U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

May 28, 1996

Annika Sorenstam

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: It's been a great change, I wouldn't change it for the world. It's been a lot of demands, a lot of opportunities to play in different tournaments, just it's been totally upside down, actually. But especially time management. Now I know how to plan my time and I met a lot of people, a lot of nice people. It's been great, it's been wonderful, actually. It's too bad this has come up so soon, I'd like to be Defending Champion a little longer, but it's nice to be here, also.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, we do keep in touch. I met her probably three or four years ago at the tournament in Pine Mountain and Peggy asked if I wanted to stay with her, so I stayed up here on the 18th fairway, and since then we became good friends and we keep in touch. And actually she calls me Heineken. She can't pronounce my name. But it's been wonderful, she's a really neat lady and she gives me some tips sometimes.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Today was the first time I was out there this week. And it looks really, really good. It's in super shape. It's playing a little long, I must say. I don't mind, though, because I like long courses. But the rough is real high, the way it should be in a major, I guess. And the greens are real fast. They're a little tricky, you've got to be on the right side of the green, because there's some slopes on each side. But I think the course is in great shape. And you have to play some good golf out there to be able to score, I think.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I think I am a very consistent golfer, I hit a lot of fairways, I hit a lot of greens. In this course you've got to hit every club in the bag, which I don't mind, because I like them all. But I think this course fits me pretty good, it's a target golf course, and I like to hit especially irons into the greens straight at the pin, and I think you can do that here.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think that after the Open, as I said, time management was really hard for me. I didn't really have time to practice as much as I used to and as much as I liked to. That's why I took the long break in the beginning of the year, just to be able to work on my game and kind of get back to where I think I need to be. This year I feel like I got everything under control. I've learned a lot and I'm able to practice as much, but also be available for things to do. When it comes to my golf game, even though maybe I haven't won a tournament I'm very pleased the way I played. If you look at the scoring average, since I'm a stats person, I do stats for everything, my scoring average is lower. I'm hitting more greens, and more fairways and that's kind of -- my goal this year is to become a better player and just hit more greens and more fairways. You get the results you get. It's hard to say how the other girls are going to play. This year, like for example in Sprint I shot 11 under par and I finished 8th. I'm happy with 11 under par, it's hard to say how the others are going to play. Maybe this week or later in the year it will finally be my tournament, but overall I'm happy with the way I'm playing.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Not at all. It was a whole year ago since I won this tournament, it's about time I do something again. But I don't really feel any extra pressure winning this, because I won this tournament. I'm very pleased I did, and a lot of players if you do it once in your lifetime you're happy. And I am happy. Whatever happens out there will happen. I'm going to go out there and try to do the best I can. Try and not put too much pressure on myself, just go and enjoy the week. You'll only be defending once a year. So I'm going to try to be enjoying this week.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I am getting married sometime. We have set the date, but it's between David and I. And this gold band, it's actually a Swedish thing, when you get engaged the guy and the girl wear a band. But once you get married you get the big diamond, if you're lucky.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: He gets Big Bertha, maybe.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I really don't put a score in my head. All I try to do is go out and hit a shot at a time and stay focused for 18 holes. That's kind of my goal. At the other majors we played a score has been around par, maybe a few under or a few over. If the weather is going to be like today with no wind and partly cloudy, I think maybe a few under par would win it, maybe four or five. It's so hard to predict the score, I'm not -- I don't like doing that. But if I can shoot around par, maybe two under each day, that would be really, really good, I think.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I didn't really learn anything, but -- no, I just had a really good time playing at the Skins game. It's a totally different way of playing. At the Skins you've got to be very aggressive. I'm not an aggressive player, so I prefer playing a 72 hole tournament where I have many holes ahead of me, but Skins is definitely Laura's game. It's amazing to see when she tees it up, her drives rolling 300 yards. I don't know, I'll have to pump some iron to even get close.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: That's hard to say. I mean this is one of the most important tournaments of the whole year. As you said, there's a lot of things at stake, national championship, it's the one you want to win, I think you have a lot of pressure around that. I won it once and I'm very pleased for that. I don't think there's a recipe, just because you won it you know how to do it. Every year is a new year. But I know all the girls I talk to there is not a tournament they want to win as badly as this one. I think the pressure makes it so much more difficult.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Thank you, I didn't know that. Well, I like this type of golf course. It's playing pretty long and a target golf course, when you get a strike, it irons really well. I'm an iron player, this type of game fits me, where you've got to hit the ball straight. Courses where it's more chip-and-run is not really my type of play, but I try to do it anyway. But this week I like the way it is and I'm sure I'll like the other courses he designed.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I have, I've spent a lot of time especially on my putting. Putting in every tournament it important, but I think this week, especially the speed of the greens are going to be faster and the slope of them, so you've got to be really careful with your long putts, make sure that you put them very close.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, it's a day I will never forget, that's for sure. What I do remember is No. 17 when I never thought I could get the ball in the hole. I was on the right-hand side, I was on the left-hand side, I was long. And it was just a relief. I remember when I holed that putt for par, and was able to go on to 18. I also remember the moment when I was sitting in a TV booth watching Meg putt, everything was depending on her putt. I get goose bumps when I talk about it. It's a whole year ago almost, but it feels like it was yesterday. I remember it so clearly. I also remember when I came home I had like over 20 messages on my machine, my answering machine.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Phoenix at the time.