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WEETABIX WOMEN'S BRITISH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 28, 2004

Annika Sorenstam

SUNNINGDALE, ENGLAND

DANA VON LOUDA: We'd like to welcome Annika Sorenstam, defending champion. Last year she won this event where she completed the LPGA Grand Slam. This year she has won four LPGA events including one major, the McDonald's Championship, and this year at the Weetabix Women's British, she will be attempting to become the first player to defend all four modern-day majors. Annika, if you'd like to talk about the tournament this week.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I'm very excited to be back. This has always been a wonderful tournament. I think I've always enjoyed comfortable. It's a real prestigious event in many ways. Playing Sunningdale makes it even more special, so I'm excited to be here and be defending champion, and if I have a chance to repeat it would be very special.

Q. Have you had a chance to play with

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I haven't had a chance to play with her, but I will on Monday in the Skins Game. I think it will be a lot of fun. I've heard a lot of good things about her. One of the people that I work with, Pia Nilsson has helped her a lot and she has only good things to say. So I'm excited to see what game she has.

Q. Defending your title on a different a course, you played here ten years ago, how has it changed?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: They have lengthened a few holes which I think are a good improvement. I think the course is in excellent shape. The greens are as good as they have ever been, I think. It's a little greener than I expected. They must have gotten a lot of rain here lately but it's in excellent shape. It's starting to get a little bouncy, which is what I like, more of a links style, so I think it's going to be a good test.

Q. Are you pleased with your results this year compared to your goals?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: This year's? No, I'm very pleased with the way I've played. I've won four times on the LPGA and one time in Australia. I think I've played some good golf. I've played well in the majors, I think, especially the last two. So far, so good.

Q. How long does it take to get over a finish like you had last Saturday?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Oh, I'm over it. It didn't take me long. It is a disappointment, but I thought I played good for the week. I got outplayed by her, she had a wonderful stretch in there where she eagled and birdied and eagled, and there's not much that I can do there. I gave it my best and that's all I can do.

Q. Are you going to go after the short par 4s

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think so. Although, there's a big chance on 3, a big chance on 9 and that's a little chance on 11.

Q. Driver everywhere?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: If I'm driving it well, I'll definitely hit driver. Especially if we get if it dries out, I think I'll be playing aggressive on those holes. On No. 9, I might even hit 4 wood. It depends a little bit on how I'm hitting it and what the conditions are like.

Q. Driver on 11?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Probably. Because around that particular hole, I want to shave the ball a little bit and when you say you lose a little distance in the rough, I would leave a driver there.

Q. Is your enthusiasm for the game the same, more or less this week?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I'm very excited to be here this week. I enjoy playing the big tournaments, I always have. It's a thrill to be the defending champion, and I can tell you, I do have a thrill for the weekend, that's when it starts and I get excited and I get into it.

Q. Does that mean you donÃ¢ï¿½ï¿½t have the same excitement for the game?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Maybe a little bit in the practice rounds and the travel and the preparation, but once I get into it, once I'm here, I love it.

Q. Is there a finite date for the end of your career?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Probably, but maybe one of these days. I've thought about it.

Q. With your travel around the world what do you think about the Swedes following you?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, it's a wonderful feeling. I've always felt the support from Sweden all around the world. Obviously, especially when I go home and play, the support that they are giving other ladies, even at the Swedish Open or the Solheim Cup, it's just been tremendous and it's always nice to come home.

Q. Do you have a date in your mind when you'll stop playing?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I don't have a date in my mind. I've always said as long as I enjoy it and feel motivated to practice, I will continue to do so because I do enjoy the competition.

Q. Talk about being aggressive, are you generally aggressive as you were

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I would say so. That's because I've gained some distance off the tee, although I've gained some distance overall. Yeah, I'm playing a little more aggressive. This particular course, I don't think you can be that aggressive. If it starts to firm out, maybe on the tee shots, the approach shots, on the ground , just let it roll up. That's what I enjoy about this, you have to think your way around the golf course, it's not just about how power play; it's about putting it in the right places and being able to control your shots.

Q. Are you tempted to be outside the ropes more after a weekend like last week?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, when you walk away from last week, it's close but it didn't happen. So I get more fired up because I feel like I'm playing well. I feel like I'm right there, and, you know, last week was a big tournament, this is a really big tournament, so I feel like I'm ready to go. I can't hit the ball much better. It's just a matter of having a good week.

Q. If you win this week, you will have repeated in all four majors. How big would that be?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: That would be really big. I try not to think about it. I don't want to put too much pressure on myself, but obviously I'm aware of what a win here would mean. So, I mean, winning last year meant a lot, I tried so many times to do well here, I believe I finished second three times and it took me a while to win here. So I don't want to get too ahead of myself. I just want to come out here and play one shot at a time and I feel like I'm playing better this year than last time we were here. The last three practice rounds, I was thinking about my shots I had and I did not play well here last year. So I really want to improve that, of course, and we'll see what happens.

Q. What is the reason for your success in defending titles?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think it has to do with liking the golf course, coming back, got wonderful memories. Golf is all about confidence, and I come to a place where I've done well, I get confident. I know how to play the golf course, and you know, some courses suits your game better than others.

Q. Is your confidence getting better and better?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: My confidence? I trust my ability on the golf course, but I feel very confident in my game. I've worked hard all these years and the more experience I have, I know how I react to certain situations, and I think just add those things together, it helps. You know, I don't get too upset at myself up there. I don't get too excited out there, I just kind of take one shot at a time. I know by the end of the tournament, you've got to add up all your shots, so if you do well the first day, there's a long ways to go.

And the same thing if you don't play so well the first round, you know there's a long ways to go. I just have to hang in there and remember it's a four day tournament.

Q. We describe you as cool and icy on the course, is that correct?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I don't think that you're too far off on the golf course. I think off the golf course, I'm not like that. But I think I've learned how to control my emotions here and I think it's helped my game.

Q. What would you use to describe yourself off the golf course?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I'm not so icy.

Q. Not so cool?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Not so cool, either. Yeah, I'm pretty calm. I don't have as much patience as on the golf course.

Q. What makes you most impatient off the golf course?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: What makes me most I think, I don't know if this answers your question, but I think golf has been a great lesson for me in life. I think it's taught me a lot of things. I wish I was a little more patient outside of the golf course. I like to be in control of things.

Q. What has the golf course taught you?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think a lot of things, concentration, focus, how to plan things, how to look ahead.

Q. Have you ever had a sports psychologist?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I don't, I never have. Just guess I'm learning along the way.

Q. Have you ever been close to using one?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, we used to have one on the national team growing up, I don't know if you heard of Julian Hagger (ph), he's a great guy and he wrote a few books, I never read them , (laughter) but he's a fun guy. I just think, you know, you go out there and you learn from your mistakes. And I think we're all different, we're all developing at different levels and different speeds. I analyze everything, and I think that's how I learned a lot on the golf course and about my game.

Q. Do you still record all your putting stats?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yes, I do.

Q. What are they like this year?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: As of this year? Well, I started doing this in '87, so I have tracked a lot of paths and a lot of shots. It's gotten better in obviously the last three years. This year I'm a little bit behind in filling in the stats so I think the best way to look at how I'm playing on the LPGA Web site where they keep track of all the stats. I keep track of greens and fairways and just try to get better in every aspect of the game. Seeing the numbers is the true showing of your play, I think, and that's why I do it.

Q. What about your statistics would surprise us most?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: That's a good question. There's not really anything, if you think about a lot of rounds I play are very similar. One thing I do notice is if I make a birdie, I make several in a row. I have the ability to rebound pretty good. Something I have been through my last three years, I don't make high numbers I shouldn't have said that (laughing). No, on wood, I've been pretty good at that.

Q. What part of your game could you improve the most?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I have a lot of improvements to make. Short game I believe I can be better there. I believe in 1 putting every green. So, there's always some work to be done.

Q. What is the closest you have come to this?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: To 1 putt, I have 22 putts. But then again, it's a whole lot of greens, so it makes it a little tougher and I prefer hitting greens rather than just chip and putt.

Q. What are you going through now --talking to us, the media, are you enjoying it?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, it's getting better and better I think. I'm getting more comfortable with it. I've heard all the questions before, so it's okay to ask some new ones if you want. You're getting much better.

Q. With your putting stats, if you could invest in that part of your game, you would every week.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Who did that stat? And what's the standard I invest in my game? No, that's an interesting way of looking at it. Actually I mean I'd like to improve my putting but I do think I have the last two years, this is just I think I hit a lot of greens and there's a lot of weeks where I just putt well, but not as well as I'd like, so that's something I've got to work on.

Q. What is your favourite way to relax?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I actually like to just be home with my husband and family and just hang out, sporting activities and skiing in the winter, relaxing really. I don't practice a lot when I'm at home. I like to get away from the game.

Q. You still cooking?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think it's going a little bit slow at the moment. In the kitchen, no, I didn't go back.

I like to east pasta and make pasta, all kinds.

Q. What would make you play more in Europe?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: You can only be in one place each week and the schedule that the LPGA has right now works really good for me. I have think they have got some great tournaments and that's my home right now. I'd like to avoid all of the traveling as much as possible. I do enjoy coming over here when I get a chance, especially this stretch with the Evian Masters and this one, and then going to Sweden next week, I've always enjoyed that. But then again, everything comes down to scheduling and I like to travel as less as possible.

Q. Do you until any other sports?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yes, I do, I love sports. I watch a lot of tennis. I watch a lot of basketball and baseball.

Q. You're a recreational skier, are you ever fearful that you might damage an arm or leg that might hurt your golf?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: A little bit of both, I enjoy skiing and a lot and actually I snowboard more than ski and nowadays. I race with a lot of kids so I still have some of it in my blood. But I'm getting older and a little more cautious, so I'm going to go for the intermediate slopes I guess.

Q. Can you put it into terms how good of a skier you are? What kind of handicap would you have as a skier?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I don't know, but I was recruited to go into junior national team.

Q. At what age?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I was probably 12, 14, so that's a long time ago. I know how to get on the lifts and I know how to get down. Slalom.

DANA VON LOUDA: We'd now like to welcome John Hopkins, to present an award to Annika.

JOHN HOPKINS: Those of you who were outside, you won't hear this very off at the point. You all know that I'm the Chairman of the Association of Golf Writers, you will know that we have an annual dinner on the Tuesday evening of the Open each year, and you every year we conduct a pole amongst our members to find the person or persons resident in Europe who we consider have made the most outstanding contribution to golf in the preceding 12 months. Annika, what she did last year was pretty much remarkable, really, she brought unprecedented attention to her sport by being the first woman in modern times to play in U.S. PGA TOUR Bank of America Colonial Tournament last May. She won two major championships, one of which was the Weetabix Women's British Open and is the sixth player to win the career Grand Slam. She helped gain the Solheim Cup back in Sweden by winning four points in five games, seven worldwide victories, tied 22 LPGA records, won the Money List for third successive year and was the LPGA Player of the Year for the sixth time.

Two weeks ago we accepted the award very graciously on your behalf, but we thought that wasn't quite good enough for us. So we've decided we've got the trophy back and I would humbly like to hand it over to you and tell you how much applause you receive for your achievements when this award was announced two weeks ago. Well done.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Thank you. Thank you very much. I'm sorry I couldn't be at that dinner. I bet I would have enjoyed it very much. But I am going to tell you that I am I feel very honored to receive this award, especially sitting here, I look at all of the names on the book here, it's really flattering. So I want to thank you for considering me and for recognizing my success on the golf course last year. Last year really was a special year for me in so many ways.

You mentioned some of the things that I did and getting inducted into the Hall of Fame, the LPGA Hall of Fame, and then winning the Grand Slam, Solheim Cup victory, and then playing with the men at Bank of America Colonial, so, what can I say, 2003 was really a wonderful year. So thanks for recognizing all of that, and thank you for your support and I will cherish this very much.

End of FastScripts.

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