AUGUSTA NATIONAL WOMEN'S AMATEUR

April 2, 2025

Megha Ganne

Quick Quotes

Q. Megha, to what do you attribute this record-breaking round?

MEGHA GANNE: I think it was just a really good day. Great timing to have -- this is my career low in a golf tournament, so I had a feeling I was going to go low today but not this low. So I'm just trying to enjoy it.

Q. How many strokes do you think you gained on the greens today? You booked a long one for eagle on 3. Any other long putts?

MEGHA GANNE: Yeah, I had a long par save, and then most of my other birdie putts were pretty -- under 20 feet, I think. Yeah, a couple long ones dropped, which was helpful.

Q. Where was the par save, on 10?

MEGHA GANNE: Par save was on 6, yeah. Yeah, 6. Probably like 22, 23 feet, yeah.

Q. Does the new look of the course with some trees being gone provide for a better experience?

MEGHA GANNE: Oh, 100 percent. The two trees being gone, sad to see them go for the trees' sake, but for my sake, it definitely helped my round (laughter).

Q. In what ways?

MEGHA GANNE: It just opens the hole up way more. You can hit driver off those holes more comfortably. You have a shorter club in. Those trees would bat your ball down.

I think the course is playing at least a stroke easier.

Q. Obviously you beat the record that was set by your good friend and Stanford teammate Rose Zhang? Will you text her today and be like, hey, I got you by a couple?

MEGHA GANNE: I don't know if I will. I probably should now that you bring it up. That's probably the first time I can say I've beaten her in something, so I will.

Q. Megha, you went off as a two-some today after Rianne Malixi's injury. Your round was just a shade over five hours. That's a lot of time just a twosome. How hard was that to stay in the moment and stay occupied?

MEGHA GANNE: That was hard. You can ask my assistant coach, who was caddieing. I was pretty antsy my entire back nine.

It's hard to be in a flow and feel, like you hit a wall every shot. I just tried to stay loose, stay chatting, and talk through it.

Q. What was the most random conversation you think you had out there in the last five hours that was obviously not golf related?

MEGHA GANNE: Brooke was telling me about a random word game she played with her friend a few weeks ago, and they both on the second try guessed the word fermentation after randomly saying words.

Q. Do you know what fermentation means?

MEGHA GANNE: Yeah, I do. Don't ask me to provide a definition, though (laughter).

Q. I know you sat down before your second shot on 9. Was that a frequent thing, where you just crisscross applesauce?

MEGHA GANNE: Yeah, that's a frequent thing every time I play golf. That's not like a new thing.

Q. What made you feel like you were going to go low today?

MEGHA GANNE: I don't know. Sometimes you can think and talk things into existence. So I just kept telling myself the story I want to see today, tomorrow. So, yeah, visualizing is really helpful for me, and I try to do that.

Q. Megha, given your round today, what will your goal be tomorrow? Will you be a little more conservative or go for another low round?

MEGHA GANNE: It depends where the pins are. I'll take it one hole at a time and come up with the best strategy.

Q. You didn't play much last summer. Was there a reason for that? Was it injury related or burnout related?

MEGHA GANNE: I was dealing with a hip and back injury that I kind of played through towards the end of my spring, and it led to me just having to completely put down the clubs for a while.

It was actually a really fun reset and a fun summer, so I'm not too bummed about it. But I'm feeling a lot better now.

Q. What did you do that was most fun? Any good trips?

MEGHA GANNE: I went to Madrid with my teammates, yeah, with Paula, who's from Spain, so it was fun.

Q. No golf on that trip?

MEGHA GANNE: No, not even a little bit.

Q. We talk about being at Augusta and inspiring the next generation here. You obviously have a Girls' Golf connection and do that every time you tee it up. How much fun is that to just show this good golf to young girls?

MEGHA GANNE: It's really fun. I loved watching really good golf when I was younger. So maybe I have one memorable shot that someone will remember, which is pretty cool.

I definitely remember watching certain shots of players when I was a kid.

Q. Have you done much work to your swing over the last six months or so? I thought I remember maybe this event last year you had made some changes. Anything recent that's worked and helped explain this great college season that you've been having?

MEGHA GANNE: Yeah, leading into last year, I had made some swing changes. Not that many this year. I've just been working out a lot more -- not necessarily like lifting weights, but after my injury, getting a lot more flexible and mobile in my hip, which I didn't know that was like a weakness of mine.

So after that, I think my swing kind of -- like I saw the progress in my swing just from that. So like not intentional changes, but definitely feel like I'm clearing through the ball better. So that's been nice.

Q. Was it left hip or right hip?

MEGHA GANNE: My left, yeah.

Q. How would you describe the chemistry of this Stanford team, and what's your role on it in your mind?

MEGHA GANNE: I love my teammates. They make golf way more fun, and I can't believe after college I'm not going to have that anymore. They're all great. They're like -- they're exactly what you see and more.

The freshmen have really like made such a strong presence this year, which I'm super impressed by and how well developed their games are. It's definitely pushed me every single day because the team is so hard working and so talented. Having that around constantly like definitely makes me sharpen stuff.

Q. Do they make you want to go to Sweden now?

MEGHA GANNE: I guess so. I've got to see what they're doing over there. It's working.

Q. Who's with you off the course this week?

MEGHA GANNE: My sister, my mom, and my dad. Maybe a couple more people coming later this week.

Q. Is it tough to balance those off-course -- I don't want to call them obligations, but just all the people around with what you're trying to do on the course?

MEGHA GANNE: Definitely not the people. They make it easier. I think this tournament has a lot of obligations, which is a good thing, but it can get pretty draining. So having your people around is important.

Q. You've been coming here for pretty much a decade every time this year. Does it make this year more meaningful for you to really want to put a bow on your experiences in Augusta?

MEGHA GANNE: A little bit. I feel like there's been a bow on it every year just getting to be here. So trying not really to think about it like that.

It's definitely feeling more special this year and hopefully next year because I'll be done with college by then. So it's feeling more close to the end.

Q. This is your fifth Augusta National Women's Amateur. From a player's perspective, how has this tournament grown in the years that you've been here? Obviously the course, the conditions are great, but from its place in amateur golf, how has it grown the last five years?

MEGHA GANNE: I think it's the most exciting week in amateur golf, men's or women's, period, in my opinion. I think everyone in golf knows about it. They might not know about certain other tournaments, but when this one's happening, people tune in.

It just draws so much attention in the best way, and these women carry themselves in such a great way. I'm really excited to see where the tournament goes although I don't think it can get that much better than it is now.

Q. Megha, you seem to be hitting the ball a little longer than last year. Is that the case, and does it create some opportunities for you?

MEGHA GANNE: Yeah, a little bit longer than last year. Same -- I think I'm just able to move through the ball better after working on strengthening my hip. Definitely helpful to have some shorter clubs in.

Q. I have to talk about the outfit. By far one of the best dressed. Who picks this out? Talk about scripting for the week.

MEGHA GANNE: This is -- Ralph Lauren picks this outfit out. They just told me what to wear, and I wear it, but I absolutely love it. I picked the shoes, though, so that's my contribution, and the blue hat, yeah.

Q. I love it. The monochrome is a good look. What else can we expect from the week?

MEGHA GANNE: I think there's a couple more monochrome outfits. I love wearing golf clothes that are fun, so it's definitely one of the thing I'm looking forward to is seeing the next few outfits.

Q. I talked to your swing coach. She said this outfit is also probably a 9-under round. It sounds like a nice little bit of good.

MEGHA GANNE: I'll have to keep this outfit around, yeah.