LPGA Q-SERIES

December 8, 2021

Anita Uwadia

Magnolia Grove

Quick Quotes

Q. So I kind of want to talk about your journey through Q-II and now Q-Series if you don't mind. I want to start first about kind of what the last couple of months have been as you have prepared for this grueling process.

ANITA UWADIA: Well, I would say it's like my normal practice. I mean, it's quite nice to be here to get the experience just one year after turning pro, or one year after graduating college. So I remember watching Bianca, I don't know her last name, Pagdanganan playing Q-Series and just telling myself like I want to be there.

You know, to be here and to be able to be doing it, it's quite nice. In terms of tournament, of course you know it's like's it's a life-changing experience getting your card and so on. At the same time, you don't want to overplay it and make it bigger than it actually is, because it's just another tournament.

And if you overplay it, you know, you put the pressure on yourself. When you get pressure you tend to think every shot is -- you put pressure on every single shot.

So just playing the game and realizing that you just love golf and you just love being out there. So for me I'm trying to downplay it, even if in the back of my mind I know it's a very important tournament.

It's just for me to like enjoy the experience.

Q. Yeah, absolutely. I think a lot of people have had that mindset that we've talked to. I know in the past year you've had some incredible professional experience. I know the John Shippen really comes to mind as well. What do you gather from your other professional event experience this year that you think has helped you in your success through Q-II and now through the first week of Q-Series?

ANITA UWADIA: John Shippen was a great experience. Obviously playing with Shasta who is a really good friend of mine, playing with her as a team sport, that was nice.

Meeting the different pros at Rocket Mortgage and being on basically a big stage, that was nice to do.

But obviously the number one thing that really helped me was Symetra. I played Symetra this year. I came in with conditional status and ended up playing my way to full status on the Symetra Tour.

But I think something that I really dealt with on Symetra is being like -- hovering around the cut line and always, you know, you get nervous. Like you don't want to make a bogey and then you make a birdie and then you make a bogey, you're always hovering around that cut line.

For me, what I learned from that is that you just play your game. Every shot, one shot at a time, and if you make the cut you make the cut. If you don't make the cut you don't make the cut. That's how golf is, that's how winning is, that's just how the sport is.

And so coming in this week I realize that I hovered around the cut line, I made it on the cut, and as well as those things I try not to think about the score, I try not to look at the leaderboard, and it's just play your game and whatever happens, happens. Try to make birdies, try to hit good shots. That's why you're basically playing.

Q. You talk about what you went through on Symetra this past year, what you learned about yourself as a player, your game. When you went through that during Q-II, when you were done with Q-II was there this sigh of relief or was there this excitement towards the next two weeks at Q-Series?

ANITA UWADIA: It was a lot of excitement and relief. I played Q-II three years ago and it was just -- I was just under so much pressure. I didn't really play very well.

To be able to come do it again and see how much my scores drastically changed, how much the course looks -- I mean, I think two years ago the course just looked incredibly hard, again, because I put so much pressure on myself.

But this year I came there thinking, one shot at a time, see how it goes, and obviously ended up playing well and making it. So it's excitement because that's also, I feel like, one of the hardest stages with how much people they take versus how many girls actually play.

So that's one of the hardest stages. To be able a part of -- fortunate enough to be part of the 40 girls that made it out or 29 or whatever it was, that's just great. You know that you can play. It's basically a confidence booster, but also sigh of relief, like you say. I mean, you can breathe now.

I remember I was talking to my playing partner and I was like, I think my heart jumped out my mouth a couple times this round. You know, both of us were just laughing about it, and then I had a friend texting me like, Are you breathing yet? I'm like, I think I died a couple times now, but, yeah, I'm breathing.

So obviously a sigh of relief, but at the same time excitement. There are just so many emotions that you go through in this golf journey, especially trying to make it on the LPGA. Like you can't really put a certain emotion on a specific day or anything, because I feel like it's just everything all at once.

Q. Yeah, no, absolutely. I love the, Are you breathing yet text. I feel like a lot of players have got that one from friends. So speaking of are you breathing yet, after Q-Series, after the first week of Q-Series there is of course that cut as well. Was the cut more looming when it -- just for you personally -- when it came through when you were competing through Q-II or that first week of Q-Series? Were you more focused on making the cut or was it more of my golf will speak for itself?

ANITA UWADIA: I think Q-II was more my golf will speak for itself. I didn't really look at the leaderboard the whole week, and I should have done that last week, right? (Laughter.)

I didn't look at the leaderboard all week in Q-II. If I make it, I make it. My friends kept telling me like what the score to make it was and all that stuff. It basically went into one ear and came out the other.

I was like, I'm just going to play golf, try to shoot a low number. I had a number in my head and I was just going to try to shoot that number every day. If I make it, I make it. If I don't, well, you know, aim for a higher number.

But I think the last week the funny thing is I had a putt I think it was like a 25- or 30-footer. I thought I had to make it to qualify. It just came up short. I mean, just pin high on the left a couple of inches. I was kind of bummed. I thought I missed it because I was like, Dang it, I missed by one shot.

Then my mom and my caddie and my best friend, she basically told me, Oh, yeah, you made it right on the number. I was like, No way. I've played my round over and over again looking at the scores, Are you sure we didn't miss something?

I end up on the number. I probably should take it into this week and not look at the leaderboard and just play golf. That's probably what I should do this week.

Q. Hey, it's a strategy for you. It seems to have worked in its favor the last two weeks.

ANITA UWADIA: Yes. So I would take that into next week again and just play golf basically. Let golf speak for itself. I like that quote. I would say that courses are quite similar. Like you say, they're both -- all three of them are RTJ courses. The greens are basically rolling the same. Obviously with the rain it's going to be a little bit slower. Downhill still pretty fast.

But I don't think we have a lot of adjustments to do. The distances are still the same. Only thing that would be different is you have to hit more higher shots with the chips because all the greens -- most of the greens are elevated.

So I would say that's the thing that changes the -- the greatest change from last week to this week. For the most part, the greens are the same and the course is in great condition, just like last week. Hopefully the rain holds up so we can get less mud balls.

For the most part, I think it's great that we don't have that much adjustment to do.