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MCDONALD'S LPGA CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY COCA-COLA

June 12, 2004

Annika Sorenstam

WILMINGTON, DELAWARE

Q. Well, in a familiar position here after a nice 67 today. Can you just talk about how different your Front and Back 9 were, and how you feel to be in the lead?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I'm not being in the lead; that's a long way to go until Sunday. According to my statistics, I didn't miss a single green. I hit a lot of fairways, had a lot of opportunities. The difference was only a few putts started to drop on the back. I had some great chances on the Front 9, and I was just being patient.

I figured with these greens, you've got to be patient. I thought I hit great shots the whole day, and I felt very pleased with the way I played and how I felt on the course. I'm going to try to get a good night's rest and hopefully do the same thing tomorrow.

Q. What do you think about playing 36 holes tomorrow?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I really don't mind. Last year I played 34, this will be 2 more, I hope I can handle that. I'm glad. It's going to be an early start and a long day. I love to play when you play well. It should be fun.

Q. Questions?

Does it ever feel as easy as you sometimes make it look.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Does it look easy? It doesn't feel easy. I grind out there. I feel really comfortable in my swing, especially the way I'm hitting my irons. I try not to make things too complicated. I try not to think too much about it, just take it back and hit it. A lot of times I can make it complicated for myself. I kind of go out there and hit it and go find it and hit it again.

Q. Did you have a vision 27 on the Back 9?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It was looking pretty good. To do that on this course would be unbelievable. I don't want to be too greedy, but you've got to think, and maybe it will happen.

Q. Annika, any frustrations setting in on the Front 9?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, the front 9, like I said, I hit nine greens, so I had nine opportunities. I kept telling myself, at least I'm not falling off the leaderboard. I was still only three shots behind. Really, it's a long ways to go. We've got, like I said, 36 tomorrow. I wasn't really frustrated. I kept thinking, continue to do this, keep hitting fairways and greens, and eventually they've got to drop. On 10 it was a touchy little putt. After that, it started something really good.

Q. Annika, it seemed like you and Lorena that was trading birdies there. Could you play off each other?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think when you're playing with somebody who's playing well, it's just a good feel in the group. You want that momentum. When she made the birdie on 9. I think she had three or four in a row as well. That's always a good thing. I wasn't really looking at her thinking this is match play. She hit some really good ones close, and then made birdies, and that's really what you want.

Q. How often do you hit 18 greens, and how satisfying is that to you to do that?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: To hit all greens? It doesn't happen all that often. Maybe two or three times, at most. When the rough is so thick, you want to stay in the short grass. The more chances you have, hopefully the more you make. My goal is always to hit 18 greens, and to do it in a major, I think, is even more special. I'll remember this day for a while.

Q. Does it take any momentum away at all with the bogey on 18?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It's never fun to finish the way I did, but if somebody would have told me you would have shot 67, I would take in a heartbeat. It's a tough course, you'll make a few mistakes. I didn't make a lot today. I'm not going to dwell too much on the last hole, just think about the good play I had and be rested by tomorrow.

Q. On TV you were saying that you spent a lot of yesterday working out. Is that what you usually do, perhaps, when something gets rained out?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I like to work out, especially when you have the whole day like that. I want to try to keep a little busy, and that's what I did in the morning, and I relaxed the rest of the day. It turned out to be all right.

Q. Do you feel that your physical conditioning will give you an advantage tomorrow playing 36?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: For sure it won't hurt me, I know that. I've played 36 holes, it's been a long time ago, in the Solheim Cup, and you mentioned last year. I don't do it be too much. I shouldn't run out of gas, I hope.

Q. I imagine when you've got either a big lead, little lead, trailing, whatever, you've got a game plan going into the last day. What about tomorrow?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think the first round I'm just going to go out and play my game and save the energy, make sure I have it all day, and look at the leaderboard and see where I'm at, how aggressive I need to play in the fourth round, or conservative. You've got to have maybe a little different plan maybe for the second round. You might not be playing with the ones that are leading, so I have to look at the leaderboard a lot tomorrow because I want to know what's going on.

Again, the way the course is set up, you can be aggressive, so I expect some low scoring tomorrow, pretty much what you saw today, so I've got to try to keep up with that.

Q. The greens, obviously, haven't been ideal the last few days. How do you how are you making putts on these greens? Are you picking your line out and hoping it doesn't bump?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, almost like that. There is not much you can do about it. You've got to read them like normal, and hopefully, it will go in. You've got to put a good stroke on it and it will go in. I've made some good putts today. You've got to think positive because there is going to be a lot of people on the greens tomorrow. I expect the same conditions tomorrow.

Q. With everything you've done in your career, Annika, do you still get a thrill with a birdie run like that?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Oh, definitely. I get a thrill to play well. I'm swinging well, I feel really good about my game. I love that. To be in contention in a major championship, that's what it's all about. It doesn't seem like it's ever enough. I still want to win another one. Obviously, this week is important.

Q. Annika, what was your distance on the putt at 13?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, I counted like 25 feet. It was about a three foot break from left to right.

Q. Is it hard not hard to lose your patience, do you get frustrated when you miss that many chances?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It is; on the other hand, I look at it like this, I don't get too worried about. I'm working on keeping my head down. I feel like I'm making good strokes. Once the ball leaves the putter, there is nothing I can do about it. I can't control it. So but I can control my temper. If I get frustrated, I'm not going to make any more putts, I know that from experience. Again, it paid off, even though it took a little longer than I wanted. You've got to be patient. That's what this game is all about. I'm thankful for the experience.

Q. Was there any one on the front, any putt that was a little closer that you had the temptation to get angry that you missed?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I mean, I had a lot of chances. A lot of them were either on the high or low side. They were all over the hole. I can't pick one in specific, but, you know, I had a great shot at the par 3, number 5. I probably had a 6 footer, but it wasn't close to the hole. You've got to move on to the next hole and hope next time it will bump into the hole instead.

(Scorecard read.)

Q. How long when you look up on the 15 footer, where is the ball?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It varies. I want to make sure I really do it right.

Q. Like on 17, maybe on a 25 footer, you didn't look up at all?

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I do this to exaggerate, so it becomes a habit of mine.

Q. Anything else? All right. Thanks Annika.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Thank you.

End of FastScripts.

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