LPGA CORNING CLASSIC

May 24, 2002

Beth Daniel

DANA von LOUDA: I'm glad you're here.

Q. All right, Beth. Let's start with your score card, please.

BETH DANIEL: You want me to start with one or 10?

DANA von LOUDA: Whichever is easiest.

BETH DANIEL: I started on the 10th hole, but we'll start with one because that was the better nine. Birdie number two, I hit a 6-iron in, about nine feet from the hole; and just missed that putt for eagle. So I made birdie there. Hit 4-iron on No. 3 to four feet. Made that for birdie. I pitched on five to about seven feet, made that for birdie. Seven, I hit 6-iron to 15 feet, made that for birdie. Eight, I hit a 9-iron, it spun back down the hill, and I had about a 35-footer and made it for birdie. And No. nine was the never-ending hole that -- I hit 3-iron off that tee, and it caught that tree on the right, and it kicked it about 60 yards right. Then I tried to just take a sandwich and hit it over the trees, just to go straight back left out on the fairway. Caught the top of the tree, and it kicked it back 60 yards, again. And then I punched a shot low, under the trees this time, to pin-high left in the rough. And pitched up about 10 feet, and made that for bogey. So it could have been a really bad ending, but it ended up just semi-bad. No. 10, I made bogey, also. That was my first hole of the day. I hit a very poor wedge. Left it above the hole about 40 feet, and 3-putted. And everything else was pars, except for No. 17, where -- I'm trying to think of what I hit in there. Not 17 -- yeah, 17. I hit a little 8-iron to about 20 feet, and made that for birdie. So six birdies, two bogeys.

Q. Are you pleased with that?

BETH DANIEL: Yeah, I mean I'm pleased in some respects. The first two days, I feel like I putted the ball very well. Even putts that I haven't made, I feel like I've been right around the hole. So I'm real happy with that. I'm not happy with how I've hit my irons. Normally, my iron play is the best part of my game, and it has by far been the weakest, my first two rounds. But to be two shots out of the lead, after considering this is only my sixth event of this year, I've got to be pretty happy about that.

Q. Beth, a lot of players, did really well on the front nine today. Although most of them did it when the weather was still fairly decent. You managed to turn it around pretty good, other than on that ninth hole, managed to do very well. And the wind and rain, that had to be kind of gratifying for you, having a good round, despite the fact the weather was going downhill.

BETH DANIEL: Well, yeah. I was kind of happy to kind of pull it together on the front nine, which was my back nine. I shot 32 on the front nine yesterday, as well. So I'm eight under on the front nine, and one over on the back nine. So I think I need to improve a little bit on the back nine. But, you know, you look at the front nine. You've got No. 2 and you've got No. 5. They're both are reachable par-5s. So I kind of look at the front side as the par-34, so to speak so, you know, if those two par 5s are reachable; and I think that has a lot to do with why the scores are a little bit lower on that nine.

Q. When is the last time you played here at Corning?

BETH DANIEL: I think it was '95.

Q. '95?

BETH DANIEL: Yeah. Could be. You know, everybody has been telling me that '95 was my last year that I played here. And I said, no, I think I've played here since then. So that could be right.

LAURA NEAL: '98.

BETH DANIEL: Thanks for bringing that up, Laura. Laura, I said earlier to Bob, I said, Rosie is always there. I'm either there or missing the cut, seems like.

Q. Maybe getting back down a little bit, you haven't been on this course a few years, for weather or whatever. Did it kind of come back to you right away, or were you still kind of familiar with it?

BETH DANIEL: Oh, sure. The course hasn't changed much. My caddie is a local. He knows this course very well. He plays it in the summer, some, when he's home. Woody knows the course very well. So he's been helpful too. You know, I have a pretty good memory for golf courses and things about golf courses; and I can come back after a few years, and it usually will come back to me pretty quickly.

Q. You know you were named after Beth Bauer -- or she was named after you I mean.

BETH DANIEL: Yes, I do know that. As a matter of fact, I'm quite proud of that.

Q. Yes, I bet you are.

Q. (Inaudible).

Q. When the weather does start to get bad like it did on your back nine there, do you just try to keep in what you've been doing, or do you play differently at all, or do you try to flank through it?

BETH DANIEL: You have to kind of keep doing what you're doing. And, fortunately, you have a caddie out there to help you, as far as keeping your clubs dry. I mean if we were on carts by ourselves, it would be disasterous because it would be hard to do everything. Like I can hold the umbrella, hand him the golf ball. That's where a caddie becomes very important, and they either become very helpful or very hurtful in those situations. Woody and I have been together quite a while; and he knows what exactly to do, when to take the umbrella, when to give it to me. He makes things very easy for me.

Q. Thank you very much.

BETH DANIEL: Thank you.

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