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KRAFT NABISCO CHAMPIONSHIP

April 1, 2008

Morgan Pressel

RANCHO MIRAGE, CALIFORNIA

ASHLEY CUSHMAN: Welcome back to Mission Hills. You're the defending Kraft Nabisco Champion. Can you just talk about what it feels like to be back here and your emotions this week when you walked back into the club?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I'm excited. I'm always excited to come back here, even before I won. It's been a great place. I've played here, I got through the first round of Q-School here and played well over on the Palmer Course, so that's always been a special place.
And walking down 18, actually two weeks ago when I came back for Media Day, it was pretty cool to see my name up on the wall. So it's been a whirlwind week so far for sure.

Q. Just talk about the state of your game here, and have you ever defended a title, and is it different than coming back to a tournament where you have not won before?
MORGAN PRESSEL: My game is okay. I've been working on it. I think I've played pretty well the past couple of days. I got a little sick last week and didn't play so well, but hopefully this week I'll play a bit better; actually, a lot better.
You know, those things happen, and you've got to move on. And this week, I'm excited to defend for the first time, and hopefully I can be successful.

Q. Has it made it tougher?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Has it made it tougher? I don't know if it makes it tougher, but it's more exciting because I have jumped in that lake last year and I want to do it again; and I've tasted it and I know what it's like. I know that I can play well on this golf course, so from that sense, I just hope to really give it a good shot this week.

Q. Not sure how superstition you are, will you try to do anything the same as last year; are you staying with the same people or any of your warm-up routines?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I don't even remember what I did a year ago. (Laughing).
You know, I guess the one thing I guess I always come out a little early to get extra practice and that's helped me, so I did that again this year.
You know, I just try to be on top of my game, try and peak at the right time. In terms of routine, I'm not superstitious, and I don't even remember what I did. I probably go through pretty much the same routine.

Q. Would you tell us about the first time you played golf and how you liked the game, and would you regard yourself now as a role model for younger girls?
MORGAN PRESSEL: The first time I played golf, I don't really remember the first time I played golf, but I remember my grandfather took me out and I was at St. Andrews. That's about all I remember really. It was when I first moved to Boca and I continued to play and Grandpa told me to stop playing tennis and continue playing golf, and it was a good move.
I remember when I was young and I looked up to so many of the girls that are out here, and it's scary to think that there are girls out there that are looking up to me and the younger girls on Tour. We're professionals out here, and you have to be a role model for these young girls to look up to you, and I think that's very important.

Q. You did very well at the press conference, it was a good piece of journalism, and the question is about that, and tennis as well. It has been a long tradition in your family, how often do you go to tennis events, and do you think sometimes about journalism, as well?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I don't go to tennis events's very often. I've been to a couple. I've seen my uncle play a few times and a couple weeks ago when I went which was a lot of fun. But we don't really have a lot of time to go and enjoy things like tennis events and any other sporting events or events in general. We're pretty busy, and I've got stuff of my own.
I mean, you know, I had a lot of fun a couple weeks ago out at Indian Wells, but -- what was the other part?

Q. Do you ever think about journalism?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I don't think so. English was not my strong suit in school, so I'm going to stay with that.

Q. Has your game progressed since you won last year?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I think I've gained more experience, and I think that a lot goes into winning in terms of playing well and being lucky and putting everything together.
And I think my game has gotten better, but I think a lot of the other girls have gotten better, too. You've just got to keep working hard and waiting for that moment where it all comes together.

Q. Can you detail what you've been doing in your putting?
MORGAN PRESSEL: We've worked a little bit on my putting in terms of -- I changed putters, and I'm just really working on starting the ball on my line. That's really key, getting putts to go in the hole. That's a big deal.

Q. What are you working on?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Just little things, really working on getting my left harm, my left hand going through the target more and things like that, just some simple key thoughts.

Q. How often have you seen him --
MORGAN PRESSEL: I've just seen him a couple of times --

Q. When did you start, this year?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Around January, yes.

Q. As a father who once took an 8-year-old golfing and seeing about a hundred whiffs, when you went golfing at eight, were you able to hit the ball?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I think so. Was I? There you go, there it is.

Q. Did you just naturally know what to do? Obviously you had a lot of training, but when you first started playing, how much was natural?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Probably most of it because I had never played before. But I don't know, I just probably went out there and watched my grandpa's great swing and just copied him.

Q. And you talking about getting older; looking at the girls coming up behind you, is that an example of how much younger players are?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Well, definitely. It's certainly gotten a lot younger in the last few years, and I think that it will it be to be a young game -- kind of like what happened with women's tennis. I think that in the next few years, we can see great things out of the LPGA Tour, not that we haven't already, but just that I think we'll continue to see great things.

Q. You talked about how this golf course is the kind of condition that you would like, high rough, fast greens. What is it about that that works for your game?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Well, the rough is not quite high enough yet. I was out there the other day thinking, "Grow, please grow!"
Especially on a golf course like this, I don't hit the ball very long, but I tend to keep it in play, and that's very important in majors, especially events like this and the Women's Open where they do grow the rough.
And most of the time, especially on this golf course in the last couple of years, if you hit it in the rough, you're almost guaranteed a bogey just because of how difficult it is. And same thing with the Women's Open. There are times when you've just got to take a wedge and chip it out. But it's not quite there yet, so maybe in the next couple of days.

Q. They have changed every bunker on the golf course in some way, shape or form and added one; which is more noticeable, the new bunker or the expanded old bunkers?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Repeat that?

Q. You've got a new bunker on 11 and they changed all the other ones. Which one is more important? In your point of view or more impactful, the 11th?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I don't think the bunker on 11 is going to really come into play that much, at least not for me. If I hit in that bunker, I've hit a really bad wedge. (Laughing).

Q. But the other bunkers?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Yeah, they have made them bigger. They have made them a bit, not quite as steep. Some of them are maybe a little bit easier to get out of.
Take, for example, the bunker left of 12 fairway is much less penal than it has been in the past where it was more of a pot bunker before; it's now more of a gradual slope, and there are quite a few of those. There are a few left lips which makes the bunkers a little bit easier to get out of, but that being said, the sand is new and it's very heavy. That just comes with new bunkers. So the sand is more difficult than it was, but the bunkers in general are probably a bit easier.

Q. Most players wait a long time before they can crack through and win a major championship. Do you ever sit back and think, "Boy, am I glad I got that over with early"?
MORGAN PRESSEL: I've never really thought about that but Cristie said that to me. She said: "You killed them both in the beginning, you won and won a major at the same time, made it easy." I never really thought about that. But it is something where players put a lot of pressure on themselves after they have won quite a few times to win a major, and now I'm looking for No. 2.

Q. You just mentioned pressure. Is it more difficult for you now to play tournaments like this, because people expect you will win?
MORGAN PRESSEL: Well, I expect a lot out of myself. I put pressure on myself and try not to pay attention to what other people think or how other people expect me to perform, so that's something that I worry about myself, not really try to pay attention to other people, especially the media. (Laughter).
ASHLEY CUSHMAN: Thanks, Morgan. Good luck this week.

End of FastScripts

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