JTBC CLASSIC PRESENTED BY BARBASOL

March 24, 2022

Maude-Aimee Leblanc

Aviara Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Here with Maude-Aimee LeBlanc after a 4-under 68. You had a day. Ten holes without a par. Just walk us through your front nine.

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: Yeah, I don't think that ever happened to me before. Yeah, just hitting good shots. Couple three-putts; those were the bogeys. But just giving myself chances.

And, yeah, I mean, out here it's -- the shorter putts are the tougher ones because it's poa. I know everyone, it's the same for everyone. I just got roll with it and stay confident.

Q. Did you know what was going on when all that was happening, like did you have the count in your head, or were you blissfully unaware?

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: I (indiscernible at one point. Yeah, I did. Yeah, I just focused on staying loose and trying to have no tension in my arms and shoulders and hands, and that's usually key for me to make good swings.

Q. You said the bogeys were three-putts. Let's count them up. Six, eight birdies in a stretch of ten holes. Had you ever had something like that happen to you before? What have you been working on to get to that point?

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: I don't think so. I mean, nothing really. It's just, it's all mental. Like I said, I just focused on nothing technique, just staying relaxed.

My putting has been really good for a while now, so I know I can rely on that. I mean, to win out here you have to make a lot of putts, so I feel that was key for my round today.

Q. What kind of confidence does that kind of a round give you, being able to grind through the madness heading into the rest of the week?

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: Uh-huh, yeah, gives me really good confidence. Like I said, just I feel like I just have to keep doing what I'm doing and try not to put too much pressure on myself.

Easier said than done.

Q. Have you taken some time off heading into this week?

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: Yeah, felt like a second off-season actually, so I did take a lot time off. Went to Canada for three weeks and practiced on simulators up there.

Funny enough, in the simulators they had Aviara Country Club, so I played it like ten times when I was up there. I felt pretty comfortable out there.

Q. Did it hold up to its digital counterpart?

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: It did. It was less windy up there, but everything else was pretty much the same.

Q. I don't think that's very common here. Obviously in Montréal, in Canada right now, it's very cold I would imagine. You don't hear of a lot of players playing golf courses on simulators before they come play it. Is that something you had done prior that helped you, or...

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: No, I had never done it before. I just felt like I wanted to be home with family, and, yeah, it just happened that this course was on the simulator. So I thought, well, might as well play it and just try to get comfortable with it.

Yeah, I feel like -- I feel like it did help, funny enough. Might just be in my head. I don't know.

Q. Mindset heading into the rest of the week?

MAUDE-AIMEE LEBLANC: I mean, obviously I want a good finish. I'm trying to improve my ranking whenever I can.

Yeah, I mean, again, I try not to think about it too much, though, and just try to stay relaxed out there. That's going to be my focus for the week.