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SYBASE CLASSIC PRESENTED BY SHOPRITE

May 20, 2007

Lorena Ochoa

CLIFTON, NEW JERSEY

PAM WARNER: Lorena, thank you for joining us today, and congratulations on defending your title at the Sybase Classic Presented by ShopRite. It's your 11th career victory, second this season, just talk about how excited you are right now.
LORENA OCHOA: Thank you. Hello. Yes, it was a great day. I don't know, I had a feeling this morning, I woke up and I was feeling really good, ready to go and very excited to start playing. I think the key was to get a good start and make a few birdies on the front and you get a good rhythm for the back.
So, you know, it was a great day. It's always good to get that first win with your name being up there No. 1 and better that I'm going home on Tuesday to celebrate with my family.
PAM WARNER: Can we go over your scorecard?
LORENA OCHOA: Birdie on the fifth hole. I hit the green in two with a 5-wood, 210 yards. I put the ball just in the middle of the green maybe 25 feet, two putts for birdie.
Then I make birdie on the 8th hole. I hit it with a 9-iron a little bit long, maybe 15 feet and I made it.
I made birdie on No. 9. I hit the green with an 8-iron 135 yards just maybe 12 feet and made it.
I make birdie on the 11th hole. I hit the green in two, again with a 5-wood just a little bit short on the left side; a long putt, maybe 30, 35 feet and two putts for birdie.

Q. You became No. 1 in the world and you validated it today. Is winning a major the next step for you, you think?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, we have one tournament before the major. You know, I think it's all about just giving myself a chance and don't put any extra pressure and I'm just going to try to enjoy and try to win as I always do.
But I think I'm ready for a major. It's something that we all want to get. Hopefully it happens this year and not only one time, hopefully a few times. I'm going to try hard.

Q. You talked about waking up this morning and feeling good before you came to the course. How did you prepare for the day? Did you work out? What was your routine before you teed off at 12:30 today.
LORENA OCHOA: Well, I woke up, I went to the gym, exercised and run, and I went to church. I had a good, just relaxed, breakfast, I had plenty of time before I tee off.
I was feeling really good. You know, it was sunny, so it was also better. You know sometimes when you're driving to the golf course and it's raining and windy, it doesn't feel that good. But today was just a perfect morning and I really enjoyed my round.

Q. Watching you out there today, it seemed like you were enjoying yourself, even though it was closely contested and close all afternoon. Have you always gotten a lot of fun or enjoyment being in that situation?
LORENA OCHOA: Especially today I have a good friend that always comes to me and gives me a card every morning, and the word of the card was joy today. I saw her, and, you know, I love it, that's what I'm going to try to do today, just enjoy everything I do. That was our goal, me and my caddie and everything just flowed. It was a very -- just relaxed and fun day.

Q. You almost tore up the course this week; whereas, very few others had that kind of success. In fact, you doubled most everyone else. What was it about you and this course that got along so well?
LORENA OCHOA: You know, golf is funny. Sometimes winning by one and having all of the players behind is -- you never know how it's going to be and what is going to happen. And this week, it was just a week that I was ready to do it. I've been close a few times, a few second places and give myself chances. But after Orlando and then going to Morelia and getting that second place, I was kind of like ready to go.
And this week, just took the approach, we had a good practice, I felt great hitting my driver this week and really good with my putts. It was one of those weeks that just everything click, and you know, it shows in the score. I'm going to try to repeat that as many times as and just really to learn from this week and get going.

Q. Can you talk about the second shot you hit on 10, what club you had and how important that was to keep your round?
LORENA OCHOA: No. 10?

Q. Shot out of the trees.
LORENA OCHOA: The funny thing was, I was over the ball and I feel really comfortable, but at the same time I know I cannot miss this shot to the right. The tee shots I took on No. 10 and No. 18, just the whole week I didn't feel very comfortable over the ball, and it happens.
So I was over the ball thinking, you know, just make sure you play on the left side of the fairway and as soon as I hit it, it was a big pull. If I would miss, I wanted to be on the left side. So I said, okay, I know there is open window over there, so I just walk over there and say, I'm going to get the par instead of being mad that I missed the shot. Okay, I'm fine on the left side and I'm going to get this par. Again I think it's kind of like the positive attitude. I never got mad. I was very happy and I was smiling and it was easier to play that way.

Q. How far was the second shot, the front shot?
LORENA OCHOA: It was 135 yard to the front and 150 yards to the pin, and I was trying to land it like ten yards short, just hit a little punch-draw with a 6-iron.

Q. You have a habit of flipping your coin when you pick it up from behind, is that something you developed; does that keep you happy; does that make you enjoy the round?
LORENA OCHOA: I've been doing that, I don't know for how long but probably five years. It's like good momentum, like a good rhythm and it's working, so I'm not going to change it.

Q. Who gave you the coin?
LORENA OCHOA: Betsy King gave me one with just a prayer on the coin and unfortunately someone took it out of my bag, and so now I just use change from a Mexican peso, a coin of ten pesos actually, or a mark from my foundation.

Q. You seemed less than happy on No. 7 after the bunker shot came to rest, can you talk about how key getting up-and-down was at that point?
LORENA OCHOA: Very important. It was one of those mistakes that -- I have a funny story about when I was playing amateur golf. Every time I made a mistake, I would tell my coach, "This is why I don't want to turn professional, because this is an amateur mistake." And it was one of those amateur mistakes. You have all the green to work with and you just kind of hit over the green. But the bunker, I misjudged the sand. It was really hard and the club just bounced on me. So, you know, nothing you can do, but I made the par.

Q. The putt for birdie on No. 8, you seemed to be channeling a little bit of Tiger Woods, walking after it, pointing it, making it go in the hole. How big was that putt for the rest of your round to take the lead at that point before heading to the back nine?
LORENA OCHOA: Very important. I knew that, you know, I was 2-down. So I wanted to be even with her or maybe 1-up when I make the turn. So we're going and that gave me comfort, and that was a key because I made the turn going 2-up, which helps you to get a little more relaxed.

Q. When you play somebody who has never won, do you feel you have an advantage?
LORENA OCHOA: I mean, I don't want to say I have an advantage, but in some ways, I know my game, you know, better, and I know how I feel under pressure and when I'm nervous and when I have adrenaline. So I could have an advantage in that way, you know, knowing myself a little bit better.
So I really liked my round today because I didn't make any bogeys and I gave myself a lot of birdie opportunities. I was playing smart golf and those are the rounds you want to have on Sunday. So I just want to really learn from today and repeat myself, you know, in the next few tournaments.

Q. Have you always been so solid on those 4- and 5-foot putts? It seems like you never miss them?
LORENA OCHOA: I did last week, but I forgot. (Laughing).
Yes, I believe I'm solid even though sometimes you get a bad break or you miss-read or you miss some of them and you have to believe in yourself. It's something I've been working on a lot. I saw from last year, 2006 season to this year, the one thing I could improve, and I have a lot of room to improve is my putting. I work a lot on my short game and on my putts at home, so it's good to see that the results are going, and every time, I feel more comfortable with it.

Q. Do you have a certain routine on those short ones that you practice?
LORENA OCHOA: Same, same routine.
PAM WARNER: Thank you.
LORENA OCHOA: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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