	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

U.S. SENIOR WOMEN'S OPEN

July 13, 2018

Patricia Ehrhart

Chicago, Illinois

Q. I just wanted to check in because obviously as you relax this afternoon, you're moving up the leaderboard quite a bit with your good round this morning.
PATRICIA EHRHART: Oh, good. Good to know.

Q. You're close to the top 10 actually.
PATRICIA EHRHART: Wow.

Q. I just wanted to touch base because obviously you had a very solid two rounds, and I was just wondering how you're feeling about it, if you're kind of just taking it easy or if you just feel like, wow, I've really played fantastic golf.
PATRICIA EHRHART: Well, you know what, I'm kind of taking it easy. I'm feeling very grateful to be here and to be playing, and I have nothing to lose, and I'm hitting the ball well. I've had some time to practice at home, and I don't know, I love the greens, I love the golf course. I'm just kind of embracing that in my heart and playing golf.

It's kind of a difference of playing -- I think you go into playing tournaments that you want to win and you start thinking about that and being nervous, and for me, I was just excited to play, and that's kind of the attitude I'm going to keep the rest of the weekend, and just excited to go play golf. It's not something to be nervous about right now.

Q. You mentioned you love the golf course; it really is quite an opportunity here for all the players. It must be a little bit surreal to be among this group. I know you did play professionally for a time, but to be back sort of in an arena with some of the players you may have played with a little bit and also maybe grew up following, I was just wondering what that was like.
PATRICIA EHRHART: It's such a privilege, and it is very surreal. I'm just lucky that it's worked out this way. I didn't ever expect there to be a Senior Women's U.S. Open, so that's a bonus right there, and then to actually be in the field with all those girls that were so good that I admired and that also regularly beat me week in and week out when I did get to play with them, so I don't know, I never planned on being here, so just one thing at a time, but it's really, really fun.

Q. Has there been any kind of -- some people may be surprised to see you this week when you came in and might have lost touch with you since you played professionally, a little bit of a reunion of sorts?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Oh, absolutely. There's a lot of girls -- through social media I think we've done a better job of all keeping in touch, but living in Hawai'i, it's sort of isolated me from any mainland golf or visiting with friends, and the lives of my children, chasing them around and their schedules have been the priority, so I've missed out on a lot of golf trips and reunions of sorts. But yeah, it's been really fun. I run into girls that I've known since Jr. golf, college golf.

Q. Any of the names in particular?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Some have had kids and done what I've done, kind of stayed at home and raised their families, and other girls have kept playing and teaching and stayed professional, and that's admirable. Yeah, it's interesting to see now 20 years later what everybody has done and accomplished and where they're living. It's really, really exciting and fun. It kind of touches your heart, really.

Q. Where everybody's journey has taken them basically, right?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Yeah, absolutely. Some great stories out there.

Q. And one of them is yours, obviously. I know about four years ago when you played in the Senior Women's Amateur and you literally just found out getting your amateur status back and competing in that for the first time when you turned 50; it's amazing what this four years has been for you on the golf stage, right?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Yes, yes. It's been so fun. And I've just loved playing. Win or lose, it's been like -- I am just in love with playing the game. I enjoy it more now than I ever have, thanks to senior golf. It's given me a reason to practice and play. I don't think I would have started playing if I didn't have a tournament to practice for, you know?

So that's kind of been my focus is just to try to qualify for as many USGA events as I can, and so this year I got three of them, so that's pretty exciting. Last year I played three. It's fun. Really, really enjoying that.

Q. And you bring a new perspective to it, as well, after this time, right?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Oh, absolutely, yeah. I can laugh at myself a lot easier now, I guess, and it doesn't keep me up at night. I don't know, maybe drinking a glass of wine helps, too. You just kind of look at it like chill out and quit being hard on yourself and enjoy what happens, the process.

Q. Definitely. And I know at least on Monday you had a friendly spectator along, somebody -- I think he was referred to either as caddie and/or player instructor at various times, Jimmy Buffett?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Yes, he's credentialed as my player instructor, so that's pretty funny, but he turned into the caddie. Then somebody turned him into my uncle, so God knows what he's going to be by tomorrow.

Q. So is there a possibility that he'll be on-site tomorrow?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Possibly. You know, he's working tonight, so we'll see. I think -- yeah, I think it's something he would like to do. It just might be a huge scene, so I don't know. But no, if he comes, it would be great. It's great for the game. He was so impressed with the event and the girls and the fact that everybody hits the ball -- like he's really only played golf with me as far as I think playing with many women golfers. I think he's played with a few but not professional, but he was so surprised that I was playing with Suzy Roebuck and Luanne Cherney and C.J. Reeves that day, and he's like, geez, they all hit it like you do. Yeah, they're all really good. So it's great for him to realize that.

Like I think he was like, whoa, kind of taken aback, so that's cool. I love that he came out there to see that.

Q. How much does Jimmy play?
PATRICIA EHRHART: How much does he play?

Q. Yeah.
PATRICIA EHRHART: He's probably about a 15 handicap I would say, but he didn't even know about the handicap system until I forced him into it in Hawai'i. I'm like, you've got to get a handicap. So he's fairly new in the system, probably two years. But he's been playing probably 10 or 15 years a little bit but gotten a lot more into it in the last couple years since he hurt his ankle so bad and can't play as much tennis because he was a big tennis player.

Q. Well, that's great to have that support, and I know your daughters all support you, as well. I know a few years ago when Lisa spoke with you, they weren't really into golf. Have any of them gotten the bug yet?
PATRICIA EHRHART: No, my youngest one, Scarlet, who is here with me this week, she has gotten -- I've brainwashed her and now she loves golf, so it's good, and she just did two weeks of golf camp this summer and she hits it nicely and she's developing her game and learning a lot at every one of these tournaments she goes to, but really following me to senior amateur events has made her really want to play because all the women are always including her in everything and super encouraging her to play, like enjoy the game. You don't have to be the best, just be the best of what you can do and enjoy it because I think you can enjoy it at so many different levels. We'll see, I hope she gets the love of it for as long as I did.

Q. And I know, too, that that's kind of what this week is about, the welcoming environment, the way that people have encouraged others to get involved in this game, and that's where a lot of the players are today now, the ones -- they're celebrating that journey in the game, right?
PATRICIA EHRHART: Absolutely, yeah. I think all of us here playing this week, every competitor, has to have that nostalgia and a respect for the game after so many years.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297