HILTON GRAND VACATIONS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS

January 21, 2022

Gaby Lopez

Lake Nona Golf & Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Here with Gaby Lopez after a round of 68 here on a Friday. Eagle there on No. 9. Always a good one to have on the card. Tell us what happened there.

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, I hit a beautiful tee shot. I thought it was a little bit right but actually ended up rolling it perfectly to the fairway. Had a perfect number and hit a 5-wood to probably 13 feet. We read the putt pretty good and just happened to fall in.

Q. Nice. How long was that approach?

GABY LOPEZ: It was 210.

Q. Okay. You were playing with Annika, playing with the GOAT, one the greats of the game. You're so close with Lorena as well. What was it like to see Annika in action on the course?

GABY LOPEZ: It was a dream come true. I mean, honestly, being able to share the fairways and conversations and just really feel her energy around me, around the group, was unbelievable.

I can see totally she's -- I feel like she's already like a superior person, player. She gives so much back to the game. We were talking about her legacy, even down in South America, which is huge for me, being able to learn from her and see what's coming up for Latin American golf.

Q. Awesome. Here this week you had another steady round today. Do you feel comfortable here at Lake Nona? Seem to be playing pretty well. What is it about this tournament that seems to bring out the best in you?

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, I think probably low expectations at the beginning of the year, being able to kind of blank my mind and start from zero, not able to judge with myself. Sometimes I'm too hard on myself, and being able to just start fresh.

You know, been playing solid golf. My caddie tells me all the time, like, Okay, there is no expectations, but I want an intention, right? I don't want just to be, Okay, where is my game. Being able to be aggressive when I have to and be smart when I have to, it's been really, really good for my game this week.

Q. I really like that. No expectations, but intentions. Is that something you try to do across everything you do out here on the course?

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah. I think being able to just be very sharp and not let kind of stupid thoughts or just bad, negative emotions, and being able to have an intention every shot and being able to determine, be able to see what exactly I want, focus on what I want and not what I don't want.

It's hard when you have doubts. It's hard when you're doubting yourself in between clubs. But that's why we're a team, and I'm very grateful that my caddie is with me on the golf course and my coach is right here by my side.

Q. Being the first event of the year, is it easier to accept bogeys like you had coming in? How big is the birdie at the last hole to give you momentum for the weekend?

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, I think it's easy to forgive your bogeys when you're not tired. Sometimes at the end of every season I see everyone gets irritated very easily and we get angry very quickly because we're tired mentally, emotionally, physically.

So being able to be rested, energized, and being able to just play golf -- I mean, as easy as it sounds, just play the shot that you have in front of you instead of trying to guess what's going to happen, instead of trying to guess what the ball is going to do.

I mean, just hit the shot, and that's exactly what I did on the last hole. My caddie said to me, I knew you were going to make it. I was like -- it was just one of those weird feelings you have in the game. When it happens, it's just pretty cool to see come reality.

Q. What did you hit in at 18 and how far was the putt?

GABY LOPEZ: I had a weird lie. I had like 157. I hit a little 7-iron, but with that weird lie I kind of came off a little bit and hit a little behind it.

But it was a perfect leave to me. It was a good miss. My caddie said, Hey, we're in perfect position right there. Yeah, just hit the next one.

Q. Just a couple quick ones. I know 2022, new year, people make New Year's resolutions. Curious if you had any on the golf course and off the golf course?

GABY LOPEZ: I had so much fun off the golf course. I went to Punta Mita, it's one my sponsors. It's an of amazing destination. I encourage everyone to go there in Puerto Vallarta. I did surfing, I did foiling. I don't know if you guys have heard of foil.

I did pickleball. I've never done pickleball. I've done paddle tennis and tennis, but just trying to do different activities over the off weeks. It's good, and also it's like a reality check that I'm not as athletic as I thought I was. I had to just -- I think I have to just kind of do more activities like that to be just more athletic, because that was embarrassing honestly.

Q. Just across your career, are there any tips that you have gotten that have stood out to you the most, that have really helped you?

GABY LOPEZ: From?

Q. Like from anybody. Swing tips, mental tips, things from Lorena, anything that stood out the most?

GABY LOPEZ: I mean, I have a pretty good list of all of them, but at the end I think it comes back to my coach and being able to be very detailed in little things.

Sometimes I think we give things for granted because we're probably good at something and we stop working on it. My coach is like, Okay, we got to keep working on this. I know your putting is good, but you got to keep doing your drills and setup and fundamentals and everything.

That's key, because throughout the season we tweak and manipulate a lot our games and our bodies, especially when we're tired. So, yeah, I think just being able to be very careful and detailed with the little things.

Q. Were there points today where you found yourself observing Annika more than you typically would a playing competitor in your group?

GABY LOPEZ: I think that happened to me last year exactly when I played with her. I was so amazed of the opportunity to play with her.

Today I just felt grateful, grateful to be walking go down the fairway, because it's probably every little girl's dream. It for sure was one of mine.

Being able to have this opportunity and able to share -- I mean, one of the greatest who ever played this game and keep learning from her, she still hits it a bomb for how long it's been since she was on the LPGA.

So it's awesome honestly.

Q. Obviously she's the crowd favorite here above any of the LPGA competitors.

GABY LOPEZ: Yes.

Q. What's it like going around with her and the reaction outside the ropes?

GABY LOPEZ: Oh, it's great. I mean, like I said, she's from another planet. Being able to really learn from how humble she is and how kind she is to everybody, to her husband. I mean, Mike would get a little mad if you miss a putt and she's -- she'll be, It's okay, it's okay. Thank you for the read.

She'll be so nice. You know, the competitiveness, it doesn't go away, but she still reacts the proper way to a miss or a bogey. She moves on, and that's something that I for sure got to learn that.

Q. Mike and Annika are disgustingly cute, aren't they?

GABY LOPEZ: I know. They are just like the perfect couple. I'm like man, I really hope I'm going to keep learning from them.