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U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 27, 2006

Lorena Ochoa

NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND

CRAIG SMITH: It's my pleasure to welcome Lorena Ochoa to the 2006 U.S. Women's Open. Let me start by just having you talk about major championship golf, women's, women's major golf. You have gotten so close so many times of late. Probably thinking back to last year's Women's Open, take us through that stretch of major golf and what you're shooting for.

LORENA OCHOA: Hello, everybody. I'm very excited to be here. Finally the week of The Open is here. I've been having a really good year. It's been a little fun for me, just playing good and trying to win tournaments.

I'm very pleased and I'm very happy to be getting good results because I worked very hard in the off season and just to show that things are showing the hard work is paying off is nice to see.

At the same time, I really had kind of a hard year last year. At the end of the season it was hard for me. Many times I didn't finish the way I wanted to finish. It was nice at that time to just go home and take some time off, go off and just kind of think and do the things I need to do to improve and get motivated and make some changes. I was ready for 2006.

This year has been really good. A U.S. Open or any of the majors are a goal and a dream to all of us, the players. Just because of what happened last year in the U.S. Open, I really learned a lot. That's the number one thing. I know that's a mistake that will not happen again on the 18th hole. It's really just experience, getting more mature and kind of seeing everything in a positive way. I had a chance to win the tournament, and I'm happy I was the one that had a chance and was on that 18th hole, and this is a new year. Like I said, I don't want to put any more pressure, just play like any other tournament, same playing conditions for everybody. I'm enjoying myself right now. I'm going to try to have fun the whole week, and hopefully this time it comes my way.

CRAIG SMITH: When you look at last year, the Women's Open, that last hole, it really made some disappointment with you. That could really devastate you, but you seem to have taken it and looked at it as something positive, or at least you didn't dwell on the bad stuff real long.

LORENA OCHOA: Yes. I'm the type of player that I try not to be too hard on myself. When it comes to situations like that, boom, it happens. I always try to take the positive out of that situation. You know, it was funny because I talked to a lot of players, and they would come to me and say, oh, don't worry, I made an 11, I made a 8. All the good players, things like that happen. I just tried to put it in good perspective and I just made myself I want to win that tournament just as bad. It's a good way to do things. I'm happy to be here and to have an opportunity.

Q. How much of the golf course have you seen so far this week, and talk about how it suits your game or doesn't. What do you like about it? What might be tough about it?

LORENA OCHOA: Well, I played nine holes, the front nine yesterday. I played today 18 holes already. I really like the course. I really enjoy it. I think it's going to be good. It's going to help a little bit more for longer players, the ones that hit the ball a little bit farther. You can hit driver pretty much on all of the holes. It's not like you have to hit a 3 or 5 wood on most of the holes to put yourself in good position. You have to hit driver out here far so you have a maybe 4 or 5 iron in your hand. I'm hitting my driver good. I'm driving the ball well, I think that's going to help. I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that I hit of lot of fairways.

Q. You spoke about last year and how you learned from the 18th hole. What specifically have you learned going forward into this year?

LORENA OCHOA: What did I learn from that shot or what was the question?

Q. Just what things have you learned from I don't want to say devastation, but the 18th hole last year.

LORENA OCHOA: Well, what happened on 18th hole, it was a lot to do with a bad decision on which club to hit. I could have hit a I hit my 3 wood, and if I would have hit that hard with adrenaline, I would be close to the water. I just tried to make an easy swing. You never do that when you are pumped up or when you have adrenaline. Most of the time you try to hit a full shot. My hands get too weak when I'm under pressure, so I made my back swing kind of loose and got really active hands and made me hit the ball behind. So I learned from that.

One of the things that I worked on in the off season is to make sure I have more control on my back swing, kind of shorten the back swing so I don't cross the line at the top so much. I got stronger in my upper body, just working out. A lot of that helped me to have more control over my swing especially in that situation under pressure. I proved myself in Nabisco, the first major of the year, hitting really good shots, finishing the tournament. So that makes me realize the things that I worked on are working, especially under pressure, and that gives me more confidence and control over my game.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about growing up and playing golf? When did you first start to play golf? I know you swam and tennis and marathons, and why golf, and when did you start to get really good?

LORENA OCHOA: I started playing when I was five. I played my first tournament in Guadalajara when I was six. I played my first international tournament when I was eight. I love the competition. I used to play tennis and swim and play basketball and all other sports, but golf was the only one that made me travel and represent my country. When I was about 10, 11, 12, my dad came to me and said you should pick only one sport so you can do it well. Just because of what I did with golf, I didn't have a hard time picking that I wanted to play golf. I really enjoyed it since the beginning.

I do all the other sports just to be in good shape and to get out of golf, to get structure and at the same time motivation. I like to challenge myself and to make sure that putting yourself in situations where you are running a marathon or hiking a big mountain, you can do it, you can do it, don't give up. It's a challenge especially in your head that you can achieve what you want. All of those things help, they really do, to be a better golfer and a better person.

Q. Did your father teach you?

LORENA OCHOA: In the beginning, yes, and then I picked a teacher from my club.

Q. What kind of player was he?

LORENA OCHOA: My dad? Like 15 handicap. Just for fun, once a week with the family.

Q. You're the money leader, I believe, on Tour. What do you think you have to do to be regarded as the world's No. 1 player, which I guess that would be Sorenstam and Karrie Webb right now.

LORENA OCHOA: What's the question?

Q. You're the money leader on Tour right now. What do you think you need to do to be regarded as the No. 1 player in the world?

LORENA OCHOA: Golf, it takes a lot of years and a lot of tournaments to figure out what is the best play or just be more consistent or to win so many big tournaments or things like that. I'm doing great right now. I think all that matters is who is in the first position in November. I'm going to try to keep doing the things that are working. My goal is to be in that position at the end of the season.

As far as being the No. 1 player in the world, I think that's something too soon for me. I'm just early on my career. This is my fourth season, and I'm just trying to go up little by little. That's my goal that I'm working really hard to get up there, but that will come with time.

Q. If I can get you to go back to athleticism and being a good athlete, people who don't know golf say it's not a real sport. Can you talk about being a good athlete, how that's able to help you in golf, and also if you could go into a little more detail about that eco challenge, what that's all about?

LORENA OCHOA: I think all sports or any sport has a little bit of something. It could be ability in your hands, strength in your legs, mental toughness, coordination. It depends on which sport you are doing. I think golf has all of them. I think it's a more complete sport. You have to dominate your thoughts in your head, and also now these days you have to be an athlete to be able to perform. You have to be strong, you have to be healthy. I love golf.

The ecothon, it is a competition in Mexico. It was five different sports, running, biking, mountain biking, kayaking, swimming and repelling. It was three days. It took us like about ten hours every day, and it was it was my brother's team, and they needed a woman and he asked me if I would do it. I said, okay, you have to train for six months. We train two sports a day, a couple hours in the morning swimming and a couple hours in the afternoon biking, two sports a day. I took that as a motivation just to be more strong and to be just in good shape and in good condition. I think that really helped me to be a better golfer.

I didn't practice as much during that time, but that was before college. You know, the last competition was swimming four kilometers in really cold water into the wind, and I kept swimming and swimming and you felt like you didn't move forward. It was horrible.

When I finished, when I get to the line, it was like winning the U.S. Open. It was a great feeling. I never felt that never before.

Q. Considering the history behind this tournament, what would it mean to you to win your first major here?

LORENA OCHOA: A lot. I don't think you have words to say that or to express that. Right now it's Tuesday and I can only say that it's a dream. When I was very little I remember watching Annika win those two U.S. Opens back to back when I was little at home watching TV, and I always dreamed of winning that trophy. You know, I can only say that I believe I can do it. My golf is in really good condition right now, and I'm going to play really hard to give it a good try.

Q. Annika was in here a little while ago and talked about how it can be difficult to socialize out here with players when you're highly competitive. You seem to have a very sweet disposition, a lot of players talk about how much they like you and respect you. How do you balance wanting to beat the field and also wanting to be a nice person?

LORENA OCHOA: You are right, it's tough. What I do, I have a lot of respect for all of the players. I think you first have to respect them and give yourself a good position out here on Tour. You can tell that the top 10 or top 20 it's hard to be close friends because you are very competitive. Out there you don't want to be friendly, you kind of like it's one thing to respect and admire other players, but at the same time you want to beat them.

What really helped me here on Tour is I go to the fellowship on Tour, where Christians I'm Catholic, but non denominations, Christians, we go every Tuesday at night and kind of spend time together. We are about 30, volunteers and players and caddies, and we kind of get together and talk to each other about what everybody is going through. It can be inside the golf course or outside the golf course or problems or health issues or family issues or things like that, and that helps us to kind of have a good friendship with others and care about other people and giving your time to others and to help because the life out here is tough. You can get in a routine where you're kind of by yourself, by yourself. But for me, that time, the fellowship is a really good time just to talk to other players and feel good and also kind of understand each other, but not just about golf but about everything, and that helps me to have a better balanced life here on Tour.

Q. Mexico is not known for producing many top level female athletes in any sport. In fact, the culture has been somewhat prohibitive of that. How much has your growing fame and popularity changed things in terms of young girls in Mexico seeing what they can do, whether that's going to college in the United States or looking at sports in a different way?

LORENA OCHOA: When I started playing golf it was only me and I used to play with boys. Now that I go home there are so many little kids boys and girls, but there are 300 little kids playing, and I see all of them. Right now I believe there are more than ten girls playing in college, and when I came it was only me and another girl playing in college. So things are changing.

I feel fortunate to be able to be a role model, if you want to put it that way, kind of like knowing that they can do it and they could be here playing on the LPGA. There are a lot of good things. There is another Mexican playing this week, Sophia. She was really good playing in Mexico City, MasterCard. She beat me (laughter). So she could be here. And a couple more are coming soon. I'm waiting for them, and hopefully that just helps to get more players in the future.

Q. I wonder if you could talk about your relationship with Nancy Lopez. Do you still speak with her fairly often?

LORENA OCHOA: Yes.

Q. And how that developed, how it came about.

LORENA OCHOA: Yes. I feel very fortunate to have Nancy Lopez as a friend. When I go out here, even before I turned pro, she always came to me and said, whatever you need, and if you need some advice or some help or anything I can do to make things easier for you, she always offered that help. I appreciated that very much.

Every time I have a question I go to her and she would always respond and always give me her point of view. She's been very helpful to me. To me Nancy Lopez is a hero. When I was growing up, the only thing I hear is you can be like Nancy Lopez, you're like Nancy Lopez, she's winning tournaments. Now having the ability to spend more time with her it's not never. Hopefully we can spend more time together. But it just gives me motivation, and she helps me to put things in perspective that golf is a long career and you have to pace yourself. There's going to be ups and downs and you're going to go through them. She's been very nice to me.

CRAIG SMITH: We'll let you get back to your preparation and wish you very good luck.

End of FastScripts.

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