U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 1, 2004

Katherine Hull-Kirk

Q. Good round, Katherine. Pretty consistent round, you just had two bogeys, three birdies. Let's go over those. Just tell us on the bogeys, what happened on the hole, and what birdies what club you hit and how far?

KATHERINE HULL: No. 4, I had a downhill putt from about probably 18 feet, and I left it 3 feet short, I lipped out, it was a 3-putt.

No. 12, I hit an 8-iron over the back of the green, and didn't get up-and-down.

Q. You had three birdies in a row, that must have been fun?

KATHERINE HULL: The birdie fired me up a little bit. I needed something to get my round going. And the 13th is a short par-5, and I was just on the front at the left, and hit a good chip shot up, and holed about a 7-footer.

The next hole, I hit a 6-iron to about maybe 20, 25 feet and then I rolled that one in. And then -- 15 I hit my drive right and caught the tree and was in some heavy rough. I tried to punch a 4-iron under the tree, and came up short left. And hit a gap wedge perfectly and it dropped in the hole.

Q. How long was that shot?

KATHERINE HULL: I was on the front edge, so maybe 18 yards.

Q. Your best start in a Women's Open?

KATHERINE HULL: It makes it my second Open, definitely better than last year. I'm happy, but there's still 54 holes to go.

Q. You didn't putt as well, perhaps, as you might normally, although you hit 15 greens, 32-putts. Do you feel like you were rolling the ball pretty well on the greens?

KATHERINE HULL: The front nine I couldn't hole anything. I was pretty good stroking all day. My speed was a little off on the front nine, I think that's why I didn't make any birdies. But the back nine, I don't know, just started getting a feel for the pace. So that's why I think I made a couple.

Q. You played a lot, are you starting getting to feel more comfortable with the life-style as a pro golfer?

KATHERINE HULL: I love it out here, living a dream. I think I've played about 7 events here on the LPGA. That's definitely helping me feel more at home. I had a good finish last week, too, which is giving me a bit of confidence. It's nice to be out here playing tournaments, finally.

End of FastScripts.