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U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 1, 2019

Maria Fassi

Charleston, South Carolina

THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon. We are here with Maria Fassi, shot a 3-under 68 today. Just walk us through your round a bit.

MARIA FASSI: I think I got off to a pretty nice start. I almost chipped in for birdie on 1 and then found birdies on 4 and 5 and hit it really close on 6 and 7, missed both putts, but I was feeling great. Then found another birdie on 8 and then birdied 9. So I had a pretty nice front nine.

Then from there, I guess off the tee I was a little bit messy and was getting in some trouble off the tee and was kind of saving pars or having very long birdie putts. I found a couple bogeys but then was able to birdie 15 as well and go on back there.

But it was just really solid basically all day.

THE MODERATOR: We could hear the crowd roar on your birdie on 9 right here from the Media Center. What does the crowd support mean to you?

MARIA FASSI: It's everything. Just playing a good round is great, but then playing in front of a crowd like the one we have this week is amazing. Their support has been key, I feel like, this week. Hopefully, I can get to have more roars like those tomorrow.

Q. Can you talk about the turnaround from last night to this morning, what time you got here, how much sleep you got, and then just sort of the mentality of just trying to hang on to make the cut, which isn't something you're normally used to.
MARIA FASSI: Yeah, it was a very quick turnaround. I went to bed at like 10:30 and had to wake up at 4:30 this morning to be ready to go at 7:00. Yeah, it was definitely different, well, that quick of a turnaround, and then also just playing to make the cut was definitely something I'm not used to.

It was nice to see how I handled it and interesting to see some of the emotions that I had. It was kind of weird just to putt, trying to make two-putts instead of like I wasn't being super aggressive, which I didn't really enjoy because I like being aggressive. It's definitely something that I'll try to work on for the future.

But overall, I think it was nice to see that I made those three pars and was able to build on for the rest of my round.

Q. And just the first -- I guess the first two days of being a pro, did it feel like you thought it would? Did you feel more pressure in that opening round? I haven't really talked to you about the first day.
MARIA FASSI: I think playing with Jennifer and Sierra kind of helped me with the pressure and nerves. I wasn't really feeling anything different.

But then when they announced my name on the 1st tee on the first round, I was like, damn, this is it.

I hit a really good tee ball on the 1st, and it was just all good from there.

Q. So kind of feeding off what Beth Ann just asked, how were the nerves different from Thursday early in the round versus today? Can you feel a difference and sort of the emotions and maybe the confidence of being out there?
MARIA FASSI: Well, I always get nervous in a way kind of before my round, and I like that. It was just on Thursday, it was probably a different kind of nerves. It was like nerves with excitement, and I don't know, I was just really happy to be here. So it was more of trying to keep myself calm and to stay present.

Then Friday and today, it was different. It was just the usual nerves, I guess, that I get because I'm just happy to be where I am.

Yeah, I guess I was nervous tapping in my putt on 9 this morning to make the cut. It was like a one-footer out, and I was like, okay, this better not break anywhere. So I was nervous there. But otherwise, it's just like any other tournament.

Q. Given everything at stake and all the attention on you turning pro, how would you grade your performance through three rounds?
MARIA FASSI: I mean, I've been pretty solid, I think, overall. I've made a few mistakes that I would love to take back, but I've also made great shots and really good saves. So I guess I'm really happy with the way I'm playing and the way I'm reacting to the bad and the good shots and stuff. So I'll just rate myself with a 9 or something like that.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about the golf course, what you like about this golf course and what you don't like about the course.
MARIA FASSI: I love that it allows me to be aggressive and stay true to my game. I can hit a lot of drivers off the tee, and that gives me a lot of confidence. So I guess I really enjoy that.

I mean, I think it's a really fair golf course. If you hit good shots, most of the time it's going to get rewarded for them. It's hard when you don't hit a great shot. It really -- yeah, I guess you get some bad kicks if you're in the wrong place.

It's fair, which I like, and it's out there. I mean, there's no really like tricky holes or surprises. It's just what you see is what you get. So I think it's a really nice course.

Q. What about the 11th hole? Would you say that's a fair hole?
MARIA FASSI: After the huge hump, it's pretty straightforward, honestly. It is a hard hole for sure and kind of intimidating, if you will, but if you hit over the hump, it's going to stay most of the time on the green. So I think, yeah, it's not your usual green, but I still do think it's pretty fair.

Q. And do you feel your life is moving, like, really fast right now?
MARIA FASSI: Yeah, definitely.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you and good luck tomorrow.

MARIA FASSI: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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