THE SOLHEIM CUP

September 16, 1998

Pia Nilsson

PIA NILLSON: It's fun, really busy. I was in Seattle last week for the LPGA event and that felt good because 8 out of 12 players were there. So already started at that time. So I feel the team is very, very excited and yesterday it felt like it was a little stressed. Everything was new. We didn't know where things were and today it has settled down quite a bit. I'm glad I spent a lot of time thinking and getting organized because when you get to it, things keeps happening the whole time, it feels good.

KIRSTEN SEABORG: Were you in Seattle last week?

PIA NILLSON: I like it because they're all very enthusiastic about playing THE SOLHEIM CUP. They like the whole idea of it and they like the format of the match and this -- I want to call it friendly rivalry, but just having this -- the 12 players getting to work to go for a week. So the whole match and the setup and being together and playing and have fun and the camaraderie is important, too. But the challenge of the match and the different formats makes it to be a very special week of their lives, definitely.

PIA NILLSON: In Sweden, we call it "mangkamp". It's something we -- something that I usually do a lot when we have training camps and things in Sweden. Every day we have a couple of different contests and they don't usually know what it is. So most of them are golf-related, but some might not be, and some are two players on each team -- and Thursday night we have the finales and I put together a quiz for them. The purpose is because it's a fun thing and it helps build the team spirit and many of the disciplines -- or whatever you call it -- has some meaning to maybe a few things that we want them to practice.

PIA NILLSON: That's one of them. But personal discipline, I feel, is very important if you're going to be good in this game, to be able to take responsibility for yourself and your golf game. It's definitely one factor I see in many of the great players.

PIA NILSSON: No.

PIA NILLSON: They don't know all of them. I can give you the quiz after the players have got them.

PIA NILLSON: Yeah, that's tomorrow night. We set it up, but I got help to do it from my two friends and colleagues, Charlotta and Teresa. They decide and then they check with me if I think it's okay. But the quiz, I put together.

PIA NILLSON: Yeah. And some of the things the caddies can help out, too.

PIA NILLSON: She sneaked away on me. She said, Pia, I've been practicing for two days and I'm not used to this. She is fine. I want to do some things for the teams, but I think individuals -- it's very important that all of them get to feel comfortable and she really -- it was important for her to get to do that, too. We're teasing each other about it.

PIA NILLSON: That's right. That's one of the challenges, I feel, because they're so different in their personalties and come from different countries. So finding that mixture is what's important for the team together and then still them being comfortable with what they need.

PIA NILLSON: Yeah. They'll see.

PIA NILLSON: Yeah. It will be -- tomorrow night, we'll have our player and caddie dinner, so I'll tell you the next day.

PIA NILLSON: Well, we'll see. What we've done -- if she is not well up to the opening ceremony, we can replace her with an alternate. So I talked to Teresa and we're going to see tomorrow morning how she is doing. But we are sending Maria here tonight just in case Trish, the thing in the neck, gets worse.

KIRSTEN SEABORG: Have you talked to Maria yet?

PIA NILLSON: Yeah.

PIA NILLSON: She has been to massage and heat treatment and all kinds of different things, but she has got different messages from different people and that's making it a little complicated. She is going tonight to a chiropractor and they feel confident she is going to be okay by tomorrow so she can practice and play a little bit and, at the same time, we don't know until tomorrow comes. We're doing what we can.

PIA NILLSON: That's when we started feeling it and then, of course, we don't know where it originated. That's when it started.

PIA NILLSON: That was the first night here. Monday night.

PIA NILLSON: Well, it's -- it's extremely -- extremely proud to be the captain of THE SOLHEIM CUP because I just like this competition and just to be able to be the captain on these great players for the whole week and the communication I've had with them way before that is very, very special. Of course, the Swedes I know well from before, but it's still different when we have this team event and then getting to know the players. Marie-Laure from -- from France and the players from Britain are very, very special to me. So it means a lot to me personally and, coach wise, it's a new challenge for me because it's so different -- it's coaching in a way, but it's so different to what I do at home. I like new challenges like that.

PIA NILLSON: Well, I feel a lot for them, I like them so much. I'm very happy I've been able to follow some SOLHEIM CUP matches to know what's going on and what happens out there. I think that's extremely important. Even though I haven't played THE SOLHEIM CUP and I've been competing, it's always a help. So I think -- by communication and talking to them that I can listen to know what they're feeling and thinking and then gather that from other players and then I put together and make decisions out of it from what they say and things I believe myself.

PIA NILLSON: No, I love it. I love to play the game, but coaching and things that I do, it's very close to my heart.

PIA NILLSON: Yes, definitely. Because I feel we have 12 very strong, good players and the players we have who have been at the top of our team for a long time, they have been getting even better. So I feel, for us, it's definitely the best team we've had.

PIA NILLSON: Well, I mentioned to you before, she knows she is the alternate. I told her last week, it's good you're in Phoenix and I have the numbers. Then I left the message with the voice mail last night and then I talked to her this morning. But she said -- she is just now moving into a new apartment in Phoenix, so she was busy buying a few furnitures. I think I disrupted her schedule for the week, but she was happy to come and she said that would be good for the team, she will change her plans and she'll come. And, as I told Trish, too, because I think just doing this, that's going to make more likely that Trish gets well, too. (Laughs).

PIA NILLSON: Everything. No. Of course, from the past SOLHEIM cups, our team hasn't been playing as well on Sundays, so that's definitely one area we want to do something different this year and, then, at the same time, you can't have all the focus there. We need to do things good other days. But definitely that's something we all feel we want to do better at.

PIA NILLSON: Yeah.

PIA NILLSON: It's affected the need to have another alternate plan.

PIA NILLSON: No. I have a strong idea of it, but I like my final things to be a little more intuitive to the sense of the last couple of days. But I know roughly what it's going to be like, but then there can be a few different alternate decisions from that.

PIA NILLSON: I've been able to do everything normally, just extra work. I would say the last two weeks I've been able to delegate all the head coach jobs. Before that, I've been able to do it.

PIA NILLSON: We have, I think, about 200 in our junior, amateur and professional program. Somewhere around there. Marika, do you know?

PIA NILLSON: No, I heard about that. I talked to someone. And what I'm going to do when I finish this head coaching at the end of this year -- I haven't decided totally, but my preference is I'm going to keep part of it with the Golf Federation and keep a few of the things now and I have helped out the Olympic Sports that helps different teams and coaches, so I've been talking to them and I would like to do some kind of projects with them, but we haven't decided anything. So what it will look like for next year, it's not clear for me.

PIA NILLSON: As head coach for the Total Program, my contract is up at the end of October. After that, I'm going to change working. So part of it is going to keep on being coaching and try and develop what we do in Sweden, but I'm going to try to free up other things as well.

PIA NILLSON: Like in Sweden, all the different sports and head coaches, we gather and have education together and I sometimes speak in a lecture to other head coaches about things we do and that's something that I will consider continuing to do to some -- that's one of the strengths of our program, I feel. We get a lot of input on what happens not only in golf, but other sports as well.

PIA NILLSON: Yeah, probably about 30 of them.

PIA NILLSON: Not all, but 30.

PIA NILLSON: American football? No. (Laughs). I have to think about that one.

It's been a little spread out.

PIA NILLSON: I haven't had time to do any long-term things with them, but I've done some just more shorter seminars and lectures when we've been all getting together.

PIA NILLSON: Well, it is one possibility and I still don't know it. But I feel first, offhand, I think, for looking at how they play and who to pair together to have the games that matches what I want. It wouldn't be the first choice. But if it would end up, this would be the best pairing for the match as a total, I could do it.

PIA NILLSON: No.

PIA NILLSON: I've talked a little bit off and on all the time and usually the caddies that caddie for our Swedish players, I always communicate with, and they're part of the team working with the players. But through the year and last week and then when we got here Monday, I had a meeting with the players before dinner, then I had a meeting only with the caddies, me and the caddies, after dinner. We talked about the golf for the week and what we need to focus on to get there and I got input from them and also ones that talk to the caddie group with the expectations they have of each other and of me to make sure we can do a good job together this week.

PIA NILLSON: Yes.

PIA NILLSON: It's at Pia's house.

PIA NILLSON: I'm not cooking, though. Our chef for the week will be cooking.

KIRSTEN SEABORG: Any more questions for Pia?

PIA NILLSON: We talked about it and the different pairs that might be together, we checked that, and, actually, in the past, we forgot to think about that. It could make it a little difficult. We've talked through it with the players that might play together, they worked out that the balls would match, it wouldn't be a totally different ball that would make the game go funny or something. It's one of the considerations to think about.

PIA NILLSON: Usually, I sleep really well because, Monday, it was so much coming here. But last night, I put my head on the pillow and I don't remember anything until the alarm went off. I think it might be different, but I'm usually a good sleeper. But at the same type, the amount of hours is less because there is much to do.

PIA NILLSON: Definitely. But sometimes it's hard to comprehend that I'm here. But, yeah, it is. It's just fantastic to get to be in the players and a lot of challenges, too. It's not like I'm just cruising, it's not easy. A lot of challenges, but I like that.

PIA NILLSON: Yeah, they like it a lot. They think it's absolutely wonderful to play there and the things we talked about, I think it's important to practice extra to get the feel for the greens and run greens here. They've all taken time to do that. So I feel they are adapting well.

PIA NILLSON: No. I like the other format because the foursomes play so much faster, too, so I think it's a nicer way to start the morning.

PIA NILLSON: Well, by talking to them and bringing it up, we all have the same goal this week, to win the Cup for Europe and then, from there, we talk about, decided on a few things that we all feel is important for us to be there. So that's by communicating and we make it clear for each other what all of us want to do this week so we can work together even though we're very different as people. So, for me, it's just taking time and talking about it and deciding on a few things and then -- me and the players and caddies that we keep with each other all week. If I sense it's going wrong somewhere, I catch that early and try and solve it before it's a problem.

PIA NILLSON: Definitely, it was very important for me that all the players felt that even though I'm from Sweden and I'm the captain that all 12 of them are equally important. So I wanted to make that point to talk to them a lot about that. Also, I did write a letter to them and just told them that -- because, if I'm with the Swede, of course we speak Swedish, but I want to make sure that if someone else is in the vicinity that we all speak English because, even though we don't talk about people, it doesn't feel good not to understand what's going on. So English is the official language and the only time we can speak Swedish is if they're not around us.

PIA NILLSON: Yes.

PIA NILLSON: Yes (Laughs).

PIA NILLSON: Yes, they can. As long as I'm not around. (Laughs).

PIA NILLSON: I didn't want to wash my hand for the whole week. Very special to me. Definitely one of the players I've looked up to a lot and just getting to talk to him a little about the and get to go say hello to him and Barbara. It's very special. I'll take good care of those photos.

PIA NILLSON: I'm looking for her to enjoy the week, feel comfortable, that she can be herself and play her game and then I think she is going to be very helpful for us on the team. But I want her to be exactly who she is and play the aggressive game that she has in her.

PIA NILLSON: I mean, she is a very good -- she hits the ball a long ways and loves challenges. She really likes challenges, she likes the big competitions and all that and she is a player who can make many birdies and I feel a very good match to the team we have.

KIRSTEN SEABORG: Anything else? Thank you.