U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

May 30, 1996

Annika Sorenstam

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, overall I'm very pleased with the way I played today. I think I was driving the ball exceptionally well. The putting was a little so-so, but the greens are really firm out there. They're getting faster, also. But, again, overall I'm very pleased. The wind made it a little tricky, because once you hit it over the trees, the balls start moving a lot and you have to be careful in the club selections. The course is not wet at all despite all the rain. But it's playing a little long, par 70, it's long, when it's playing 6200 yards.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Okay. I birdied the first hole, hit a sand wedge to about 2 feet. I bogeyed the second hole, chipped a 2-putt. And my putt that I missed was probably 7 feet. I bogeyed No. 5, a par 3. I was in the bunker and didn't hit it out of the bunker, and then I hit it up and made a putt to just tap in. Then I birdied No. 13, the par 3. I hit a 6-iron and I holed a putt from probably 18 feet. And the rest of it was par.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: You're right. We did wait a long time, especially on the 5th hole. I think we were there about 25 minutes. It is hard when you just have to stand around doing nothing, eat a sandwich or sit there and suddenly you've got to play again, and you've got a par 3. That's almost 200 yards. We also had to wait at 2. If I prefer, I like to move on and play. You lose your rhythm a little bit and you have to start over. I mean, it looks like I didn't miss after the wait.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I'm not sure. The course is tricky. I guess if you missed a green, you take a lot of time to find out where to chip it, and the putts, read the greens. I don't see a reason why it should take this long. We have played -- I want to say, what is it, five-and-a-half or something? It's getting there. And I don't see a reason why. We are all used to playing under these conditions.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No. 2? We were the third group on the tee, so about 20 minutes.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It happened a few times; especially if you play in Japan it takes forever. It happened before, but it's always hard to start over and to get back to the routine again.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I thought actually the scores would be a little lower, but it was tough out there. The wind makes it tricky and now the greens are getting harder. It's not an easy golf course, and it's playing pretty long. I'm hitting several 7-woods into the greens on the par 4's. And No. 5, it's a par 3, I hit a 3-wood. So it is playing long, and I think that's why the scores, they're a little higher than I thought they would be.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah. I'm fortunate, I decided to keep my 9-wood in the bag because I used it several times today. The 7-wood, I think I used at least five times. It helps when the greens are this firm, you need to hit it high and the ball needs to stop right away. It's hard when you're hitting a 4-iron or 3-iron to do that. Also this rough is very thick, and these clubs have a lot of loft, and you get it up in the air easier and they stop.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It will be very tricky, that's for sure. I thought the pin placements today was almost like a Sunday. I thought they were tricky. I almost hope it rains a little bit. What actually I think is around the greens or on the apron, it's soggy; so if you hit it in front of the green it stops and if you hit on the green it rolls. So it's very hard to adjust: Do I have to hit on the green or do I have to hit on the front.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I feel a little pressure. I'd like to perform again, because I know I can, and coming here defending there's been a lot of attention, and a lot of people wanting autographs and I've had a little hard time to maybe practice as much as I'd like to. But I've enjoyed the whole year. It's been a fast year and I wouldn't change it for a thing. I'm just glad it is Thursday, and everything started and now we're all even and we kind of start from the beginning.