THE ANNIKA DRIVEN BY GAINBRIDGE AT PELICAN

November 10, 2023

Gaby Lopez

Pelican Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. All right, joined now by Gaby Lopez after a bogey-free second round. Just take us through your second round of play here at The ANNIKA.

GABY LOPEZ: First of all, I don't have a hat because I just gave it to a little girl. She's been following me. For the last three years she's come up to this tournament and it's really cute to see her.

Yeah, just very, very solid. We hit 18 greens today. I got a little desperate on my putting. I was hitting really good putts and they just didn't go in. I think I left myself very hard putts out there without knowing or wanting. Yeah, kind of breaky and slippery.

Just very solid overall. My driving has been just on pointe, exactly how I see it it's going. So I'm just overall very happy with it.

Q. Those moments like you gave your hat to a little girl, how much does that -- when you're in the thick of it right at the end of the season, how much does that remind you this is so great, the inspiration you get to be?

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, this is exactly what I play for. She gave me a birthday present, a birthday card. Very thoughtful. She's come to Lake Nona, Hilton, Tournament of Champions, here every single time. So really just brings me tears, so much joy to really enjoy this sport a little bit more than I do by just grinding out there.

You know that's stressful and just can be a little bit draining when your kind of battling yourself for so long, but when you sees kids like these, they just bring such a great smile and good energy. It's just very special to me because I take it very personal.

Q. Yeah. More difficult conditions we've heard. Got a little more windy than yesterday.

GABY LOPEZ: Uh-huh.

Q. How difficult was it really to go bogey-free?

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, it was very mentally draining because you got to really think of where is the wind coming, and especially some of the tee shots as well. You can't just let yourself just kind of trust that it's, oh, it's open wide and just hit it. You got to be very specific with your targets.

Yeah, just overall very, very patient. I got a little desperate, but just kind of kept telling myself like, I can do this and I'm just going to hit my line. If it drops in, fine.

I ended up draining a 20-footer on last hole.

Q. Take us through that 20-footer. I didn't know that.

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, hit my 8-iron really good and I hit like 20 feet downhill. At that point I was expecting nothing and just happened to drop in the middle of the cup.

Q. Heard a big roar earlier. I'm sure that's what it was.

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, after 18 tries of trying to make it, finally dropped.

Q. Top 10 finish in Malaysia; two great rounds of golf here. Is there anything in your game, in your preparation that you're doing different as we head towards the end of the season?

GABY LOPEZ: You know, it's a funny game. Almost every single year I come to the last stretch of the year and I'm like, you know what? I'm just going to enjoy it. It's the last tournaments of the year. I know I've given myself as many chances as I can, and I'm just going to literally just enjoy type of.

Happens that my birthday week is always like a funny week that I kind of feel good about my game, and I don't know, I just feel that also everything is -- the things we worked have been really, really helping.

And, yeah, I feel that also I had a really good conversation with my caddie about strategy-wise and our communication and that really helped.

Q. Last one: What will you take away from your first two rounds as you head into the weekend?

GABY LOPEZ: Yeah, just trust in myself. Giving myself as many chances as I can. Just kind of really trusting in knowing they're going to drop in eventually.