U.S. WOMEN'S MID-AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

September 12, 2024

Lindsay Gahm

Brae Burn Country Club

Quote Quotes

Q. You were hoping to have the ace in the hole on the bag this morning. He came in last night; is that right?

LINDSAY GAHM: Yes, yes. No, it's awesome always having him on the bag. He kept me calm and loose, so very thankful for him to come up here and last second caddie for me. It's pretty special being here together.

Q. Did you feel from the beginning, was it a little bit of a struggle? Every day your game is different, right --

LINDSAY GAHM: Definitely right now in my life, for sure.

Q. That's the most golf you've played in a long time.

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah, really from the get-go I didn't feel like I was hitting real solid shots like I had been. I had a couple good birdies to start, No. 2, and then the speed of my putts -- I think the course played a little different. It was a little softer, wasn't as windy. I think I was playing kind of more defensive maybe in a sense because kind of before that the last few days you kind of had to.

I think I just didn't really have it.

Q. It's hard to change your mindset from what you've been doing for six days basically, right?

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah, I didn't really adjust very well. Again, just not hitting real solid shots like I had been before. Yeah, different day, different game.

Q. Everybody is a different player from day-to-day.

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah.

Q. You had two amazing -- you won four matches in two days to get here and some really dramatic, exciting moments. How do you feel about just getting to the final as you did?

LINDSAY GAHM: Oh, I mean, I'm just grateful to be here. The course is amazing. I haven't been playing much golf after just having our baby. He's five months old now. I really didn't have really any expectations in my head. Just getting here to the final was a dream come true. Really happy for Hana, though. She really played solid today. She's a great person and fierce competitor. It was fun being with them today. It made it a lot more fun out here.

Q. Have you played with her? I know she played at Louisville. Do you know her at all? Had you played with her before?

LINDSAY GAHM: No, actually I saw her on the putting green, saw her bag and she was right there, and I said, hey, are you from Louisville, she's like, no, I played at Louisville, so we just started talking. Her and her boyfriend, they live in New Albany, so they're only like 10 minutes from us. I didn't know her before.

Q. Was that during stroke play that you saw the bag?

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah, stroke play.

Q. Then lo and behold, look who got to the final, right?

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah, we're representing Louisville today in a couple different ways.

Q. I know you made that birdie and then that birdie on the par-5 kind of stopped the bleeding a little bit, kept you back in it, and then again, a little bit of the struggles on the greens. I know you had a few three-putts.

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah, just again, the speed was not really there. I was being a little more tentative and the greens weren't as quick as I was used to. Just not really judging it correctly. Same thing with my ball-striking, just a little shaky, honestly, from the start. Yeah, just didn't really have it today.

Again, Hana still played solid. At the end of the day, it just wasn't my day.

Q. But you now are in the next three U.S. Women's Mid-Amateurs. You're exempt into the next three as a finalist.

LINDSAY GAHM: Oh, I didn't know that.

Q. I'm sure you'll make time for those next year, Monterey Peninsula --

LINDSAY GAHM: Oh, I wouldn't miss it. These events have been so incredible. It's so much fun. It's always a great golf course, so I'm really looking forward to even next year seeing Monterey. I've never been there, so I'm excited.

Q. You really truly represent the women's Mid-Amateur being a mom, working and trying to play golf if you're lucky one day on a weekend --

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah.

Q. Is that the norm typically?

LINDSAY GAHM: Yeah.

Q. Maybe he gets one day, you get the other --

LINDSAY GAHM: That's exactly what we do. Yep, that's it now.

Q. It's an amazing accomplishment. How have you been able to keep your game in some semblance -- the ability to get where you are today, how have you been able to manage the game, and what do you focus on to keep yourself as sharp as possible?

LINDSAY GAHM: Well, we try to play once a weekend at our home course and we have a Sunday scratch game, so there's always really good players that are playing in that. I try to play in that every weekend just to at least have a game, kind of stay sharp in that way.

Obviously the last year I really haven't played much, so really until a month ago, I felt like my body was kind of back to where I could start hitting balls and getting more of that focus, so I really haven't had much time to prepare.

Going forward now, I'm definitely going to try to practice a little bit more and get out there and play more.

Q. You have quite a family legacy with Valhalla. Is that where you do most of your playing?

LINDSAY GAHM: Yes. Yeah, we're members out there.

Q. That's a pretty good spot to keep your game championship ready, right?

LINDSAY GAHM: Definitely, yes. Yes, we're very blessed to be out there. It definitely will get you, though, if you aren't on. But yeah, it's awesome.