DU MAURIER CLASSIC

August 11, 2000

Annika Sorenstam

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Okay. I started on the 10th, but let's start on No. 3. I bogeyed, my second shot short of the green; 2-putt. Birdied No. 4, pitching wedge to about 20 feet. Birdied 6. 9, tipped it up to about a foot. Birdied No. 17, 7-iron to about 12 feet.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah. Actually I think I played really good today. I hit a lot of fairways, hit a lot of greens. I really was -- I never was in trouble, which is fun. And it kind of makes you comfortable out there. I had a lot of birdie opportunities I think I could have made. I hit some good putts, just didn't roll in as well as yesterday. But definitely more solid overall.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It's very ideal. Like you said, there's no wind out there. And I think the more we play the course, the more we get used to it. You can expect certain things, but today is a scoring day, definitely. Especially going out in the morning, like I did, the greens were smooth as they could be. The course is playing great. And today, like I said, is a scoring day, and I'm glad I took the opportunity to do that.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I'm very happy. Who knows where I'll be at the end of the day. But today, especially, I'm very happy. I'm very pleased that I could stay focused for the whole day and for every shot. And the hole that I bogeyed, I hit a great tee shot, and I was on a downhill slope and hit a poor shot. It was a silly mistake. But then I just said, "Hey, forget about that hole, and move on to the next." And that -- birdied that one. That shows I was focused. Nothing has bothered me this week. And that's the way I like to keep it. And hopefully, I can continue to score.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, it was quite a break, probably two feet left-to-right, and a little tricky. I putted real well this week. It's nice when I see the line, I can trust my stroke, and I've been rolling it really well.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Some of the crowds -- they don't distract. When she hits a shot, you know it's "Lorie" or "Laura" or "Pat." They're playing great golf, so I can understand why they're cheering. It's fun to have the crowd out and to see, especially on Friday.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, it's her crowd. But the crowds here, they're very golf knowledgeable. They don't clap on your back swing, and I think that's the key here. They might cheer louder for her, which is natural, but they're very supportive. When you hit a good shot, if you make a birdie, they clap also. That's not going to be a factor at all. I think it will be fun to play with her. She's so popular over here. And for her to be in the position she's in, she's got to feel great.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, today was 4 1/2. Yesterday was a long day. Some of you asked if it was tough to concentrate, and it is. Today is still a long day, and I was trying to stay focused on every shot. I wasn't looking at leaderboards. I was trying to hit one shot at a time and focusing on the spots I wanted to hit. If I was in the fairway, I was focusing on the green. This course is so tight and the greens are so small, you have to stay focused on the shots you have to hit.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: We waited a lot. I tried to take my time and walk slowly, walk in circles. It's tough to kill that much time. You have a routine, and you have a certain pace, and it's tough to change that.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, personally I think the pins have been quite tough the first two days; they've been in the corners. You've seen several pins four from the back and three from the right. That's trickier than we have on the normal weeks. But I'm shooting a lot for the center, hoping I hit the center, and then I will have a good birdie opportunity, because the greens are so small. I'm not really shooting at the flags a lot of times. Mostly when I have an 8-iron in, I will be more aggressive. If it's going to rain, the greens are softer, I may change my strategy a little bit. But whatever I'm doing is working, so I'm not going to mess up too much.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Maybe, but it's Friday, and there are a lot of girls out there ,and they can post some good scores. Who knows what's going to happen tomorrow and Sunday. I'm glad I played some good golf. I've stayed really focused on every shot. For the weekend, I'm going to try to keep doing what I'm doing. It helps not to look at the leaderboard so much. I'm going to go out there and play my own game. On the other hand, nerves is part of the game. That's the thrill about it. I love the challenge, and you come down the stretch and have a lot of adrenalin and feeling the pressure. That's what I strive for. I don't like the pressure; but on the other hand, I love the pressure.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I don't know. I like the way the golf course was set up. I hit the ball really well. So I guess I wasn't in the trouble that some of the other girls were. If you don't hit the ball exactly where you want, you can be in trouble, you can be on a sloping lie on the fairway or a difficult spot on the rough. You're chipping a lot and you're trying to save par. Luckily, I hit 16 greens. I putted a lot and I had a lot of chances. And that's the part of the course I want to see; so therefore, I don't know.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: That's my strategy this week. You've got to be patient on a lot of holes. But on certain holes, you can be a little more aggressive. It depends on the pin placements. There are pins that I just don't go for. I don't see the benefit of being too aggressive, because if you get slightly bounced or pull it or push it, you're struggling to make par. That's not my strategy. Today I didn't make as many birdies as I did yesterday and the day before, but I didn't make any bogeys, either. If you add it up, that's what it's all about.