U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 15, 1995

Julie Larsen

JULIE LARSEN: Played a lot better on the back. I think I birdied -- I bogeyed 3; hit it in the trees on the right. And birdied 9 from -- I hit it just right of the -- I don't know, chipped it up about 4 feet. Birdied 11 from about 12 feet. I can't remember the holes. Birdied 13 from 15 feet. 15 from about 9 feet, is right uphill and birdied 18 from about 20 feet.

JULIE LARSEN: There is a few that are very distinctive and a few that where you have to drive -- -- keep it down the right side and you are hitting uphill. There are a few of those, you know, and the green slopes away from the mountain on -- there is a few -- they each have their only little distinct marks to them, but they are similar, overall similar.

JULIE LARSEN: Three or four holes, I hit out-- I had said to my caddie on one hole,. I said, "well, I hit a wedge here." He said, "no, 9." I said, wedge." I look at my book - I had hit 9. I had mistaken it for another hole.

JULIE LARSEN: I like my position. It is not bad to be second going into the final round of a Major. This golf course is tough. You can't attack it. Told someone this morning, you can't be like Arnold Palmer going to Cherry Hills saying "I am going to shoot 65;" doesn't happen on this golf course - patience, patience, when you get an uphill putt, you try to take advantages of it.

JULIE LARSEN: No, just pay attention -- I have no control over her. If she starts off birdie, birdie, birdie, I am trying to make birdie, birdie, birdie, so I can't try any harder or try to hit it closer. That will just get you in trouble. I will just try to play the golf course as best I can and add them up and hopefully be a couple of head of everybody.

JULIE LARSEN: 8, I had a real hard -- I remember this -- kicked down to the left; got that big hill and I didn't hit a very good first putt; left about 8 feet short and 3-putted. 12, I hit a good shot in; had about, maybe about 30-footer and didn't read enough break; had about 3-footer; then I just -- once again, didn't honor the mountain enough and broke away from there.

JULIE LARSEN: I think it will help a lot because I had earlier in the year come in third at the McDonalds Major. I played well the final round. That helped me when I played in Minnesota the final round just to stay focused; stay in the present and, you know, like I said, I have no control over anybody else. I have to do the best I can; hope that it is good enough. Hopefully, I will keep that attitude tomorrow.

JULIE LARSEN: Knock on wood. I seem to be okay with them. In the practice rounds, I really tried to take my time; hit different putts; tried to get a feel -- is what you need out here. You have to have a feel for how hard to hit it up the hill and how far it is going to come down and know when it is away from the mountain and when into the mountain. For three days I seem to have looked like I have a close, so hopefully it will go one more day.

JULIE LARSEN: It is like on -- I guess 15 is dog leg left to right. I hit my shot, driver a little left. It was in the rough, and I think I had 115 to the pin. I hit a sand wedge 85 yards, but you just know when it hits, it is going to go down and to the right. So I just tried to hit it on the front left of the green and, you know, it filtered down. I made the putt. I guess that would be more aggressive, but you can't try to get it close on these greens. It is not like you have a flat green; you say, okay, I am going to knock a 9-iron right in there. If you are a little off or a little off, a little right, you are going to have an impossible putt. You are better off, like I said, having a 20-footer uphill, sometimes, than a 6-footer downhill.

JULIE LARSEN: I didn't take the game up 'til I was 16. Played a lot of different sports, so I had competitive ability. My mom signed me up for a golf lesson and as everybody knows it kind of hooks you. And I went to school in Florida; not on scholarship. No one wanted me after college for golf. I just went so I can be in the nice weather and play, and when I graduated college in '84 had certainly not done anything in college golfwise, but didn't really want to go into the work force, so I figured that I would try the Mini Tour for a while and just kept playing and playing. I went over to Europe and I played in the Mini Tour here and I played in Asia and any other Tour that would let me on and I finally got out here.

JULIE LARSEN: It is such, you know, this game seems to be plateaued. You kind of -- like I said I got out of college; I was here; then on the Mini Tour, I started doing better; then I went to Europe, I did a little better; then I got on the Tour, I did okay. This year, I have done a little better. I am kind of feeling my way into maybe having the attitude that I can win every week or certainly win more than once a year, so I would say, yes, it is not that I expect to win every week, but once you win, then you say,"hey, I have done it before, there is no reason why I can't do it again."

JULIE LARSEN: I think I might have tried maybe 6 and I think I got to the finals maybe 4 and it just got a little better each year, a little more confident, a little better. I like to think of it I got on the Tour and kind of hit the ground running instead of having to wallow for a little while.

JULIE LARSEN: Rollins in Winter Park, Florida. Little-bitty school.

JULIE LARSEN: My putting stroke?

JULIE LARSEN: I lived in the back woods in Arkansas. I was -- I played, you know, different sports. My parents belonged -- were members at a club I would go out for family scramble or just in order to drive the cart on Sunday afternoon, so I was exposed to golf. In high school I played field hockey, basketball and softball so I was, you know, trying to keep active.

JULIE LARSEN: No, I worked with a pro who is with Golf Digest, John Elliott (phonetic) worked with him for about six years. It seems every time I go back for a lesson itis the same thing; just try to get a full turn and, you know, stay down through the ball and every time I go back for a lesson, he tells me the same thing, so I seem to be hard-headed, but no Major Swing changes; more on my short game and my putting than anything else; which, I think, has made a difference.

JULIE LARSEN: I swing very fast. I do.

JULIE LARSEN: Well, hopefully sometimes.

JULIE LARSEN: Thank you.