THE AMUNDI EVIAN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 19, 2022

Pauline Roussin-Bouchard

Evian Resort Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. All right, here with Pauline Roussin Bouchard. Back in France, back in the home country at a place you played at quite a long time.

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: Uh-huh.

Q. What's the feelings being back here now as a professional?

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: I think it's fun. I think it's exciting. I was talking to my dad this morning and I was like, it's nice because obviously I know more people on tour so it's nice to be in this kind of atmosphere where you know more people and it's like very friendly.

And compared to the two other editions where I was still an amateur and I was like, oh, wow, this is the adults world. I was like, okay. I was kind of shy.

Now I'm just like I'm just belonging to the tour and really enjoying that quite a lot. Yeah, I think it's just fun.

Q. Tell me about your history with this. Obviously third edition of this championship, but this golf course. Been playing here since, what, ten years old?

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: Yeah, 2010 for my first Haribo Kids Cup, and then played 2011, 2012, and 2014 for like the Evian champ under-14. And then, what else?

I played the Jabra on the LET. So I played quite a lot, yeah.

Q. Does coming back here where you're so familiar, do you know like every blade of grass on this golf course?

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: I do know a lot. Yes. I played from every single tee box.

Q. Do you think that gives you an advantage? I feel like some players come out here never having played this place; you know what to expect with the rough, the slopes that you may be getting in the fairways.

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: I mean, I think it's -- it still has to evolve until Thursday. The greens are going to get faster, rough are going to be thicker. Obviously difficulty of that golf course is the rough, how bumpy, slopey the greens can be. The grain can be very tricky.

So I mean, it helps that I know a little bit of that, but definitely it's still the same characteristics that you find.

Q. Had a top 10 last week. Second top 10 as a pro?

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: Yep.

Q. How much confidence does that give you coming into the year's fourth major?

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: I mean, to be honest, I needed a tournament last week, needed in terms of confidence, in terms of just the way I would hit the ball over there. Because I kept working. I grinded last week. It was just the last prep that was needed, that I needed for me to come into this week.

And, you know, all the fun I had like really put me in a good mood. I think I'm going to definitely enjoy myself on the course and try to remember how we played last week, which atmosphere we had on the course.

Q. Your mantra is kind of happy me, happy golf.

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: Yeah.

Q. Rookie years are not easy. How have you tried to maintain that or have you maintained that? Have you been able to keep that up? And if so, how have you done that?

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: I've always been happy me definitely outside the golf course. I've never let my golf impact the person I am.

But definitely when I was struggling a little bit more when I missed couple cuts, I was -- it was rough. It was hard to be like happy on the golf course, because obviously it's easier to be happy when you play well.

But I had to remind myself because I've had one tournament where I had a really bad attitude and I was like, that's not -- at least this is not the person you want to be on the course.

So it was a good reminder if you want to play like really bad, if you want to play bad, just play with like class and like heads up. You know, I came back to bad golf doesn't stop me from being a nice person on the course.

I mean, obviously it's hard to be all the time like all smiles. I think my mom was telling me like last week on TV, like the people, French people were saying, oh, she's a happy person on the course, blah, blah, blah. 18 I pulled my shot on the left side with a left pin, so it was the worst shot possible.

It was at least bogey, if not double bogey. So obviously, I mean, I close myself. I wasn't smiling. I was still okay. I didn't show any anger, but I was mad.

And I think it's important that sometimes it's like it's okay to be mad. Not too long obviously. Happy me doesn't mean not mad.

I think it's finding the balance between that. Definitely had to work on that on every single tournament. It's okay to get mad, but not too long.

Q. And just final question: Just goals this week, what are some goals here at Evian?

PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: I mean, to be honest, it's mostly like game, the way I'm hitting the ball, the way I'm going to have my routines with my caddie.

I really want to enjoy myself, and I think the rest is just going to come from that. It's definitely not by thinking about where I want to finish. It's just about the process. It's very cliche but, I mean, that's the way I'm doing it.