AIG WOMEN'S OPEN

August 18, 2020

Ariya Jutanugarn

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the 2020 AIG Women's Open, our champion in 2016. How are you doing? You've come straight from LSO. How is it going?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I'm doing good. Have so much fun last week, haven't played a tournament for six months. You know, really excited about everything nervous and it's great to come back because like I feel I do nothing much for so long so when I got back on the Tour, it's just like feels so much fun.

THE MODERATOR: I see lots of Instagrams with you practicing with your sister and doing lots of fitness, how do you stay competitive and ready to compete?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: Actually when you have to stop for that long, the thing that is going to keep me -- work out because I want to make sure when I come back, my body fit and ready to play golf because, you know, even I felt like I worked so hard. I let you know I ran almost every day, work out like three times a week. Last week, I still so tired, like after my final round, I feel actually so tired, yeah.

THE MODERATOR: A lot of the concentration and getting match fit, have you been competing with your sister to be competitive with your sister or how have you made yourself competitive.

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: Actually, I practised a lot and I play a round of golf all the time, so never stop playing. I play with my sister and we have so much fun together. I play with Kiradech, so we just try to beat each other all the time, so that also keep me feel like, you know, seems like tournament going on.

THE MODERATOR: Have you been out to play on the course here?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I played yesterday.

THE MODERATOR: And that was your first sighting of the course?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I've heard about this golf course for so long and my caddie tell me how great it is and how tough it is, how challenging it is. I went to play yesterday and I felt like this course is tough, it really challenge. Like first few holes, I think oh, actually it's short. It's not long at all. I hit only 2-iron off the tee, 3-iron off the tee but only five, six holes but after that is pretty long, and the course, I hit 3-wood, 4-iron tee-to-green, and the green is barely small. So this course really challenge.

THE MODERATOR: And did you watch it when Henrik Stenson won here?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I didn't but my caddie keep telling me all the story.

THE MODERATOR: And any tips, any sort of specific things he tells you about that captured your imagination?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: He keep bring me to another tee box, like when the guys hit, how tough it is, he showed me around the golf course. That's what I know, yeah.

Q. Talk about coming back on Tour after six months off. Did you find that the break has left you raring to go or do you find that the break has left you, oh, I like staying at home?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: As soon as I got here last week, I feel like -- you know, sometime when we play lots of golf, we felt like, I want to take a break. You know, for like three, four months more than the off-season, but as soon as I have that much break, I feel like, oh, I want to get back on Tour. I want to get back and play. I feel grateful last week because I felt like actually when I say I want to break, it's not true. I still want to play. I still want to practise, and last week, I feel great. I feel I don't want to be home anymore.

Q. Must be the longest time you've ever had off, apart when you were injured.

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: When I injured, 2013, it took me almost a year, but that time, pretty stress because I don't know if I'm going to be able to come back like I was before or not. But this time, different. It's like we just have to taking care of ourselves and just be patient about that and when we come back, just feel good to be back.

Q. Coming back to obviously a tournament that you've won before, that must be very special seeing your picture around?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I haven't seen my picture yet.

Q. It feels very major even though there's no crowds, it looks extraordinary. It must be quite exciting?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: As soon as I walk in, I feel like this, major, because everything set up, especially the golf course. Of course it bring all the great memory I have here, even the golf course totally different because the one I won is not links. To me links is always so tough and really challenge for me.

Before I would say I never like links course at all until I won Scottish Open two years ago, and I felt like it's just more challenge and we just have to find a way to play on the links. It's a different golf course. It doesn't mean I don't like it or not be able to play well.

Q. Do you like the challenge, now that you've sort of come to terms with being different, do you enjoy the challenge, more patient, creative?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I think the first thing I learn to play on the links is patient. You really need to be patient because especially the weather, you can't control the weather. It can be windy. It can be raining. Anything can happen in one round.

So we never know what's going to happen. Also, you have to do so much shot that it's rarely creative but sometimes you have to hit low, high one, draw, fade. It's just more fun than other course I play.

Q. So actually you find the challenge fun rather than frustrating?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: Before, frustrating, because oh, the weather not good again. It's wind again. It's rain again.

Now it's just be patient and whatever happens, deal with it.

THE MODERATOR: We were chatting before you came in about how much you've put into your fitness and training and getting so strong. Is that the first time in your career you've really focused on the golf course, training, and how that makes you feel confidence-wise?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I would say I didn't work out much before. I know it's important but sometimes I'm lazy. I felt like play golf, four rounds, golf is enough, and I'm tired enough, so I'm not going to do anything different.

But in the last five months, I find myself I feel much better and I want to get fitter and I want to be stronger and I want to see my career in the future like longer, so come back and look at myself, okay, I have to take care of myself and I start to work out, I start to run and start to eat better and actually feel much better.

Q. And you've kept it going from there; is your sister doing it, as well?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: She do twice more than me. She do everything more than me. She practise more than me.

Q. Does that make you want to catch her?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: Not really, but actually, yes, because whatever I saw she did, I feel like, oh, I'm too lazy, so I had to get up and do something also.

Q. And getting these tournaments back up and running after such a long break, everyone has done such a good job, you must be really happy, all the efforts and to have the tour starting again because I think you only played one at the start of the year; is that right?

ARIYA JUTANUGARN: I would say I have to say thank you to all the LPGA and whoever done this because I know it's really tough situation for everyone, not only for players but everyone. They work so hard for us to prepare the best tournament, like this one. We have to come overseas and everybody just taking care of us like so well, and you know, it feels so grateful to be back and feel really appreciate on what they have done for us.