BUICK LPGA SHANGHAI

October 15, 2023

Madelene Sagstrom

Qizhong Garden Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. All right, Madelene, a new course record here.

MADELENE SAGSTROM: It was?

Q. Yeah.

MADELENE SAGSTROM: Nice. Hey, Shane, course record.

SHANE CODD: Yeah, I know that.

Q. New course record here. One off or is your career low. Just overall what was the mindset and the game plan heading into this final round?

MADELENE SAGSTROM: Well, I didn't play -- Thursday I didn't play fantastic, and then I was getting a little bit closer Friday. I had a call with my coach and we kind of reverted back to a few different feelings with the iron shots.

Yesterday I actually hit it really, really well but I didn't figure out the greens so I didn't make any putts. Today I hit it just as good, if not a little bit better, but I was making the putts. So I was giving myself plenty of chances and I was just feeling really good.

Q. Making the turn in 30. For you making that turn there, what really stuck out to you on the first nine holes?

MADELENE SAGSTROM: Well, it was actually the fact that I missed two fairly short putts, too. There was actually more in there. I find when you go low, especially like on the front nine, it's very easy to get defensive and like hold on for dear life.

I was telling myself, I didn't tell Shane, but I kept telling myself, keep pushing, keep putting yourself out there and keep trying to go low. I find it's so easy to like get a little bit defensive and you come in and shoot 4- or 5-under and it's an average day. I wanted to make it a great day.

So I was really just trying to push the pedal. We had a little bit of a wait on the leaders making the turn, so it was kind of nice. Okay, let's reset, let's go again.

But, yeah, just trying to keep the foot on the pedal and just keep going.

Q. Where were those two short putts that you talked about?

MADELENE SAGSTROM: Well, not super short, but I had a six-footer on 13, the par-5.

I had a good look at 17, too.

So I actually didn't make any birdies on the par-5s, which is like --

Q. You beat my next question.

MADELENE SAGSTROM: I know. So I was -- well, for me it's like if I don't take advantage of the par-5s it means I'm hitting good iron shots elsewhere.

So it set up fairly good for my eye today. I've been committing to my draw this week, so just need to make a few more birdies on the par-5s.

Q. Well, you were able to have a really nice one coming in on No. 9 there. When you do that reset throughout that entire front nine after you wait a little bit at the turn and you try to be more aggressive, did you feel that you were playing more aggressive and you didn't really lean on that defensive mentality?

MADELENE SAGSTROM: Yeah, I find it easy to start hitting the putts a little bit too soft, so I was trying to make sure that I kept speed up and kept giving myself good looks.

I had a really good look on 4 that I just missed.

Made a good putt on 5.

Had a good look on 6.

Then I missed the green on both 7 and 8, but I made two really good up and downs.

But on 9 I chunked my second shot a little bit and ended up short, and I was like, this is the only place we can't be.

Then I looked at Shane, I said, Okay, Shane, what are we trying to do here? The leaders have not -- nine holes to go. Like what are we trying to do? He's like, we're trying to give ourselves a chance for birdie here.

I mean, if I wanted to go for it I should've hit the flop shot over the bunker, but I'm like there is both water long and bunker short, I'm like, okay, let's not try to do that.

So I bumped it up. It didn't really turn out great, but the fact that that putt went in just kind of made my -- like it made the day okay. I followed my game plan and I got rewarded.

Q. Shane, your caddie, was saying that it's kind of cliche to say that it's been coming for a while.

MADELENE SAGSTROM: Uh-huh.

Q. Never really cliche to me. For players, have you felt that as well?

MADELENE SAGSTROM: I really like what Max Homa said like few months ago. You're either really close to winning the Masters or you're never going to play golf again. I feel like golf is that way. One day it feels like you're going to be unstoppable and the next day you can't make contact with the ball.

I think when you have days like this, you just have to make sure you get on the run and just keep going. I know have been having really good golf within me, especially after -- I played pretty good at Scottish; didn't play good at British.

After that I had a decent run of some fairly good golf. My putter has been really, really cold this year, which is what I've been leaning on for the last few years.

Working so hard on my long game. It's been improving, but I haven't been putting well. Then it's like, okay, hopefully we'll all figure out in the end.

The putter got hot today and that always helps.

Q. Players like Maja, Lilia, Danielle, the players have been saying the confidence they got from Solheim Cup has really helped them also in this last stretch of events. Have you felt any boost since the performance you had there?

MADELENE SAGSTROM: To be honest, I think Solheim this time actually kind of threw me a bit the other way.

Q. Oh.

MADELENE SAGSTROM: I had a big conversation with my team after. I was like, I want to be Carlotta in Solheim. I want to be somebody they can lean on, and I haven't had that position in the three that I played. I mean, I've been a solid Four-Ball player, but I'm like, why am I not playing foursomes?

So I feel like after Solheim I was like, okay, I really need to get this together. I need to -- for me it's more probably mental than anything. Like really believing in my game and trusting that my game is good enough.

Q. Uh-huh.

MADELENE SAGSTROM: So I think that it kind of threw me for a loop in the other way, and so I was like, okay, Madelene, get your shit together. You're better than this. I want to be -- I mean, I would love to be in a situation like Suzann when she made it at Gleneagles, when -- Carlota's routine at the Cup.

If somebody would've asked me, do you want to do this, it's like I want to, but I don't think I'm ready for it.

Q. Yeah.

MADELENE SAGSTROM: So it's like, I feel like I have a little bit of growth still to do both within my game and also in my own confidence and how I view myself and my own game. So I think I was like, I want to be ready for next year. When you're there you just want to be there again and again and again. It's the best feeling in the whole world. Playing for something bigger than yourself, representing Europe, it's the best week of the whole -- I mean, of my whole career. Those three weeks are the best weeks I've ever had on a golf course.

I want to be there, but I also want to be able to hit the finishing putts. I don't think I've been ready for it until -- well, still not ready for it. So that's kind of what I'm working towards, to really become that clutch player that they can rely on.

Q. What does a round like this do for your confidence head into Korea next week?

MADELENE SAGSTROM: Oh, massively. I think the biggest thing is the fact that I didn't back down on the back nine. I didn't settle for good. I kind of kept pushing to hit -- be greater. So it's huge.

I think that also knowing that I can turn pretty average golf on a Thursday round to really good golf on a Sunday.

Also momentum is huge. It's great confidence. Putting was a huge confidence today.