DIAMOND RESORTS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS

January 21, 2021

Stacy Lewis

Tranquilo Golf Course

Quick Quotes

Q. Stacy, thanks so much for taking the time with us. What a great round. How do you feel now that you've got the first round under your belt?

STACY LEWIS: I'm excited. I haven't been hitting a ton or practiced a ton leading into this week. Just probably about a week and a half or so. Just the stuff that I've been work on, it worked. Saw it kind of pay off today.

Just played really solid. Didn't do anything crazy. Just hit a ton of greens and made a few putts here and there.

Q. When you mentioned what you did over the weeks before this, it was Christmas and New Year's. How was Christmas and New Year's? What did you do? Who did you see? How did you celebrate?

STACY LEWIS: It was busy. We had to do Santa and all that for Chesnee, so just playing the weeks prior was hard to get ready for Christmas and all that.

But we had family around, so all my nieces and nephews, and I didn't unpack the clubs until -- I had to do a sponsor day on January 6, so I didn't unpack the clubs until then.

Just put them away and got away from golf for a little bit.

Q. How was that? Did you, after January 6, have something you realized you wanted to work on before this event, or has your golf game been really strong?

STACY LEWIS: No, my putting has been -- it's been in the -- it was even in the back of my mind during the break. I had to figure out a way to get better. Just wasn't in a good place. I wasn't putting well. I was starting to hit it better, but just putting horrendously really.

So just thinking about what I need to do there. My husband actually handed me this putter that we had in the garage. It's more of a center-shafted, really different than what I've ever played.

He's like, Just putt with it. You're going to be able to see what you're doing wrong and what you need to change. A lot of it was with setup, just the way I was set up, the way I was holding onto the putter, and just really -- that's mainly what I've been working on over the last week or so.

Q. Before I turn it over to questions, I'm so curious. When you talk about bringing out a different kind of putter, what do you think really worked to help you today with five birdies?

STACY LEWIS: I don't know. I mean, sometimes seeing a different -- just looking at something different just helps give you more confidence. But just really got set up to it better and started putts online. I mean, and these greens are so pure that if you start putts online they're going to go in.

So it was just -- I don't know. It's a bunch of little stuff, not really one specific thinking. It's a bunch of little things, and just I had to make couple like five- six- footers early on to get up and -- one was for birdie and one was for par on 3 and 4, and that just gave me a lot of confidence more than anything.

I was like, Okay, I'm doing the right thing. Just need to keep doing it.

Q. Is it fair to say you really had two careers, the grind career and the mom career?

STACY LEWIS: Yeah.

Q. You've won with both.

STACY LEWIS: Yes.

Q. So it's a fair assessment?

STACY LEWIS: Very fair, uh-huh.

Q. How do you describe the two?

STACY LEWIS: I mean, I can tell you I don't remember what life was like before, to be honest. The grind Stacy wouldn't have played music while I hit the shot on 18, I can tell that you much.

But I don't know, just things like having a baby, having a family changes perspective and really puts what we do in perspective. We take ourselves too seriously and grind too much sometimes.

I was talk to AJ about it, and he said -- but his big point was if you are that way ten years ago, do you have the success that you did? I said, Probably not.

So I don't know. It's just totally different. It is definitely more free now. I am more worried about what Chesnee is doing what we need to do once we know leave here. I am going to take her swimming this afternoon.

I don't know. Just different priorities I guess more than anything.

Q. And I want to bring up one other thing. As you may know, back surgery is in the news again. You won with a fused back before anybody.

STACY LEWIS: Yep.

Q. How is it to play knowing that, Hey, that's still out there, I still have to worry about it, I have to worry about every swing?

STACY LEWIS: Yeah, really when I feel it is cold weather. That's why the end of last year was so hard for me. I can tell when the weather is changing. My body just doesn't move as well as it used to, and part of that is probably age too, I guess.

But it's more when it's cold. So when it's hot, I'm free. I can swing freer and I don't have to worry about it, things like that. It's just more I guess weather related for me.

Q. How does the song selection on 18 work? Do you give them permission to play while you're hitting?

STACY LEWIS: I had no idea. I assumed that -- Brian made birdie on 17 so he hit first, and I just assumed when I went to tee it up they would turn the music off. They didn't, and so we were walking off the tee and they said, Oh, I think you have to ask them to turn the music off. I was like, Okay. They were playing Boston and Metallica, so I was all in. (Laughter.)

Q. Are you still planning after the tournament to go to Disney?

STACY LEWIS: Yeah, going to take Chesnee to Disney World on Monday. That was from when I was here two years ago. She was three months old, and my goal has been to get back here. I told her as soon as I won Scotland, you know, we said we're going to Disney World, so we have do it.

But I wanted to do it after the tournament in case I having to carry her a lot and my back gets sore. So we're doing it on Monday. Just going to do Magic Kingdom and do all the rides that she can do.

Q. Are you as excited as she is?

STACY LEWIS: I'm probably more excited, because she has no clue what it is yet. She loves Mickey and Minnie. She's gotten into Frozen. I just can't wait to see it through her eyes.

Q. It's a big year, a lot going on; Olympics and Solheim Cup both this season. Where are those two events on your radar and where do they rank for you in terms of priorities?

STACY LEWIS: Olympics is pretty far back; Solheim is thought about every day. It really is for me the goal of this year. I want to be on that team. I talked to Pat and she was talk about making me an assistant and then I went and won, so she's had to go back to the drawing board again.

So I really want to be on that team. I want to play in Toledo more then anything where Marathon has stepped up to sponsor it. All my family is there. I mean, it's number one for me.

Q. For clarity, the center shafted putter, did you use it is as a training aid or did it go in the bag?

STACY LEWIS: It went in the bag. It's a -- TP Mills, when I was with Mizuno, TP Mills actually made me a couple putters and sent them to me, and I never did anything with them. They've just been in the garage.

Just allowed me to really see the setup, kind of where my hands were, where my head was, like where ball position. Just allowed me to see everything better.

The more I putt with it just -- I love the sound of it. The feel of it felt good, so we went with it today.

Q. Secondly, you talk about the two different careers. How much did winning in Scotland whet your appetite to win more out here?

STACY LEWIS: Yeah, it raised the bar again. It was so hard to get to that point, and now I feel like I'm more used to what our life is like now, what practice is like at home. Practice at home is pretty short, so when I'm on tour I take advantage of the daycare time that I have and the more time that I have to practice.

So the drive to win has always been there. I think winning in Scotland showed me I still can.

Q. How confident are you that there will be a regular Solheim Cup in terms of fans and what it will look like in September?

STACY LEWIS: I don't see it being regular, I can tell you that. I'm guessing we're going to end up limiting fans, which is disappointing, especially being in the U.S.

You want it to be loud, crazy. But I just -- you know, I think even this year our Asia tournaments are still up in the air. You're kind of just on pins and needles with every tournament still, to be honest.

I do see -- it's going to be different. Solheim Cup going to be different. People are going to have to be more spread out even by September, I guess.

Q. Just going to say, for today's round, you talk about the five-, six-footers early. Any other highlights or big saves out there? Nice birdies?

STACY LEWIS: I made three in a row on 12, 13, 14? Is that right?

Q. Yes.

STACY LEWIS: Yeah.

Q. Hitting it close?

STACY LEWIS: Yeah, the wedge shot on 13 landed right next to the hole; released out about five feet.

And then, well, we all thought I was going to make a hole-in one on 14. That was the Outback Steak For Life. It was going right at it and landed and just kind of peeled off to the right and ended up like five feet away.

So just hit a lot of the good, solid shots today. That was mainly it.

Q. What was the club on that?

STACY LEWIS: That was 6-iron.

Q. Okay. Big steak fan?

STACY LEWIS: Yeah, meat and potatoes. Let's go. I was all in.

Q. I have one last question. We've been asking players if they could play with any Disney character, who would it be and why?

STACY LEWIS: That's a good one. I mean, Chesnee loves Mickey and Minnie, so we have to go there.

Q. Thank you so much, and good luck the rest of the week.

STACY LEWIS: Thank you.