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THE SOLHEIM CUP

September 12, 2007

HALMSTAD, SWEDEN

BETHAN CUTLER: I'd like to introduce Helen Alfredsson and Marie-Laure de Lorenzi, European captain and the European assistant captain.
Thank you both for coming in. Can you just start by saying how things have been going so far this week and what the atmosphere is like in the European camp.
HELEN ALFREDSSON: Good. Good.
BETHAN CUTLER: Okay. Can we take some questions, please? Now is your chance.

Q. Helen, good and good. That's good.
HELEN ALFREDSSON: That's good, isn't it?

Q. We were asking Annika, you know, what she thought she would be available for this week and --
HELEN ALFREDSSON: What she would what?

Q. How many matches she would be available for this week. Have you discussed how you are going to go about making that decision, given her health and things like that?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: Well, mine obviously everyday will tell the story, and obviously we talk closely about how she feels and all that. I don't think it's any different -- obviously we know the circumstances, but I think she feels in a very good shape right now. Obviously she played really well in Springfield. I was watching her from Europe, and it looked the way it used to so, you know, as much as we feel comfortable pairing her together. I have no idea today what the pairing is going to be.
I have a little bit, but I'm not going to tell you.

Q. Helen, now that the week has arrived, how is your status as captain been so far? Is it what you expected it would be? Have the players reacted the way they would to your ideas?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: Yeah. It's very hard to say anything to them because they think I'm a total goof ball. When I'm trying to be serious they just go, "Oh, yeah, right." It's been hard with that, but, you know, overall I think it's fun because we've been good friends for a long time and it's a very good group of girls. It's very nice to see that the rookies get along well with, you know, people that have been on Tour for a long time, and obviously Annika has been great in the group. She played with some of the rookies today, which is fabulous.
You know, I think everybody is bringing a very nice spirit to the team, and, you know, they know I'm a little bit goofy, and at least they know me that way. I get away with being me, which is nice.

Q. Helen, could you just sum up what you think your chances are at this stage going into the contest?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: Well, of course I think it's good. You know, have you not seen my team? No. You know, I tell you, it's really fun to be on this side of the Solheim Cup and not being a player but to follow the team, and I think -- they are really playing so well, very, very steady golf, and I was really excited even before Marie-Laure and I announced the team. Seeing that everybody came in with a pretty solid game, which is nice. I think obviously I believe that our chances are strong. Huge.

Q. Also the course is very long and --
HELEN ALFREDSSON: We don't think so. Does the American think so really? Well. We chip around.

Q. Was that part of the thinking, you know?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: Well, obviously it's a little strategy. I made it long because you can't put it longer. You can always make it shorter. My team is pretty comfortable out there. They think the course is playing well, and so that's all I really care about, to be honest. But I guess it's on the longer side for being a woman's golf course.

Q. You said Annika was in good shape. What do you think about the three other Swedish players?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: Obviously Mimi is continuing playing very, very well. The Swedish players are playing superb. Linda is, like I said before you went to the press conference, she's a very good player. I love her spirit. I love the way she plays. She has a game that can be adjusted to anything. She's got a lot of different shots in her bag, which is nice, especially on the course like this and in match play.
Sophie has finally got her shoes today, so that really helped that. It's nice, just take a pair of shoes to hit the ball really well.
So, no. You know what? The four Swedes are hanging in there very well.

Q. Helen, can you talk about what Laura brings to the Solheim Cup? This is her tenth one. Can you talk about the impact she makes for you?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: If she's in a good mood, she brings a lot. Now that's -- trying to keep her in a good mood. Obviously a lot of the younger ones respect her very much. I said to her yesterday, "I know it's your way or the highway. We're trying to make it your way so we don't all end up on the highway" (laughter.)
I've known her for so many years, and she knows she can't pull any of those tricks with me. I've seen her in some bad conditions together in town so, you know, I have that on her. And she doesn't behave, you know, she knows that I'm going to let a few out.

Q. Can you elaborate a little bit on the shoes, what you were referring to with Sophie?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: She got a big pain on her feet with the shoes she had. She told me she lost her keys in the car and the shoes are in the car. I had to find somebody that had a pretty, you know, suspicious past that can burglarize the car, which we find here which is not -- Halmstad provides all kinds of sort of people. We got the shoes, and now she's happy. Very easily sorted (laughter).

Q. Somebody broke into the car?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: Yeah. They opened it because the keys were nowhere to be found. So obviously that's the only way you can take the shoes out. Well, you do what you got to do, you know. A woman has got to do what a woman got to do.

Q. Question for the vice captain now. Helen is the goof ball. What's your role?
HELEN ALFREDSSON: The goofier ball.
MARIE-LAURE DE LORENZI: I don't know. I'm just like I know Helen for almost 30 years, so I know when she's goofy or not, when it's really serious or not. And I am the one maybe just to spy a little bit and, you know, also because I know most of the rookies and I follow them this year and I know all the oldest players and I just screw around with everybody and I know quite well Alfie. So I know exactly, you know, what kind of fish she is.
BETHAN CUTLER: Any more questions? Okay. Good. Thank you very much. Good luck.

End of FastScripts

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