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SYBASE CLASSIC PRESENTED BY SHOPRITE

May 18, 2008

Lorena Ochoa

CLIFTON, NEW JERSEY

ASHLEY CUSHMAN: Lorena, congratulations on your sixth victory of the 2008 Tour season. With your win today, the $300,000 payday, you also cross the $12 million mark in career earnings. You're the fastest to do that. Can you just kind of talk about this win, your three-peat here at the Sybase Classic?
LORENA OCHOA: Thank you. Hello, everybody.
It was a tough day, but I did it. I think that was what was important. It doesn't matter how you do it sometimes; you play really good, other players struggle, sometimes you just keep yourself in a good position. Today it was different; it was a different win, but I enjoyed it a lot. I felt a lot of adrenaline, a lot of pressure in the last two holes, and I liked that feeling.
More important that I gave myself a birdie chance on 18. Unfortunately I didn't make it.
But it was a great week. I think on and off with the tournament, the conditions, with the rain, I was able to play good, and I'm really happy and going home with a smile on my face.
ASHLEY CUSHMAN: Let's go over your scorecard, then we'll take questions, starting with your birdie on the 2nd hole.
LORENA OCHOA: I hit a wedge 113 yards to about six feet and made it.
On the 5th hole, I hit it on in two with a 5-wood. I was about 200 yards, and I two-putted for birdie, maybe 20 feet.
Then on No. 9, I missed the fairway to the left and then I missed my second shot to the left rough. I got it up, but I had maybe 15 feet for par, and I missed that.
Then birdied 11, I hit a 5-wood, 205 yards to the pin, just a little bit long, maybe about the same, 20, 25 feet, and I two-putted for birdie.
I bogeyed 17, hit it to the right with a 5-iron just short in the right bunker and didn't make up-and-down. I got out maybe six, seven feet, and I missed that for par.

Q. Can you just go through that second shot on 18? You're in between those trees. What are you thinking? Were you just trying to get it out there or trying to gamble and go for the whole thing?
LORENA OCHOA: Sorry, I didn't understand the question.

Q. Were you just hoping to get it out there or were you hoping to get it as close to the pin as you could, to the green?
LORENA OCHOA: I wanted to get it all the way up there and put it close. I had a chance to hit it just left of the tree and maybe give myself like 170 yards for my third shot, and I thought it was too far. I decided just to take a little more risk and go to the right side. It was a very big opening, and I hit just a low 4-iron that ended up in a perfect position.

Q. Would you talk about 13 a little bit, how important that putt was and what you hit on every shot from tee to green?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, I hit first a hybrid club, the 7-wood. I hit it to the right in the rough. I got a pretty bad break there, had just a horrible lie, deep rough. I tried to punch out, again, a 7-wood, just came a little bit to the left, and it was on the left side in the rough, 68 yards to the hole. I hit a sand wedge a little bit long, maybe 15 feet, and I made that for par.
I think that was a key hole, really helped me just to stay on the lead and to keep myself calm, so I want to say that was the most important hole on the back nine.

Q. You mentioned a few minutes ago that coming down the last two holes you liked the feeling of pressure. I'd like you to talk a little bit more about that, what you mean by that. Why do you like that pressure and how do you manage that pressure?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, I think as professionals we are here to feel that, just to get excitement and get the feel of trying to win a tournament, being close, on the lead, but so many players were behind me. I think there were like five or six players just right there at 8- and 9-under, so it was a difficult situation. I love that. I love the feeling of adrenaline and just trying to be good and be smart and win at the end. So it's just a great feeling. That's why it keeps me motivated to keep doing it, and I love to win.

Q. I think that's very unusual; you're able to kind of grab the excitement, not that have much difficulty with it. Where does that come from, that ability? Because I think that's a fairly rare ability.
LORENA OCHOA: Well, I think it comes just through all the years that I've been playing, you know? I think it's something natural that I'm an aggressive player and I'm not afraid. I just go at it and try to play aggressively. But at the same time, I've been learning so much in the last few years that it makes me the player that I am today. It's a learning experience, and now I'm better in tough situations.

Q. What was your thought process after Sophie put her approach shot pretty close on 18? I know your angle forced you to take on that bunker a little bit. What were you thinking, and what was your distance there and what did you hit?
LORENA OCHOA: I hit a 50-degree wedge. I had 85 yards. I mean, she didn't put it that tight. She hit it good but then it came back. That's why I changed my club. I was going to hit a 56-degree and I decided to hit a 50-degree so I didn't have as much spin on it and I could land it a little bit farther past the pin.
I was fine. I've been practicing a lot my short game; actually this week and on Tuesday and Wednesday all I did on the range was put out different targets, 100, 110, 120, and hit them a long time. I thought, I'm fine, I've practiced this before and I'm ready to do it.

Q. I think by my count you had something like ten birdie putts of 20 feet or less that you didn't make. I mean, how do you stay composed and not break the putter and things like that?
LORENA OCHOA: I think that's why today feels a little bit weird, because I just missed so many putts, and there was a couple of them that maybe I misread, but some of them I hit pretty good.
I mean, 17 was the only putt that I really -- it never had a chance to go in the hole. But the rest of them were close, good speed, good break, and sometimes they just don't go in. I'm glad I'm taking a week off so I can be rested and fresh when I start playing in South Carolina.

Q. You ended up winning by a stroke, but did you realize throughout the course of the round how many people were coming so close to you?
LORENA OCHOA: Yes. Me and Dave, we talked about it. Someone is going to shoot low. I mean, the conditions are perfect. It's wet, the greens are soft, there's not much wind, and we thought that somebody would really shoot low. We were trying just not to think about it, just play our own game and make four or five birdies on the back and take care of it. It was hard, I just couldn't make birdies.
I see the scoreboard, and so many players were right there at 8- and 9-under. In a way it was tough, because it was not just one player, it was so many. But I was also feeling comfortable that the player was just in the group in front of me, or Sophie was playing with me, so I could see what was happening. I like that.

Q. Is it the same satisfaction when you win by eight shots, or is it different? Is this more satisfying because it's a grind? How do you weigh it? Or is it the same, a win is a win?
LORENA OCHOA: It's just different -- Dave told me on the 18th after I made that putt, "I really like when you win by five." It's a little bit easier when you're walking up that 18th fairway; I guess you can enjoy a little bit more the last walk, instead of being nervous. I'm home I'm sure they enjoy more when I win by five.

Q. You had such a great streak and then you lost a little momentum and had the two kind of disappointing weeks. How important was it to bounce back and get more or less back on the horse and get a win right now?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, I think I'm doing okay. I'm really happy that I won. We're just pretty much starting in the middle of the year, as you can say -- no, not even. And I've already won six tournaments. I'm feeling good. I want to make this a very special season. I always thought that 2008 would be a great year the way I started, and I'm going to make sure I continue that. I'm going to go into every tournament 100 percent trying to win every week, and hopefully we can have just a great year and keep winning tournaments.

Q. Speaking of all your wins, I'm curious what you do with all your trophies. You've gotten quite a few the last few years. Where do you keep them?
LORENA OCHOA: This one my mom will put some flowers in (laughing).

Q. Do you have a room, a trophy room?
LORENA OCHOA: Yes, I'm sorry, I do. In the TV room we have all of the trophies, and then in another room in the house. But we have them all over the house. It is true that sometimes we put flowers in there, and some of them are under the bed.

Q. What's your reaction when Ashley tells you that you're the fastest to $12 million in winnings?
ASHLEY CUSHMAN: The fastest to $12 million in LPGA history.
LORENA OCHOA: What is my reaction? "Wow." Those things just happen. They come, and I've always tried to focus in my practice and in my goals and all of the things that come around. I feel I've been blessed and I'm very fortunate, and I don't take it for granted. We work really hard, and it's very special. You can say that very easily, but it took a lot of years of hard work, and I also -- this money that I'm sure -- I'm trying to help as much as I can and give back to the community, to my community, to my people in Mexico. The more I can win, the more I can help, so that's a great motivation to me.

Q. Just curious, was that the same trophy last year and the year before?
LORENA OCHOA: I don't think so. I saw the tournament picture from last year, and it was different.

Q. So I wondered if you had three of those vases what you would do.
LORENA OCHOA: No, it's different.

Q. I'm just wondering if that second shot on 18, if it helped already having a shot like that in your round when you had sort of a similar lie on 6 when you were hitting out of the trees. I mean, did that factor in at all, that you had done it successful the first time earlier and here you are again?
LORENA OCHOA: It helps, yes. I think it's -- it's just how you feel over the ball. You know, if you think, oh, it's risky, 50/50 that I make it, then you are never going to make it, and don't do that. But I was over the ball feeling, this is fine, I've done this thousands of times, and I feel good, and I swing, and I didn't even think about it and ended up in a good position.
When I get in trouble, Dave, my caddie, he always says, "Just think like if you are playing against Rafael," my coach back in Mexico, "and do the same." You don't really think too much, just go ahead and do it.

Q. I'm just curious, did you get to talk to Annika at all this week? I know you guys didn't play together in the same group, but did you talk to her at all about her decision?
LORENA OCHOA: Well, I just said congratulations for the week before in Kingsmill, and then I said that I heard that everything went well, that we will miss her. And then she came back and said thank you for the nice comments on the media, and I appreciate that very much. But I mean it; that's what I feel for her. That's never going to change. I admire her a lot and I wish her the best always.
ASHLEY CUSHMAN: Lorena, thanks for your time, and congratulations.

End of FastScripts

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