FREED GROUP WOMEN'S SCOTTISH OPEN

August 4, 2023

Sarah Kemp

Dundonald Links

Quick Quotes

Q. Very well played out there today. A 68. How do you reflect on that?

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, it's just nice and solid. I feel like I hit a lot of fairways. And if I just missed it, it was just a yard or two off.

Pretty sure I hit a lot of greens, and I definitely holed some putts. So I joking with my caddie, the longest putt I holed last week I think was like 15 or 16 feet, and I holed a 24-footer today, so pretty happy with that.

But, yeah, just nice and solid, and, yeah, putted really well.

Q. Any particular reason you think the putting was working so well? Is it something you've been working on?

SARAH KEMP: Last week my coach from Australia came in and watched me play. So probably a little bit of that. But I made a putter change a few weeks back, and my speed's just been really good. I've got a good feel for some speed at the moment.

So a combination of those, I would say.

Q. Are you a links fan in general? Obviously you are this week, but, in general, are you?

SARAH KEMP: Yes. I grew up on a course that's links in Australia. So I kind of have saying, like a couple holes to play yesterday, I hope the weekend is like yesterday, so which was pretty windy. But, yeah, I grew up playing in a lot of wind. So it doesn't -- it's hard, but it doesn't scare me.

Q. You're in a great position currently on the leaderboard, obviously want to get into the major next week. I believe it's Top 3. So this gives you a great chance so far, obviously, if you can keep it going.

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, that'd be a great bonus. But, yeah, I've got a long way to go until I can get one of those spots. But, yeah, if I can keep up what I'm doing, I might have a shot.

Q. Golf course, which course is that?

SARAH KEMP: New South Wales Golf Club.

Q. And your coach's name?

SARAH KEMP: John Serhan.

Q. Was he always planning on coming to Evian?

SARAH KEMP: So, yeah, he coaches a boy that played in the Open, so it was perfect because he got to swing by. You know, he went from The Open to Evian. So he's feeling pretty good about life.

Q. Who is that?

SARAH KEMP: John, John Serhan. Oh, Harrison Crowe.

Q. Yes, I know Harrison?

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, Harrison.

Q. How much was that kind of a reset from the middle of the season on, just to have your coach out there to be working on the things that you usually would be waiting maybe towards the end of the season to be working on?

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, it's huge. I don't get to see him too much, but every time I do, I feel like it's -- it's like he's my safety blanket in this way. Even that I just know that he's there and can just -- I play golf for a living, but I don't know what -- where, what is -- I hope no girl ever asks me, you know, like, Will you take a look at my swing? Because I have no clue. I just hit the ball.

But, yeah, so he can see just the little things that are out, and luckily there were just a couple of little things that he said to me, and feels like they're falling into place nicely.

But, yeah, just having him out. You know, and he only comes out maybe two or three times a year.

Q. When was the last time you saw him?

SARAH KEMP: So Hawaii -- oh, no, he came to Baltusrol. He was at Baltusrol, and he came out to Hawaii.

Q. At Evian you seemed to be playing some good golf there as well.

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, I grinded it out on the Thursday and Friday and made the cut. I was 6-over after like five holes on Friday. And somehow, because Friday was carnage, I somehow scraped it through and made it on the number.

It was super stressful, like really stressful. But, yeah, I found a way, and we made the weekend. And then I -- I think I shot 5-under on the weekend and finished 28. So that was a much less stressful weekend. That was nice. And it's been a much less stressful Thursday/Friday here, which is good.

Q. Good. I mean, look at what Ash has done in the last year. Is that something you draw on from at all?

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, sure, there's plenty of good stories out there. But, yeah, she's definitely one that -- trying to think of others. But yeah.

Q. And how well you know Ash --

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, yeah, no, Ash, yeah, no, she's a great story. I mean, gosh, how long has she been -- I think we've been out here a similar amount of years.

Q. That's what I was thinking.

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, no, I still -- I still think if I can keep doing the right things, stay healthy and stay motivated, which I am, you know, I'd love to get that W at some point.

Q. Because the closer you come when it's almost on a links course, isn't it, the big Open, I suppose, isn't it --

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, that's true. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, I like the wind. I need it to blow. If it can blow, that'd be great.

Q. And who's caddying for you?

SARAH KEMP: This is Sarah. So she actually --

Q. Sarah was on Elizabeth Szokol's bag at the Dow Great Lakes.

SARAH KEMP: Yeah, we had a one-week break because we had a team event, and at the beginning of the year my wife, Lisa, we set her up to caddie for me in this team event. So I told Sarah from the beginning of the year, there's just one week you can't caddie. She's like, Okay.

So she ended up caddying for Elizabeth Szokol, who won. What a week to get kicked out, and then you get that. I mean, so she's very happy.

Just talking about you, being a winner.

Q. That W is rubbing off.

SARAH KEMP: I know, yeah, exactly. She does rub it in a little bit. She says she's a true winner.