MICHELOB ULTRA OPEN AT KINGSMILL

May 4, 2005

Annika Sorenstam

TONY PONTURO: Needless to say, this is a person that needs no introduction. We can't be more pleased that Annika selects our tournament to come to, you know. The best, in our mind, golfer in the world, and Annika has been a great friend of our company and myself for many years. And she leans on us and we lean on her every year to play in the Pro Am and put up with our play.

Without further adieu, Annika Sorenstam.

Thank you Annika for being here.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Thanks, Tony.

PAUL ROVNAK: Welcome. Thanks for coming to speak with us. We greatly appreciate it.

You have got a cool streak going on: You come in winning five in a row; this is number six. What have you been up to recently?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Drinking lots of Michelob ULTRA, I guess (laughter).

Actually I have been in Orlando hanging out, enjoying some time off, spending time with friends and family. Practiced a little bit, worked out a little bit. I feel rested and happy to be here.

Q. Have you been thinking about the streak at all or just on the back burner this week?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I thought about it a little bit, especially at the Kraft Nabisco and then coming here. Between that, I haven't really thought about golf at all. Just wanted to relax and enjoy myself.

PAUL ROVNAK: We'll take some questions.

Q. Tiger talked about how much he enjoyed practicing with you. What did you two work on?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It was a few months ago. It was before my West Coast trip that I saw him. I enjoy working with him, too. I feel like I can learn a lot from him, mostly short game, little chip shots.

He can hit any shot. His imagination is great. For me it is eye opening. I enjoy it very much.

Q. Nancy Lopez said that you were as good as Tiger. How do you feel about that?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Thanks, Nancy. You know, I don't really look at it that way. It is obviously very difficult to compare different players like that. I am happy where I am. I am happy with the way I played with my play this year and my whole career. I am proud of what I achieved on the golf course. I am getting better every year. The work ethic is paying off. Having said that, I am reaching where I think is my peak in golf.

Q. You said that you thought just a little bit about the Nabisco and a little bit about this week, what were you thinking?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I was thinking that I have a chance to do something that no one else has done. How am I going to approach it?

I ask myself a lot of questions. I try to answer them. Obviously I have got to play good golf, stay in the moment and play my own game.

Q. Mark Steinberg was saying that he thinks you are better at staying in the moment than you have recently. Is that something that you are going to call upon this week because, you know, you are not going to win the tournament if you have a chance tomorrow you need to stay with what your doing?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: That is an important thing to remember when you are out there. Coming in to a tournament I feel excited. I try to win the tournament on Thursday. As you know it is Sunday that really matters. You want to put yourself in many positions to win. I have learned to be patient.

And then again I have more confidence. I know that if I have four days to play, I can turn a bad round into a good one. I can be patient and play well.

Q. The buildup towards this, is it starting to remind you of The Colonial?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: A little bit. It is so different though. I mean, I think I learned so much about The Colonial and the preparation and everything around it. I think coming in to it, in a different way I am more prepared. I dealt with it before and I know how I react. Now I am on my tour, I know what I am doing here. I know this golf course and bottom line is I have got to play some good golf. You need some good breaks. You need some momentum. If I have that, I am going to do my best chance to do it.

Q. These victories added up faster than you thought four years ago, all of a sudden you are here going for No. 160, and where will this lead as far as some records down the road?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It is definitely going in the right direction for sure. When I came out as a rookie, I didn't know if I could win a single tournament, now I am at 159. Winning is contagious, I'd like to continue to do that.

Q. What has kept you from making more of a run? Looking back on your two appearances at this course, what has kept you from being more of a factor?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I haven't been a factor here?

PAUL ROVNAK: She had two Top 10s.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It is a tough field. I really don't know. This is a tough golf course. You have got to strike the ball really well. The two previous years the way the greens were, I thought they were difficult. You have to put them on the right sides of the pin. They were very firm. It was a difficult golf course. The course is different now. The greens are a lot different. So hopefully having said that, I will be a contender this week.

Q. You talked in the past about peaking for majors. Obviously this is not a major but with a streak you get a lot of attention for it. Are you taking on that sort of thing?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I mean, my goal for the year was to win majors. Here I am in a situation where now I have gotten the goal because of what I did in the last few weeks or, months. This is a very important week for me for different reasons. This is a big event, I'd like to play well here, continue the streak and continue to play well. I am 3 for 3, all of a sudden it is important stuff this week. Maybe the mindset is a little bit of a major. Then again, I just want to play my game and do the best I can.

There are going to be a lot of important weeks this year. I don't want to wear myself out too early. Here is a time to do something special.

Q. How far ahead do you look in terms of career? I know in 2007 there are big events, the Solheim Cup and the British Open at St. Andrew. Do you look past that?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think pretty much every season as it comes. I always said if I enjoy the game I will continue to play. And I do. I still feel very motivated to achieve some of the goals I set out. I will continue to work and play.

I have other interests outside the course maybe one day I will pursue them as well. I don't know how to do too much.

Q. There is lot of media here this week. Generally the LPGA Tour and yourself don't get as much attention as the men. Does that lack of attention bother you at some point?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, it doesn't bother me. I mean, I have been here for 11 years on Tour and we're growing when it comes to the media exposure. We're growing tournament wise.

I don't compare it with how much attention the men get. I think they get a lot of attention. I am happy with the situation.

Q. You also won seven of nine. I think in those you had something ridiculous (inaudible)?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: You know, I try not to think too much about it. I am very proud of it. I find it tough to believe I don't think about those things when I am on the golf course. When I am home I grind and work on things. When I come out I play. I don't sit and analyze every round and shot. Even though I do stats, that would be too overwhelming for me. I like to come and be fresh in my mind, play some golf and see what happens.

Q. You mentioned the stats, what stats do you look at as key to your game?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I do the regular stats the same as the LPGA does. I have some other ones. I have been tracking my score since 1987. I have a lot to compare with and see where my career has gone and how my game has improved and so forth. Green regulation, fairways, I check that, the LPGA doesn't within a hundred yards where I put it on the green.

Q. Obviously winning is better than losing. How much does winning take out of you emotionally? Is that part of the reason why you have taken some time between tournaments to get that fire back?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: When you are out playing a week like this, and there is a lot to a week, it is not just Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, I mean it is warm up, practice round, Pro Am, something like this. A week is just a lot of stuff that happens in a week. Whether you win or not it is draining.

But when I do win, I feel like I give everything I have. I go home at night. I think about what I have got to do tomorrow and Sunday, I am worn out, therefore, I don't play as much. I always said I believe in quality more than quantity. I have never been a person to show up just to be seen. I want to be seen and I want to play.

Q. You have talked about the stats that you keep track of. I think I read where you have 47 LPGA records or so. Do you keep track of those at all?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I don't. I do look at the LPGA media guide.

Q. Do you see your name everywhere?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: My bio is getting more and more pages.

PAUL ROVNAK: 4 pages.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I appreciate that.

PAUL ROVNAK: Any time.

Q. When Nancy won five in a row she did it in six weeks. Can you imagine what it would be like? Is it tougher, do you think or has the game changed and the sport changed so much, it is not realistic to play that kind of stretch?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: There are a lot of players out here that play seven or eight tournament in a row. I remember as a rookie I would play five or six in a row; it was a piece of cake. Now I don't play more than three in a row. I wouldn't want to do it today. Again, that goes to more quality than quantity.

If I play six or five in a row, could I do it? I am not sure. For me it is important to be fresh. I enjoy some time off, then I come back here and I am excited to be here. I want to play. You don't want to do it week out and week in.

Q. What you just said, would that make her records a little more impressive or just two kind of different situations there?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I haven't thought about it. Some people need a lot of tournaments to play better. Nancy did it as a rookie. That is impressive. I have been out here a long time.

Q. Given your ultimate season goal of winning majors, have you been to Bulle Rock and if so, how many times?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I haven't been there. I am just going to do the regular preparation as I always do. I mean, I have a certain routine. It seems like it works; I am not going to change it. I tried to go to tournaments early to do special rounds, and I missed the cut in both of those events. Forget that.

Q. Given your stated goal this year of wanting to win majors, what would having this record alone mean, and would it be comfortable to do that?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It could definitely be. I think winning four majors, I think nothing will beat that. I think winning is always good for the confidence. Winning is good for a lot of things. I will continue to play and see what happens.

Q. You mentioned before not keeping too much stats because the pressure would be overwhelming, the pressure of the streak is that pressure you enjoy?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I love it. That is what keeps me motivated and going. I love the chance. It has a meaning other than just trying to finish good in a week. That I can make history, I love that. That is fun pressure. If I don't do it, well, then that is unfortunate. I will not go home and cry and be disappointed. Not a lot of people have this chance. As a matter of fact, when I had a chance to win five in a row and I didn't succeed, I think that was three, two years ago.

PAUL ROVNAK: I have to look it up.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I never thought I would have the chance to do it again. Hopefully I will do better this time.

Q. The changes on the course, how drastic are they? Will they affect you when it is for real tomorrow?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think the changes, there are some big changes. The greens are totally different, from the tees it is a totally different look. The routing is the same but the course is very different. It will be tough to say what the scores will be like. I have a plan and I will see if it works.

Q. Something like this streak, do you consider it something important for the sport of women's golf considering the attention it gets the longer it goes?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think any attention is good attention. This is positive attention. I think it puts the LPGA on the map again. For me personally it is exciting. I love for a chance to do this.

Q. Is a five week break unusual for you? And also, how many events do you plan on winning this year?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: A five week break in the middle of the season is unusual. Some players asked if my off season was good. That is how long it was.

I plan on playing 20 tournaments.

Q. Did you go in to the season with this break mapped out?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yes, I did.

Q. Annika, you talked about peaking in your game right now as a career move. You have this streak here, you are talking about winning majors. From the personal side we're aware that your life has changed little bit little. Most people would think that would be difficult to do these things. How are you dealing with that and coping with that?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I am fortunate that I have something I enjoy doing. I am throwing myself into golf. I am happy about that. Something that has been in my life and going well. That is the way I deal with it, thinking about the good stuff.

Q. Considering what you were going through off the course last year, did that make you feel more proud of what you accomplished on the golf course?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Definitely.

Q. In the similar vein, much has been made with your relationship with Tiger. What do you share with him? Do you guys ever laugh about the fact that you have superstar status? Is that one of the things that brought you together because it is so hard for the average person to talk about golf, they put you on a pedestal? You can just talk about whatever with those guys.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I don't really know what brought us together. We have the same agent we were introduced. We hit it off right away. The last few years I have started to get to Elin a little bit. There are some fun stories together. We are countrymen. It is easy to talk and we have fun together.

Q. Tiger is learning to speak Swedish, you won't be able too say things about him behind his back.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I thought about that one.

Q. Annika, what was your reaction to the women being able to go the Open Championship?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think it is great. Obviously I think it is wonderful. Nice to see them make the decision and step forward.

Q. Would you like to do it?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I haven't considered it and I don't know. It didn't really spark my interest. Maybe it will somebody else.

I think it was a great move.

Q. Annika, obviously the players are your competitors, do any of them come up to you and say "five in a row is awesome"? What has been their reaction?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: The feedback has been great. I left after the Kraft Nabisco. I came back this week. Players are saying "great play" and "good luck" and so forth.

Q. One thing at the PGA show this year you talked about equipment that you haven't tried. I know you have fine tuned, are you comfortable or are you still looking for some things?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: You are right. I have tried a lot of different clubs this year. I started with one set of irons, won two with that set, then I changed for the Kraft Nabisco. I am normally a player that sticks with one set. Callaway is coming out with so many products, I am trying to learn things. I feel comfortable with what is in the bag right now.

Q. What did you change to?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: The X18s, which is another set of irons Callaway came up with.

PAUL ROVNAK: Thank you.

End of FastScripts.