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MCDONALD'S LPGA CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY COCA-COLA

June 8, 2006

Pat Hurst

HAVRE DE GRACE, MARYLAND

PAM WARNER: Thanks for coming and joining us today. Nice round out there. You have a two shot lead right now. Do you just want to talk about your day.

PAT HURST: Just played pretty steady out there. I made birdie on two, two, and three and just kept it going. I had a save on number four, but overall I just played pretty steady out there.

PAM WARNER: Can we go over your scorecard.

PAT HURST: Yeah. I birdied number 2. I hit in the right bunker on my third shot, chipped it in.

Then number 3 I birdied. I hit 7 iron to about 15 feet.

Q. How far was the chip in from the bunker on 2?

PAT HURST: It was the green side bunker. Yeah.

Q. Okay.

PAT HURST: And then number 7, I hit 8 iron to 25 feet.

10, I hit wedge to about three feet.

15, I hit 3 wood to about 60 feet and 3 putted.

Bogeyed 16. I hit in the right bunker off the tee and kind of hit it heavy out and then chipped it long and 2 putted from quite a bit, 40 feet or so. I don't know. About that far.

17, I hit 6 iron to about 8 feet.

And then 18, I hit 9 iron to about seven feet.

PAM WARNER: Questions for Pat?

Q. How did the course play as opposed to last year?

PAT HURST: They lengthened number 9 and number, I think 5. Is it?

Q. Number 9 I know they did.

PAT HURST: Nine. I think five too. And five, I think that five let me double check five. Yeah. And five makes a lot harder because your landing area isn't that wide at all when you're hitting the driver.

So that hole definitely made it a lot harder. And then number nine, I mean number nine it made it longer, where last year you could kind of take it a little bit more right and now you got to take it obviously a little more left.

But I think it's going to hurt the shorter hitters because it makes it that much harder.

Q. Were you surprised there were so many low scores up on the leaderboard?

PAT HURST: The greens are real receptive right now, which is kind of nice. You can throw it at the pin and it's not real firm out there.

So I think that makes it a lot easier. And the greens are nice. They're rolling pretty good. So you can fly it at the pin and the greens are rolling pretty good and that makes it I won't say easier, but it makes the scores go a little bit lower.

Q. And wind isn't affecting anything?

PAT HURST: Not right now.

Q. So is this about as receptive as you're going to see it probably?

PAT HURST: I think so. And it's perfect out there. It's not hot, it's not cold, it was a perfect walk out there.

Q. Will you be surprised if that holds up or do you think there will be lower scores today?

PAT HURST: I think there will be some low scores, but it is long. I didn't have many birdies with wedges. I'm hitting 6, 7, 8 and 9 irons just to make birdies. But like I said, the greens were being a little receptive and that really helps.

Q. A year later now, do people like this course better than DuPont?

PAT HURST: They're just so different. DuPont was when they got that rough up and the greens really fast, the greens can be really fast out there.

It could be firm up there too. And I remember some years where it was really firm. And that made it difficult. Especially with the rough up pretty high.

But they're just two different golf courses, so it's hard to compare them.

Q. How do you change your game plan going into a Major? Is it a different kind of week or is golf, golf?

PAT HURST: I just try and go out and do the best I can, no matter which week it is. And I don't change my game plan. I play nine holes and then play the actually, this week I played the pro am first and then played nine holes. But usually it's nine holes and the pro am and then the tournament.

So I don't try to change much. I just try to go out with the same mentality as it's just another day of golf and just try to do the best that I can.

Q. How have you been playing? How has your season been going?

PAT HURST: It's been okay. The first of the year is always tough for me with kids. But once I get going and get out east it make it's a lot easier for me to focus more on golf instead of my kids and I think that's why I usually start picking up later in the year then.

Q. Has it changed a lot for you since you had a family? Is it different than maybe when you were out here before you had kids?

PAT HURST: Time wise, it's more quality time instead of quantity time. And you just got to be more ready for your mind is set to go practice, but sometimes things come up and you have to change your plans a little bit. But overall I think it's been a good change for me.

Q. When you see people like Juli who is winning Majors when her kids were young, does that kind of give people to say, hey, you can really do it, you can balance, Nancy did it too? I guess there's been some that have been very successful. Is that a good thing when you can see other people doing it?

PAT HURST: I think so. I think it's a lot about how you manage your time out there. And you know, if you look at the moms that have played well, that they just kind of let things go and just kind of roll with the punches. And I think that's what you got to do when you do have kids.

And right after having kids, I think it's really hard because your body changes and over time it will go back to being normal, but I think that it's a good change and I think that you just got to let things roll off your back and just go with it.

Q. Three more executives resigned from the LPGA a day or so ago. You've been out here for awhile under different commissioners. Does Carolyn Bivens have a mandate for change? Among most players such as yourself, do you like what she's doing? Do you think things need to be shaken up? What?

PAT HURST: I mean, she just came on, so it's hard to say. I want to give her a chance. And I think so far I think that she's in the best interests of the players. I think that's what we need.

Our Tour is as strong as it has ever been and I think that we have got to take advantage of that.

I don't know what happened with the three that resigned or who they are, but I don't know, I don't know what's going on. So I can't comment on that. I have no idea.

Q. Is it your perception that she's sort of had a mandate to come in and change things, or not?

PAT HURST: I think things need to be changed. And if there's any time to change it, it's right now while we're on top of you know, to me I think we're doing our Tour is probably the strongest it's ever been, with the younger players. The older generation, you know, I think it's time for a change.

There's a lot of things that we as players don't have that we should have. Health insurance, you know, there's a lot of little things that we don't have that I'm not complaining, you know, but that we probably should have. A better retirement. I mean, it's hard to say. I think that as she that she hopefully will be able to do something about it.

Q. Among the veteran players such as yourself, things like that, health insurance, pension plans, what else do you look around and maybe look at the PGA TOUR and say, wait a minute, we don't have that and they got it, you know? What else do you want or think you ought to have?

PAT HURST: Well, I just mentioned what I think we need, what is important to me, is those two things.

And like I said, if there's any time to do it, it would be right now.

Q. So she has basically widespread support?

PAT HURST: I would say so. You know, I'm the type that I think we do need a change. And I think we can do it. I think that it's justified right now to do it. So it is okay. And time will tell if it's going to work or not. Right now, you know, a lot of these tournaments are still under, let's say, Ty and his decisions, so I can't say how good or bad that Carolyn is doing, because we need to give her time to prove herself and give her next year, see how the tournaments are going next year and see what's going on.

Right now it's still kind of Ty's stuff left over. So, you know, there's not much you can really comment on that when there's not she just took over.

Q. You've been out her awhile, you see all these young players with a lot of game. What's it do? Does it motivate you or anything, or is it I don't know, how do the people who have been out her awhile see all that?

PAT HURST: I think that the younger generation coming up, I think they're all good girls. And I think that they respect us as I wouldn't call myself an older generation, but they respect the older players, which is nice.

I think that they're great for the Tour. They have got a lot of pizzazz and they're all different personalities and I think that that's wonderful.

I think that's what we need. I know when I first came out on Tour I was nervous as I was really nervous out here, so I really wouldn't say, I still don't say much to people I don't really know. But amongst my peers I do talk to them.

But the girls coming out now, they're just kind of smiling and enjoying, it seems like they enjoy it a lot more. They're not as nervous as when I came out. So they're enjoying the moment.

Q. Thoughts on Michelle Wie trying to make the U.S. Open. Do you think that's a good thing?

PAT HURST: I think that's a good thing. I think it's good for women's golf. I wish she would have made it. I think it would have been great to see and I probably would have been watching the TV next week, you know, to see how she would be doing there if she did make it.

But I may still watch it, since I'm at home.

But I think it would have been interesting to see.

Q. For awhile there was some sense that maybe she should come play the LPGA Tour and forget about that. By and large, what do you think is the feeling among most rank and file players about that?

PAT HURST: I can only tell you about the feelings I have. I don't know about everybody else.

I wish that she would support the LPGA Tour a little bit more. It would definitely help us as a Tour. But right now she's doing what she wants to do and you got to respect her for that.

PAM WARNER: Any other questions? Thank you, Pat.

PAT HURST: Thank you.

End of FastScripts.

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