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ANA INSPIRATION

April 3, 2019

Inbee Park

Rancho Mirage, California

THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon everyone at the ANA Inspiration media center. It's my pleasure to welcome in world No. 6, LPGA Hall of Fame member, seven-time major champion, Inbee Park.

Inbee, thanks for joining us.

INBEE PARK: You're welcome.

THE MODERATOR: Your record here at the ANA Inspiration: 12 starts; 12 cuts made; 6 Top 10s, including a win in 2013. What is it about this event that's so special to you?

INBEE PARK: Yeah, you know, I think it's now only major that -- this one and Evian Championship is only couple majors in the whole schedule that we play the same golf course over and over again.

This golf course has great champions. It has the great history. It has very special ceremony for the winners. Yeah, I think it's just really very memorable. It's definitely one of my favorite stops on tour. Yeah, you just come to the golf course and you really know the golf course. You're really used to the atmosphere, venue, and I think you just get comfortable.

I have had a lot of good results here, and I think that always helps. Yeah, when the roughs are up here and the greens are firm and greens are really, really pure, so it's really fun golf course to play.

THE MODERATOR: You've played a practice round yesterday; you'll play in the Pro-Am this afternoon. How does the golf course look?

INBEE PARK: The golf course is in I think really, really good shape. I think it's probably one of the tougher conditions that we had maybe over the last five years or so. The rough is thicker than what we play probably four, five years I think. So I think rough will be definitely the challenge of the week.

We are playing about three or four holes that we -- four holes of the tee boxes that we never played before. The courses is going to be longer and the rough is going to be up. I think it'll be quite a tough test.

I think it's a good major setup.

THE MODERATOR: Last year you came very close to winning a second ANA Inspiration. Does coming so close, surviving an 8-hole playoff going into Monday, make you hungrier for a win?

INBEE PARK: You know, I knew that I came so close last year. I kind of know that I can pull something really good on the golf course. I think this definitely gives me a lot of confidence going into this year as well.

Obviously being so close last year you're kind of thinking like, Oh, maybe. If I can do it this year, that will be even better. Yeah, last year was definitely just one of those one-of-a-kind experience that I never had in my golfing career.

Yeah, it was -- I feel like I fought really well but came just a little bit short. Hopefully I can have the better opportunity this year.

THE MODERATOR: You're a seven-time major champion. What's your prep work like for majors, and what's the key for you performing during a major championship?

INBEE PARK: You know, I'm just trying not to overdo anything. Just making sure that I'm doing the normal routines that I do every other week. Just this is my third week playing in a row, so I'm just trying to watch my rhythm a little bit and just not -- I just don't want myself getting too tired before the tournament starts, so trying to work the times a little bit less this week.

Yeah, I mean, I need a lot of practice on these greens and the roughs here, but that's one thing I'm just trying to watch, is that I don't want to get exhausted before the tournament starts, so...

THE MODERATOR: You mentioned this is your fourth start to the season. Last week at the Kia Classic you finished runner-up. How do you feel about your game coming into this week?

INBEE PARK: Yeah, I feel really good actually. I was in the contention last week, which is what I'm really looking forward to doing. Doesn't matter whether I win or not. If I can have that kind of opportunity on the weekend every week, that'll be just really great. Whether I can pull it off, not pulling it off, it's just -- you just play under the pressure and you play for the trophy. That's what you want every weekend.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. You have this ability to take a long time off and rest and come back and be very sharp and contend immediately. How do you explain that?
INBEE PARK: I think it's just kind of the interest level and the energy level that is like now more important to me than just playing the tournament week by week. I think it's just that passion that -- whether I have the passion for the game and whether I want to play that week, whether I don't want to play that week.

I think it really now comes in effect in the results. Just before, like maybe ten years ago or so, I think just playing every weekend on was just my normal stretch. I just didn't feel as much as tired as before, but I kind of do feel the tiredness. When I feel the tiredness I don't play as good as before.

I just been trying to wash that out little bit in the last three, four years or so, and it has been working really well. When I have the interest level up, the passion for the game, that's when I perform the best. That's what I kind of figured out.

So it is always hard to come back being a little bit rusty playing the tournament. Couple tournaments in you kind of feel like you're back in here again. Yeah, I feel good now. Probably was a little bit rusty last couple weeks or so. Everybody will be feeling that after the off-season, so...

Q. Last year there was eight playoff holes, and you Pernilla went back and forth to the fifth day. Could have gone either way. Was there any part of that playoff or any part of last year's championship that you replayed in your head that you wish you could maybe have back?
INBEE PARK: Yeah, you know, I can't really exactly remember which hole it was, but I knew that I had a birdie opportunity to win. Maybe No. 4 or 5 playoff hole. I knew that on No. 18 hole the break -- I knew exactly which way it was breaking and everything, but I missed putt.

Yeah, I think I it was maybe fourth or fifth playoff hole that I was going in. Yeah, but overall I had the opportunities for birdies, but missed a few. It's just always going to happen in that kind of conditions under the pressure.

So, yeah, I mean, there is no regrets how I played last year. I actually played really well to get into the playoff first of all. Yeah, I think I birdied 17 and 18 to get in the playoff, which is really good.

Q. So maybe a little unfinished business this year?
INBEE PARK: Hopefully. Hopefully I can perform a little bit better. Yeah, but I think the course is a little bit more challenging this year, so the scoring is going to be a little bit different to last year. I think, but I can be always wrong.

Yeah, the course to me is playing a little bit tougher, little bit longer; the rough is up a little bit more. So you don't want to miss fairways or greens. You have to be very accurate.

Q. If you win this week, you would move up to where only Betsy Rawls, Babe Zaharius, Annika Sorenstam, Louise Suggs, Mickey Wright, and Patty Byrd would've won more majors than you.
INBEE PARK: Okay.

Q. How meaningful is it to be in that list of great players?
INBEE PARK: I think I it's such a meaningful thing to do if you can leave your name in the history of golf, especially amongst great names like that. It's just such a great honor.

That has been something I have been looking forward to and that I have been dreaming of since he was just a little kid. I have written a lot of things that I wanted to write, and I know there is a lot more in front of me that I can do.

So just trying to pace myself up, pace myself to get there - hopefully. But what really matters to me now is just playing golf really healthy and being very happy on the golf course, and, yeah, just no injuries, and, yeah, just trying to enjoy as long as I can.

Q. You just mentioned the greens are really, really pure. Well, your putting stroke is really, really pure. How do you see yourself putting on the course this week?
INBEE PARK: Well, I always love to putt on the pure greens. I think everybody does, especially the professional golfers. They love putting on the pure greens.

I think going in and not going in is a different story, too. I like looking at the pure greens, but sometimes it can be the week that it's like never -- nothing was to drop, just like last week. I holed a lot of putts first three rounds and it wasn't a pure green, but I think sometimes I can be right and sometimes I can be wrong. I always like to see the ball rolling really smoothly.

I'm looking forward to this week, yeah, uh-huh.

THE MODERATOR: You accomplished so much in your career. What keeps you going and how do you manage your expectations and set goals for yourself each week?

INBEE PARK: You know, when I thought that I achieved a lot of things, and especially when I reach my goal, which was getting inducted into Hall of Fame. When I got to that point I kind of had the moments where I was like, Oh, then what do I do next? What do I play for? It didn't last that long, probably a year or so.

After that, I was like, Yeah, even if I achieved so many things, we start from the same start line as everybody else every week. To me, I think now I just try to erase everything that I had and just trying to have a new start.

Everybody is in the same start line, and Sunday we are in the same finishing line. We start new every week, and that's really what's fun about golf. That really motivates me.

Q. One more question on how pure the greens are here. Where would you rank these greens in terms of purest you've played on in competition?
INBEE PARK: Well, I think it is definitely top three that we play all year. Especially, you know, all five majors that we play are all pretty pure greens. Sometimes British can be a little bit slower because of the wind; Evian is always a little bit more slopier so we don't see that much pureness. Usually U.S. Open, KPMG, and this week, these three are very pure greens to putt.

Q. This is kind of a random question. You don't show a lot of crazy emotion out here.
INBEE PARK: Uh-huh.

Q. Is there anything away from golf that really gets you twisted? Do you ever get upset or excited about anything?
INBEE PARK: Well, I say compared to maybe the average I say I am not -- I don't get much excited or get sad or I get too happy. I think I'm pretty calm off the golf course as well. When I watch sad movies I cry; when I watch funny movies I laugh. I think it's same for everyone.

I think it just shows a little less, and that's just my personality. I think that kind of build up a little bit more since I play professional golf for so long. I think maybe I wasn't like that maybe 20, 25 years ago. I think it's just how I grew up, so...

THE MODERATOR: Do you remember the last movie that made you cry?

INBEE PARK: Well actually I think the very last movie that I watched and I cried was A Star is Born, so... I cry in a lot of movies actually, so yeah.

THE MODERATOR: Any further questions for Inbee? All right, best of luck this week. Thanks for joining us.

INBEE PARK: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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