KPMG WOMEN'S PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

October 9, 2020

Samantha Morrell

Aronimink Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Samantha, tough start yesterday but you played better today. That must make a difference to you. You're kind of going out on a much higher note.

SAMANTHA MORRELL: Exactly. That's what I was saying to myself. I was able to redeem myself a little bit after the first day. This is my first LPGA tournament ever, not just the fact that it's a major, it's my first LPGA tournament ever, so the fact that I'm here to begin with has been such a great experience. I'm happy I could have played even a little bit better today to end on a good note.

Q. Tell me about the anticipation, and when you earned your spot in the championship last year, I believe, so you knew this was coming, you could talk to your family, your friends about it, the anticipation building up, how was that? Was it fun? What was that like?

SAMANTHA MORRELL: Well, it was a little bit extended because it was supposed to take place in June so now it's been in October, so I've had a little bit of extra time to get ready, and I've kind of every day has felt like it was still the next day after qualifying. I had a lot of time to get ready, to anticipate what was coming, and now that it's finally here, it just went by so quickly. It was just overall just a great experience to be here at this level.

Q. What's it like to not only represent the LPGA but amongst your little small grouping, the team of eight, the eight club professionals, and to get to know a few of them and share some stories and some camaraderie? Was that something you looked forward to, and was this as beneficial as you thought it might be?

SAMANTHA MORRELL: Absolutely. We've got to hold our own here with the big girls now, and we definitely felt that there was a little more camaraderie, texting, how you doing, played practice rounds together. So it was really nice to even just be here, even to be dominated. That's what I say. Just to be nominated was great. Yeah, it was a lot of fun, and definitely had nice support from my family, friends and fellow LPGA and PGA professionals.

Q. So you're somewhat nearby in Virginia, right?

SAMANTHA MORRELL: I went to school in Virginia, I actually work at South Hampton Golf Club on Long Island.

Q. How many friends and family were with you this week?

SAMANTHA MORRELL: I just had my caddie and I are the only ones here, due to COVID and everything. But everyone was here in spirit, and I had so many supporters in my family, from the clubs that I worked at down in Naples at Wilderness Country Club, I had so many supporters there and at South Hampton, as well. I had a lot of friends from college reach out and even high school. Everyone has been super supportive, and it was a great boost to come in with all of that.

Q. You made some connections when you were here. I just saw you exchanging phone numbers with one of your playing partners today. How welcoming was everybody here and the experience from soup to nuts?

SAMANTHA MORRELL: It was great. Everyone kind of does their own thing a little bit. It's the big time now is everyone is kind of very focused and concentrating on their process and what they're doing, and it kind of made me concentrate a little bit more, too, watching all the great players and what they do, how they putt, how they prepare. It was just overall a great experience.