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HSBC WOMEN'S CHAMPIONS

March 1, 2008

Lorena Ochoa

TANAH MERAH, SINGAPORE

THE MODERATOR: Lorena, off to a nice lead, eight strokes heading into tomorrow's final round. Just talk about today's round.
LORENA OCHOA: Hello, everybody. I'm just happy that the day is over and that I'm still in the lead. It was a tough day today starting in the morning with some rain, and then I didn't feel good rhythm as I have the first two days. It was difficult for me out there. I was also, the feel of the greens I couldn't get used to. They were a little bit slower because of the rain obviously, and I couldn't get used to it, so I was hitting the long putts, and the second putts there was a lot of work left, you know? Very different from the first two rounds, but I still managed to score and that's what matters. I'm happy where I am and I'm excited to be here tomorrow.

Q. You say all that, and once again you've posted the best score of the day. I'm pretty sure 3-under is -- you had a tough day and you're still on the best player on the golf course.
LORENA OCHOA: Well, one of the things that I'm happy -- I got good up-and-downs and I was in the bunker a few times and then I put myself in good position on the greens. I was happy to see that. Even though I wasn't feeling the best I was able to shoot under par.

Q. Did you have a feeling that everyone was struggling today, that the scores were higher than they have been?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, I didn't pay attention to the other scores. You know, I was working too much.

Q. A lot of people think that you are very charming and good for the Tour and good for the game. I'm just wondering as the No. 1 player, do you feel a big responsibility to sort of reach out to people and put on sort of a good face for the Tour?
LORENA OCHOA: Thank you. I think, yes, I do have a big responsibility. I think we have all these fans to reach to try to make a good impact and to be a good image for others. That's what I'm trying to do, just to do things right and hopefully to motivate other girls or boys to play the game. As far as the LPGA, I'm very proud to be a member and I represent them, you know, everywhere I go.

Q. You've been like this even before you were No. 1. Is it very important for you, apart from just playing well, to go out and talk to people on the courses, in America, whatever? Is that very important to you, apart from just playing well and being a champion, is it important to you to how people see you as a human being?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, that's just who I am. I'm the same inside and outside the golf course, and I promise when I don't do it with joy I'm going to stop doing it. I'm just trying to enjoy everything I do, whether it's playing or outside the golf course. I'm very thankful to have what I have, and I always try to say thank you to all the volunteers because they give a lot of help. There are a lot of Mexicans in the United States, and I love to see them if I can have a chance because I feel a lot of support from them. You have to show a lot of respect so along the way you can get respect back, and that's what I try to do.

Q. If you gave 1,000 people your talent, 999 of them would fall in love with themselves; what they were doing would influence your personalities. Is it the people around you who keep you humble as you are, or is it just yourself?
LORENA OCHOA: No, no, people around me. I think No. 1 my family, my friends back home, and also I think I'm blessed to have what I have, and I always try to be very thankful. And home is very important to me. That's why every time I have a week off, I go home, just to be normal.

Q. Do you think that women's sport doesn't get the due that it deserves generally?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, more and more we want to improve, we want to make more the headlines. But I'm happy; I think we're international now. We have more sponsors and more fans. I'm happy to be where I am and to see all the improvements. I think we're doing pretty good.

Q. Do you find when you travel across the world, do you find that more people now recognise you in different parts of the world, where it may not have happened before? Are people more aware of women's golf and its champions?
LORENA OCHOA: I think so.

Q. I'm actually doing a separate story on all the guys who prepare the golf course at 5:00 o'clock in the morning, raking bunkers and whatever, and spending some time with them in the morning. I'm wondering what you think of the state of the golf course. Is it in good condition? Have they done a good job compared to the other courses you play on?
LORENA OCHOA: Fantastic job. It's something very important that sometimes we don't even see them. We don't have a chance to see them personally and say thank you for their hard work. But they do a fantastic job. Everything is great, from tee to green. Congratulations; I feel a great honour to play here.

Q. Could you tell us a bit about your caddie and how important he is to you?
LORENA OCHOA: Yes, very important. I think it's just very important to find the right guy for you. He sees what is it that you need to play better, which is personality, and also for him to understand my game and understand my reactions, when I get mad or when I'm happy. He is very balanced. I like him very much. He's very good under pressure. He's very professional, he works very hard, and he's not afraid -- he sets some high goals and he tries really hard to get them. We both agree in that. That's why we're working together as a team.

Q. Is it a foregone conclusion that you will win tomorrow with an eight-shot lead?
LORENA OCHOA: No, of course not. No, anything can happen. You can go to the 18th hole tomorrow and make the putt to win the tournament, but right now I'm going to go back to the hotel, do the same thing I did yesterday, come here tomorrow ready to have a good round, be very positive, but I need to be very focused on the game because just because I'm leading the tournament and way ahead, I try to think what I'm way behind. I try not to change anything because it's not done yet.

Q. But do you think there's less pressure with an eight-point lead?
LORENA OCHOA: Yes, but you know, I'm going to try to win even by more. I think it's always important that you try hard. So tomorrow I'm going to try hard to make more birdies.

Q. You're playing with Annika and Paula tomorrow, the two players who won the first two tournaments. Can you talk about that?
LORENA OCHOA: I think it's always great to play with Annika and Paula in group. I enjoyed my round, so I'm very excited about my playing partners, yes.
THE MODERATOR: Thanks a lot, Lorena.

End of FastScripts

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