AUGUSTA NATIONAL WOMEN'S AMATEUR

March 31, 2026

Aphrodite Deng

Quick Quotes

Q. Obviously you're used to being in situations where you're probably the youngest in the field in all these competitions, but being at Augusta National at the Women's Am, does it feel any different sort of being one of the youngest here, competing against people that are a little bit older and a little bit more experienced this time around?

APHRODITE DENG: Yeah. It feels pretty special being the youngest here competing at ANWA, and I'm really excited and looking forward to this one.

Q. Okay. Are there any people in the field that you sort of grew up watching and are excited to go up against today, or during this tournament?

APHRODITE DENG: Yeah. A lot of the Stanford team girls I really look up to, and it's really cool to be able to be playing in the same field as them.

Q. Have you ever gotten to interact with them so far since being here yet?

APHRODITE DENG: Yeah. I got to say hi to a couple of the girls.

Q. What was that like for you? Was it like a star-struck moment? What was that moment like?

APHRODITE DENG: Yeah. It feels really cool.

Q. Who was your favorite to meet so far?

APHRODITE DENG: I met Megha.

Q. You met who?

APHRODITE DENG: Megha. She's really nice. Yeah.

Q. What did you guys talk about?

APHRODITE DENG: We just said hi. Yeah.

Q. What do you think of what she's done here? She's obviously going to be competing here for her sixth time.

APHRODITE DENG: Yeah. I think that's really awesome, and her game is really good.

Q. I'm curious about the mental approach. I talked to a few people how important the mental side of the game is. For you, just how important is that for your game coming into a situation like you mentioned? You're always the youngest. Does that give you a chip on your shoulder? Does that give you an edge? Talk to me a little about that.

APHRODITE DENG: I think it just keeps me more motivated knowing that I'm here and I can compete against older girls, and I have more years to come. So I'm just trying to get better each year.

Q. What's the best tip you've gotten from anybody that's played in this event?

APHRODITE DENG: Probably just like just play your own game and just play to your own standards.

Quick Quotes by ASAP Sports