves vulnerable by admitting I'm struggling with this or I'm having trouble with that. What is it about like Brittany that you felt like you could sort of confide in her and you wouldn't live to regret it?
STACY LEWIS: I think we're about the same age and we were kind of brought up the same, and I don't know, we're just we're pretty similar actually. I mean we play different games, but we're pretty similar, and I don't know, we just get along really well.
Q. Brittany mentioned the nap thing yesterday, too. When she goes and takes a nap, she tells you you have to go out and do something. So I take it you're not a napper?
STACY LEWIS: I'm not a napper at all. It was kind of hard for me because she likes to go to bed at 9:30 and I'd be up at 5 every morning. So we have to kind of manage that, but other than the napping part, it's fine.
Jane Park, Rolex Rankings No. 207
THE MODERATOR: I'd like to welcome Jane Park into the interview room. Congratulations on your round today. 6 under for the tournament. Take us through your round a little bit today and kind of what the conditions were like out there.
JANE PARK: The wind was not blowing at all today, which is very unusual for this golf course. And the greens are very, very dry and very hard, and they're very, very fast. And for the most part the golf course is in great condition.
THE MODERATOR: How different this year are the conditions from the past years? You were talking a little bit about the lack of wind.
JANE PARK: Yeah. Usually we're all used to playing this golf course in about a 30 mile an hour wind. But today it was so calm, and I do believe the greens are a lot firmer than last year as well, which is hard to believe because it's not even windy outside.
Q. When you saw the scoring yesterday, 6's and 5's, was that a little bit of a surprise given the conditions, or did you think those kinds of scores were out there, as tough as the course was?
JANE PARK: You know, the golf course, I think the biggest defense is the narrow fairways and the rough, and if the wind is up, then it's definitely a very tough golf course, but being that there was no wind yesterday, I knew some good scores were out there.
Q. Jane, good playing.
JANE PARK: Thank you.
Q. You obviously played yourself into this week's tournament with a good finish last week. You said last week that you're feeling good and playing well. Can you talk about that, what's going right?
JANE PARK: Last week I played at Industry Hills, which is about 15, 20 minutes from my old residence of Ranch Cucamonga. And I had some friends out there to watch me. And it was just a great feeling being back in California, you know, in my hometown. And that golf course, I've never really played it as a junior when I used to live in Ranch Hill, but I've just heard so many great things about it, Tiger practices there and everything. And I just got a lot of good vibes from family and friends, and it was just a very good week overall.
Q. And do you think you're going to have some people out this weekend do you think?
JANE PARK: Yeah. Definitely. I've got some old buddies from old golf courses down here coming out this weekend, and hopefully I'll get my little fan base going.
Q. I think checking your record you had a great year a couple years ago. Then I couldn't find any information on what happened in the ensuing couple years. Can you talk about that?
JANE PARK: In 2008 I did have a great year. 2009 I had quite a few injuries and I couldn't play. I didn't play for about three or four months. And it was back injuries, and that really just, you know, knocked the wind out of my sails. And it's tough to come back from a very severe injury like that, and I guess it's taken this long to kind of recover.
Q. Was the back injury just from golf? A lot of golfers get back injuries. Or was it something else?
JANE PARK: Yeah. A lot of golfers have wrist injuries and back injuries. I think the back thing kind of runs in my family. My dad has a bad back. And you know, plus beating balls for a couple hours isn't really good for it either, so you know, doing some exercises to strengthen it up.
Q. Is it good now? You feel back to normal?
JANE PARK: I do. I feel very good right now. Yeah.
Q. Are you doing anything to kind of keep it good?
JANE PARK: You know, foam rolling has really helped me and just stretching in general and getting massages.
Q. What was that, foam rolling?
JANE PARK: Yeah.
Q. What is foam rolling?
JANE PARK: It's like it's hard to describe. It's like this cylindrical, it's very tough, it's very hard, and you just kind of roll your back over it, and yeah, it kind of massages you. And it hurts a lot of times, but it just gets all the bad stuff out, just like getting a massage.
Q. Can I ask a little bit about your round today?
JANE PARK: Yeah.
Q. What went right out there? Obviously some good birdies in the middle there.
JANE PARK: Uh huh. My putting definitely feels great right now. You know, I love putting on fast greens. And you know, if you drive the ball in the fairway on this course, it's really not that difficult if you like I said, if you can put it in play. But for the most part I think my putting really helped me out today and yesterday.
Q. Before the tournament I was talking to the course people about the greens, and they said they were pretty aggressively verticutting the greens during the off season for the buildup and they were hoping that they wouldn't be any faster necessarily, but maybe they'd roll a little truer. Do you see any difference in the greens this year as opposed to past years?
JANE PARK: The greens have always been excellent here. The only thing I notice about this year is I think they're extremely firm, like more firm than I've ever seen them, and they've always rolled pretty true here. So they're always in great condition.
Q. You played here, this is what, your sixth time?
JANE PARK: This is my seventh time.
Q. Seventh time?
JANE PARK: Yeah. Seventh or eighth, I'm not sure.
Q. Obviously going all the way back to when you were a kid.
JANE PARK: Yeah.
Q. Do you feel any different now? Do you feel all these experiences that you've had?
JANE PARK: Yeah. I do feel like when I was 16, which was my first time I played here, the golf course is just so visually intimidating, but you know, now it still looks intimidating, but I'm not really afraid of the golf course, which is what kind of was running through my mind as a kid. But I definitely feel like I can play more aggressively and not worry about missing the green or anything because I have a lot of confidence in my short game and putting.
Q. You've always been a reader. I would like to ask you what you're reading right now. Read anything good lately?
JANE PARK: Yes. I would have to say my favorite book I read about a month ago, it's called "The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein, and it's a book narrated through the eyes of a dog. It's a wonderful book. It made me cry.
Yani Tseng, Rolex Rankings No. 1
THE MODERATOR: Like to welcome Rolex Rankings No. 1 Yani Tseng. Great round today. You are in 2nd heading into the weekend. Can you tell me about your round and how you feel?
YANI TSENG: Feel pretty good. The green was so firm it was like rough. Then I hit a ball further in the afternoon, so it was very hard to adjust. And it was like ten yards further for my iron. It's tough out there.
It could be better today. I mean I drove in the water on 18, but that's a big putt for me holing that putt, and I still feel confident again for the weekend. I'm still looking forward to play the next two days and to keep building the confidence until Sunday.
Q. Stacy Lewis said that this morning she actually had ball marks on the greens. I take it you didn't have ball marks on the greens this afternoon.
YANI TSENG: No. I don't think so. I couldn't find any ball mark on the green this afternoon. Even when I hit lob wedge I couldn't find it. I feel like I try to just control 70 yards and bounce 85 yards. I was just it was incredible. I don't know. I don't know how that happened.
Q. Were the fairways drying out, too? Were you hitting them maybe a little further?
YANI TSENG: Yeah. I hit driver 320. Hit my 3 wood 270.
Q. Where did you hit a driver 320?
YANI TSENG: You mean what hole?
Q. Yeah.
YANI TSENG: On No. 3. Yeah. That was really far, yeah. I was surprised. I told my caddie, what is this? How come it goes so far?
I mean it was so hot today. It just feels like summer. 18 holes par today. I just want to go back to take a shower.
Q. I guess when you really had it going, though, four birdies in the five holes, are you looking at the scoreboard or are you thinking about anything like that or what's going through your mind?
YANI TSENG: Yeah. I was thinking about the score. I was thinking about I want to make more birdies to catch Stacy for the next two days. That probably would be a little easier, but I tried my best. I hit some good putts. They just didn't drop in.
17 I made bogey, but I tried my best, and there's still two more days to go, so I'm still looking forward.
Q. When you finally arrived here at the Kraft, was the pressure, did it feel the way you thought it was going to feel, defending champion? Did you feel more or less and how do you feel like you handled it?
YANI TSENG: I don't feel any pressure. It's very little, but I just feel like having fun here. I want to enjoy this week. I don't think about too much defending my championship, because I know so many playing out here, you need to play a good week to win this tournament.
I told myself I try my best every shot and focus on what I can do and what I can control and always thinking the positive. So I just having fun these two days and keep having fun the next two days and keep smiling and I wish everything would be good.
Q. You have several people following you who are quite vocal in their cheering. Who are all of those people?
YANI TSENG: It's my mom's friends. They're from Taiwan and they just want to come here and cheer for me. And actually they're going to Orlando with me next week, too. They're going to stay at my house, play some golf. And it'll be fun. And then they will be in Thailand, too.
Q. Give us your thoughts on Stacy, her game and just in general from the times you've played with her.
YANI TSENG: I think she hits the ball very far, too, and she can make lots of putts out there and she plays really consistent. Very smart player, not like me, always go for the pin.
She knows where she's going to put the balls. But you know, we're very different like ball striking. So you know, tomorrow I don't know how the course is going to look like, but if it's like this, you couldn't see a ball mark, but I think it will be good for me because I hit the ball I can hit the ball short iron and I can hit a reachable par 5. But I think she's really nice personality, and I've played with her many times, even this year in Australia, and she's a really, really nice person. It's fun to play with her, too.
Q. I think golfers always feel that if they win a major, their lives will change and everything will be much better and rosier. For you what has it been like since you've broken through and won those first majors?
YANI TSENG: I think after you win life is harder because you have more interviews, more people following. And I think it's really hard. I mean for me I put more expectation on myself. But that's like winning rookie year, but now I feel fine. That was a couple years ago. I don't get used to it. I don't get used to people watching me and people paying attention to me. They think I can win this week. So at that time I haven't get used to it, but now I really enjoy it. This year I really enjoy what I'm doing. I mean talking to the players, talking to the media. I'm not afraid. I'm having so much fun. I enjoy playing the Pro Am and I enjoy the tournament. So I don't feel any expectations. I feel like I've been here for a long time. So it's really good. So I'm really happy after I win a major not a major. Hopefully win this major. I will hopefully keep winning.
Brittany Lincicome, Rolex Rankings No. 18
Q. I want to talk to you about the course. Obviously you've won here before and you're playing well this week. Maybe you can talk a little bit about how it sets up nicely for your game, having a good feeling out here.
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yeah, I mean the golf course sets up perfectly. A lot of the holes are right to left, which I love to hit the drill. And being a longer hitter, having a shorter iron into the greens, especially being as firm as they are, is definitely an advantage. Even shots a couple holes out there I was hitting like an 8 iron and I couldn't get the 8 iron to stop, and God only knows the girls behind me hitting 5 irons into that green. It just gets really complicated. So luckily being one of the longer hitters is definitely an advantage going into the weekend.
Q. And also talking kind of about memories on the golf course. Obviously 18 is probably one of the cooler things in your career.
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Uh huh.
Q. Walking up the 18th hole this week, do you put it aside? Is it hard for you to do to not think about that?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: It's definitely there. I had even told my caddie when we got on the bridge that it makes me tear up walking by all those people. I mean they're screaming so loud and cheering your name, and just brings back so many emotions. So I try to keep it together, but a couple of tears kind of fell just because it's such a great memory. It's something that, you know, I don't know 10 years from now if I'm playing this event if I'll still get that feeling or not, I'm not sure. But it's very cool, a lot of good memories and a lot of stuff I can reflect on come tomorrow and Sunday when the tee box hopefully is moved up again on 18. I mean that 4 iron I had into 18 today was scary. It's a scary shot with the green being surrounded by water. But I mean it's a great memory.
Q. I wasn't here in '09. May be a stupid question. Do you have the same caddie now?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: I don't.
Q. No? A different caddie?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yeah.
Q. All right. I also was talking to some of your coaches with Vision 54. Maybe you could talk about how that's helped your game.
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yeah. That especially today, I felt, really helped, because the first couple holes I felt were fine and then in the middle of the round it kind of it could have gone either way. It felt like I could have shot 100 today if it wasn't for them keeping me just positive and reflecting on things that we've been working on for the past two years now. Just staying in the moment, you know. I made a couple bogeys, but then I was making birdies. It was really up and down. So definitely held it together very well, I thought. And even par is not horrible here. So still have a chance and we'll see what happens.
Q. Did you start working with Vision 54 the week before you won here?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: It was kind of they talked to me a little bit this week, just like 30 minutes here and there. And then I actually went the week after, flew to Phoenix like right after this event.
Q. Can you talk a little bit about the difference between your game today and yesterday?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yesterday just felt more free. It felt like I knew where the ball was going. I could step up and hit it, and today I felt like I was guiding it a little bit, especially off the tee when it was going right and left. Like normally my ball misses left. So I was guarding against hitting it left, so every tee shot that I missed went right, of course. When I actually went aggressive at it and swung hard like I normally do, it went dead straight down the middle. So it's just crazy how the ball tricks you a little bit into thinking it's going to do something. So just need to go to the range, hit a few drives and then hopefully find the fairway tomorrow.
Q. We were talking that some of the past winners of the Kraft earlier this morning, and you're a past winner. What would it mean for your career to be able to repeat here?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: It would be crazy. Definitely going to do a different jump into the lake this time, or the pond, I guess. But I mean it would just be so cool. Doesn't have to be back to back, but just to have another win under my belt. To be 25 years old, that would be a dream come true.
Morgan Pressel, Rolex Rankings No. 14
MORGAN PRESSEL: I wasn't tremendously sharp today, but I gave myself good chances and made some good saving putts on holes where it got a little away from me on the back nine. I started just to come out of my shots a little bit. Everything was right, but I mean a few good par saves.
Q. Did you get the sense that it was going to be tough and it was just a matter of taking your pars when you can and battling?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Oh, for sure. It's a major championship. It's not quite as difficult as the U.S. Open, but pars are still a good score and you take birdies when you can get them. I managed to birdie three of the par 5s today, and that helps.I guess I just didn't give up. I started I started to swing poorly, but I at least still put the golf ball in the fairway and gave myself a good chance at every hole.
Q. Having won here, I'm sure is always a help, huh?
MORGAN PRESSEL: For sure. I would have liked to jump in that pond walking by 18 today. It would have been a nice cool off, but a couple days too early.
Q. How long were your putts on the last few holes that you made?
MORGAN PRESSEL: The last hole was about 18 feet, 20 feet. The hole before was about five or six feet. 7 was about 10 feet. 6, I missed about a three footer for birdie which was a bit of a bummer, but then I guess you make a 10 footer for par on the next hole, so it evens out.
Michelle Wie, Rolex Rankings No. 9
THE MODERATOR: We'd like to welcome Michelle Wie into the interview room. 5 under today. Congratulations on your round. Can you tell us just a little bit about the round today and kind of what went right for you?
MICHELLE WIE: It was hot today. Seemed like it was even more humid than yesterday. But I'm glad to have shot 5 under today with tough conditions, and I'm really looking forward to this weekend.
THE MODERATOR: What was the biggest difference between yesterday's round and today for you?
MICHELLE WIE: I think it's not really that big of a difference, couple putts here and there, couple shots here and there.
Q. Did the course play harder today did you think? I know you scored a lot better, but a lot of players aren't. What were the conditions like and how are they different than yesterday?
MICHELLE WIE: I think the greens are getting firmer and the rough is growing. It's pretty tough. You have to be in the fairway and you have to be on the right part of the green for sure.
Q. Yesterday you didn't seem all that discouraged after the 2 over. Did you know you just felt like your game was good, it was just a matter of a shot or two?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah. I mean I think I hung in there, grinded it good yesterday. I still had good feelings about my round, so I think today I kind of used those good feelings and tried to get off to a good start.
Q. Was it tough to get over the first tee shot? I mean what went through your mind when you saw what happened?
MICHELLE WIE: I never felt so horrible about a shot ever. I felt so horrible about hitting that poor little girl. But you know, I was kind of like, kind of got lucky and I just felt really bad, and hopefully she's fine.
Q. And the drunk fan on the back nine, did that have any throw you off or anything?
MICHELLE WIE: I don't think drinking in over 100 degree weather is a smart idea. But he was quite entertaining. He wasn't obnoxious at all. I thought it was really funny. Started speaking Spanish there for a while.
Q. (Indiscernible).
MICHELLE WIE: No. But he was yelling out just things, random things.
Q. Michelle, did you know what happened after your first swing? When did you figure out what exactly had happened?
MICHELLE WIE: I thought I just hit like a sprinkler or a tree or something. I just but the little girl was the last thing on my mind, but hopefully she's okay.
Q. Have you ever hit anybody before in a gallery?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah. I mean considering how many times I hit it off line, yeah, I've hit a couple.
Q. Did you get a chance to talk to her?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah. I kind of was asking her if she was okay. Unfortunately I couldn't be with her until the paramedics came, but hopefully she's fine.
Q. Was the atmosphere pretty crazy out there today generally? Were people into it?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah. People were very into it. I think the crowds were very animated and it was a lot of fun playing in front of the crowds.
Q. Of all the four majors, which is your preference to win?
MICHELLE WIE: I really don't have a preference at all.
Q. You don't have more identification with one rather than the other?
MICHELLE WIE: Not really. I think this is a very special tournament, but I think all four majors are pretty important, but obviously I do have a lot of history here and it would be fantastic.
Q. Why is this so special for you, this tournament?
MICHELLE WIE: I think it's the fact that like I have a lot of good memories here. Playing in the final round with Annika when I was like 13, 14 was a pretty amazing experience, and I've been here for a long time and it's pretty cool. I've kind of grown up here.
Q. Was there a point where you finally made a putt that kind of got you going? Was there a stage in the day when that happened?
MICHELLE WIE: You know, it was nice to birdie the second hole and kind of get it going from there.
