AUGUSTA NATIONAL WOMEN'S AMATEUR

March 29, 2023

Rose Zhang

Quick Quotes

Q. Did you see 66 out there today?

ROSE ZHANG: I did.

Q. You did?

ROSE ZHANG: I think it was a bogey-free 66.

Q. But did you see 66 out there? At the start of the round.

Q. Did you think that was available?

ROSE ZHANG: No. I think that from the start of the round, I really just wanted to kind of make pars because at Champions Retreat, you never know what you're going to get.

With the round being so soft and being muddy, I can't really expect anything more out of my game today.

Q. You birdied all the par-5s, I'm pretty sure.

ROSE ZHANG: I feel great about that, especially since in golf par-5 scoring is very important for a good round. For me to be able to do that and capitalize on every par-5, I think it shows my game's in a pretty consistent, good direction.

Hopefully I can continue like that the next couple days.

Q. Do you get inspired when Dr. Rice is watching you play?

ROSE ZHANG: It's so inspirational. I think that, especially with me being at Stanford, I learned so much from so many people. Dr. Rice is especially one of them.

With her being our mentors on and off the golf course, I think that she is absolutely amazing. For her to come out and just support women's golf, support us, I'm really thankful for someone like that who I can look up to and also support me.

Q. What did you think was the toughest position you were in today on the golf course? It looked like to me you were hitting a lot of fairways and greens.

ROSE ZHANG: Well, I would say -- I can't really recall. I would say on 8, the par-3, once I hit it long, especially with the score being pretty good in terms of scorecard. And I knew that after I bombed that putt by around 6 or 7 feet, it was going to be a slider putt that I kind of needed to make to keep up the momentum.

I didn't think too much. Put a really good stroke on it and was able to convert.

Q. What was the longest putt you made out there today?

ROSE ZHANG: Oh, on 14 I made a 17-yard putt. Yeah, I'm talking yards, not feet (laughter). But that was pretty crazy, especially since it was pretty windy in the first half of the round.

My dad was just sweeping like the little pine branches off of my line. He was doing it like a maniac, and I was low key kind of telling him to calm down in terms of trying to help me get the little stuff out of the way.

But it turned out for the best, and I have him to thank for that.

Q. Did Dr. Rice give you any words of advice or encouragement in morning or last night?

ROSE ZHANG: I think just her presence in general is already rewarding on its own. She doesn't need to say much. You can just see her, see her presence, and kind of know what you need to do.

No matter what, at the end of the day, when you hold your head up high and continue to make sure you're playing for more than just yourself, you're playing for everyone around you. So I would say that's pretty simple.

Q. How do you prepare strategically for a round of golf? Do you look at what your targets are going to be and what your lines are going to be? Do you look at data?

ROSE ZHANG: I think all of the above. Before you come into every round, you kind of need to have a game plan, especially during the practice round. You're hitting different shots and different chips, putts, just to get a good look at what's to come the next couple days.

So with that in mind, I already did my prep work in the practice round, and I'm just going out here and trying to execute every single shot.

But you never know what you're going to get, especially if you're at Champions. So I have to adjust pretty quickly.

Q. Did you keep a score in the practice round yesterday at all? Do you normally do that?

ROSE ZHANG: No. If anything, I probably would have shot 80 yesterday. I wish I was kidding. I was slicing it.

Q. And mud balls and stuff?

ROSE ZHANG: I was doing all of the above.

Q. How did you adjust then?

ROSE ZHANG: I don't know. I feel like, when it comes to a tournament mindset, I'm able to bring the inner grind out of myself. I think that just overall I have faith in my game and my preparation even if I'm not hitting it the greatest or putting it the greatest.

But that's just the game of golf. You kind of have to be ready for whatever. That's just kind of the mindset I have. I don't really have anything else too crazy.

Q. Do you wake up in the morning and look in the mirror like I'm the No. 1 player in the world, I'm Rose Zhang?

ROSE ZHANG: Oh, heck no. I don't think about that. I would probably hit myself if I were to say that in the mirror and be like, hey, I'm the No. 1. That's just not it.

Q. How has your dad improved as a caddie over the years?

ROSE ZHANG: He's definitely mellowed out from the last couple years. He's still very much a very energy high kind of person, and I think that matches really well with my nonchalant self when I'm on the golf course.

I think he's doing a lot better. He's staying still when other people are playing for the most part. I don't have to constantly guide him everywhere. So it's really great. It's good to have him on the bag. Especially in college, I don't see him often.

Q. Will he be there Saturday too?

ROSE ZHANG: Potentially -- we'll see. I'm not sure yet. We might go for an Augusta caddie should I make the cut.

Q. I mean, you're saying you're slicing the ball in your practice round, but this last-minute strategy clearly worked out for you. In your fourth time here, you've had your best round to date here. What does that say to that strategy when it's like game time?

ROSE ZHANG: I'm super honored. I've seen the golf course pretty often the last couple years. So I kind of know for the most part what I'm going to get out here.

But I think it's just the level of grinding and the mindset that I have that allows me to know that, even if I don't have my best game, especially the last couple years, certain mishaps have popped up.

So with that in mind, I'm just kind of taking everything in my stride and allowing myself to, you know, if I do make mistakes, I can come back. So that really helps my mindset today.

Q. Did you come in this week the most refreshed you've been in this championship?

ROSE ZHANG: Yeah, I would say so because the last couple years I've been pretty hectic, especially with me playing different tournaments right before the event here. So this is probably the most refreshed.

But last week I did have finals, so I would say it's a different kind of refreshed in terms of golf.