AIG WOMEN'S OPEN

August 2, 2025

Lauren Coughlin

Mixed Zone

Q. Five birdies and an under-par score in the third round of a major. What's your CliffsNotes version of the day?

LAUREN COUGHLIN: Yeah, hit the ball really well. There wasn't a ton of wind until I turned the nine, probably like 11 or 12 or so. Felt like I took advantage early. Made a couple bogeys coming in but nice to finish with birdie on 18.

Q. What happened with the bogeys?

LAUREN COUGHLIN: I missed about a five-footer for par on 16, and then hit it kind of in the -- bounced over the right bunker on 14 and had a really tough lie out of the rough.

Then was in the rough again and just didn't get out and made five.

Q. How much of a difference in miles per hour was the wind from when you started to when you finished?

LAUREN COUGHLIN: I mean, there was hardly anything when I started to started playing about a club and a half easily. When you're into, probably a good 15, 20 mile an hour wind once we were into. It was a little bit different wind than yesterday, so a little bit more some crosses than full on into.

Q. So that wind, with the leaders just going off now, give you some hope that they might back up or just think that's...

LAUREN COUGHLIN: Yeah, there is always the possibility. This golf course is very difficult, very demanding off the tee. Some crosswinds and stuff, you never know, but we'll see. Hopefully I can move up a little bit more but we'll see.

Q. How seen incremental increase in how much better you're playing each day?

LAUREN COUGHLIN: Yeah, definitely. Just a little bit more comfortable with like some lines off the tees and kind of just getting a better feel for the wind kind of every day.

Like I said it was really nice to not really have too much to start. I hadn't had that any day yet, so it was like this is a completely different course.

Q. How do the final four holes on this golf course rank as finishing holes?

LAUREN COUGHLIN: The last five holes really. 14 is pretty difficult as well.

Q. Yeah.

LAUREN COUGHLIN: Just with the two bunkers it tightens up, and if you want to lay back short of them you can, but then you'll have a really long shot down that chute.

Then it's dead into the wind, so either you lay back and have a much longer second and you take on those bunkers.

But then you never know. 15 isn't an easy par-3. Then 16 it's kind of similar, depending on the wind. The long hitters, you want to get it up there as close as you can to the bunkers without going in the bunkers.

Kind of same thing on 17. Want to get it as close as you can to the bunkers without getting to the bunkers.

And then 18 is a really fun -- like you still need to hit your lines, but it's a really fun finishing hole. It's interesting. The first two days I didn't really try to hit the green. Was just trying to get it to the front left part of the green.

Whereas today because it's a little bit back pin, isn't too big of a deal if you get in the right bunker, so I actually kind of went for it this time.

Yeah, I think they're very, very difficult. And then 18 is a fun reachable par-5.

Q. The quick turnaround a benefit this time, right, because you started before the winds picked up.

LAUREN COUGHLIN: Absolutely. It's a big advantage to not have to play in much wind. The greens are a little bit softer in the morning, too, so you can just fire away at a lot of stuff. Yesterday I hit -- on 3 I hit driver, 3-hybrid and today I hit driver pitching wedge or gap wedge.

So very big difference in just how -- sorry, driver 8-iron today instead of 3-hybrid, which I played like 176 that I played 205. So big difference.