AIG WOMEN'S OPEN

July 31, 2025

Alexa Pano

Quick Quotes

Q. Good finish there. Those par-5s were helpful.

ALEXA PANO: I played pretty well. I think I only left one par-5 out there, so that was pretty good.

Q. 3-under after the first day. That's got to be a good sign for you.

ALEXA PANO: It was really nice. It's always nice to see red numbers on the first day. Also liked how I felt on the golf course. That was the biggest takeaway for me.

Q. As far as you hit the ball, bunkers in play off the tee on most holes. Did you take the driver out of the equation on those holes, or what did you do?

ALEXA PANO: I hit driver a lot less than I usually do today. I joked with my dad, I think, on maybe hole 12 or 13. It was like my first driver in forever. Yeah, I was getting a lot of run-out on the fairways today, so I couldn't really pull driver a lot, like you said, with those bunkers, but kept it in play for the most part. That was good.

Q. What's more important on this golf course? Is it hitting fairways, negotiating the greens? What have you found?

ALEXA PANO: I think, when it comes to links golf, you're just trying to stay focused on the shot in front of you. I think that's the biggest thing is trying to control what you can control.

For me, it's all mental out here. That's kind of what went well is keeping it simple.

Q. Did the wind pick up perceptibly in your round? Did it get stronger as you went deeper into your round?

ALEXA PANO: Uh-huh, I think at the turn it looked like it was going to rain a little, kind of like it is right now. Luckily I finished before that. When those clouds rolled in, it definitely got a bit windier.

But pretty similar to the practice days. We've had really lovely weather out here. I'm thankful to have played in the sun and worn some skirts as well.

Q. Particularly with the first round early start, you've got the wind that's going to be higher tomorrow. It's good to have a nice number you have kind of as a cushion going into the second round, right?

ALEXA PANO: A little bit. I think it's more just trying to get some solid golf out there. There's a lot of golf left. Obviously tomorrow is going to be challenging with that wind. Nothing I haven't at least I think I've prepared for so far this week.

Q. You had a good finish last year at St Andrews. Did you have a good feeling again coming into this week?

ALEXA PANO: Yeah, I put in a lot of work this week, spent a lot of hours here. I think links golf is fun because you don't have to hit every shot perfect. You can play a round with different shots. It's not traditional, you need to birdie every single hole golf. So I think I kind of prefer that. Hopefully I'll keep preferring that.

Q. I know things have been a little bit tough for you. How have you managed to give yourself grace?

ALEXA PANO: Obviously it's tough when you're struggling a little bit. I don't know, just woke up with a good feeling on Sunday and Monday this week, was eager to get out here.

Any time you have the opportunity to play in a major championship, it kind of gets you excited. Definitely was feeling a lot better about this week. Kind of just got to keep grinding at it. You never know how close you are. When things are tough, my dad always says you're not as far away as you think you are, and when things are good, you're not always as good as you think you are.

Just kind of grinding away at it.

Q. How much did this good start feel like I'm back in my rhythm and feeling good about my game again?

ALEXA PANO: I've had a lot of talks recently with some people. The thing is that I'm trying to be better than I was before, not getting back to anything. For me, I was just trying to take it every shot at a time. I know my game's there, and I just had to stay focused on what was in front of me. That was a big thing for me is just trying to hit every shot to the best of my capabilities out there.

What links golf gives you is what you take.

Q. Looking ahead, really built a firm foundation in round 1. What do you take from this round into the next few days?

ALEXA PANO: I think definitely got to play in some wind there at the end, which was nice. I think it's good prep for tomorrow. Definitely learned a lot about just how the course is playing and different shots that I'm going to use out there. So I feel like it was a good first round and also good learning in the wind out there.