JM EAGLE LA CHAMPIONSHIP MEDIA CONFERENCE

April 27, 2023

Gemma Dryburgh

Quick Quotes

Q. Nice way to start your week here, 6-under 66, got the clubhouse lead at the moment. Got off on a tear on the front nine. Tell me about those first six, seven holes.

GEMMA DRYBURGH: Yeah, I could have birdied every hole to be honest. I hit it pretty close on all the holes, which was nice, and saw the putts going in, which was good. But yeah, got off to a hot start, which was nice.

Q. Three birdies in a row there, I think, on 6, 7 and 8. What was going through your mind on those three birdies?

GEMMA DRYBURGH: Yeah, 6 was obviously a really good one. That's quite a tough hole, quite a long one. That was a bit of a bonus. That was about a 15-foot putt I would say.

Then 7, that's actually the hole I've had my only hole-in-one on in my career, so I have good vibes there. It almost went in. It went to like a couple feet, so that was cool.

Then yeah, 8, hit it pretty close, as well, so yeah, a good few holes.

Q. It's a quirky golf course out there. What do you and your caddie do to adjust when you get here? I know there's some bunkers in some interesting spots, greens are always a little tricky?

GEMMA DRYBURGH: Yeah, the greens are tricky. They're quick, as well, so you want to make sure you get on the right side of them below the hole, which I think we did well today. Had one three-putt on 9, which was a bit annoying, but apart from that I was in good spots and had uphill putts, which helped a lot.

Q. Walk me through the back nine out there. I know that tends to be a little bit more tricky than the front. How were you able to manage?

GEMMA DRYBURGH: Yeah, it was good. 17 is obviously a hard hole, pretty long, as well, kind of an awkward second shot. But yeah, they moved 15 up, the par-5, which was nice, so we had a short -- like a 7-wood in there, so that was quite nice. Had an eagle putt, but just missed it, so that kind of helped. The wind was kind of getting up a little bit, but not much. Not in comparison to last week at all, but at least you know where it's going around here.

Q. Is it interesting that you finish on a par-3? There's not a lot of golf courses in pro golf that you really finish on a par-3.

GEMMA DRYBURGH: Yeah, it's a bit strange actually, you don't really do it very often, and it's a really tough one, as well, very small green, small target. So it's hard to get the club right, as well, because the wind kind of switches. You don't know if it's down or just across, but managed it well, so it was good.

Q. Always nice to shoot a 66 on Thursday. Three days left, what will you take from this round as you look ahead?

GEMMA DRYBURGH: Yeah, just take the positives from it. I was swinging well, so just do that again, and I was seeing the putts well, as well, so just doing a little bit of practice this afternoon but not much, and just take it into tomorrow.

Q. Is there anything swing specific that you might have tweaked that worked a little bit better?

GEMMA DRYBURGH: To be honest, no, not really. I've just been feeling good the last few weeks and just committing to every shot. I think that was the key.