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U.S. WOMEN'S AMATEUR PUBLIC LINKS CHAMPIONSHIP

June 21, 2008

Tiffany Joh

ERIN, WISCONSIN

THE MODERATOR: I'd like to welcome Tiffany Joh. Again, the 2008 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links champion. Only the fifth time we've had a multiple winner in this championship. Quick thoughts about being in that select group of five?
TIFFANY JOH: Honestly, I didn't think it was even going to happen. The first 18 holes -- well, actually the first 27 holes weren't very beautiful, but got a couple lucky breaks in the end and was able to pull it out.
THE MODERATOR: Talk about the last few holes. You were down, and you squared it. Then you took the lead with that clutch birdie on 15, and then she gave you a gift on 16 to really give you the momentum.
TIFFANY JOH: Honestly, the thing that was going through my mind was the final round at last year's U.S. Amateur when Maria Jose won. I actually talked to Maria last night. She was basically telling me what was going through her head, and she was just telling me that no matter how down I get I should never give up. She was right. It really helped in the end.

Q. After the 7th hole and the afternoon round which you lost, you sort of took a walk through the weeds to get to the 8th tee. Were you trying to get away from people to sort of compose yourself or was it the crowd?
TIFFANY JOH: Well, the entire day -- it's kind of hard for me to walk next to people because I'm kind of awkward. But yeah, that was kind of to get away from the crowd. Before that I had been trying to just kind of like run past the spectators. I was getting a little tired because that was my second round in however many days.

Q. Did it help that you were down, perhaps?
TIFFANY JOH: I think it did. I'm not going to lie. I might have gotten a little cut up from some of the weeds out there, but well worth it.

Q. When you were outside you talked about dedicating this victory to your roommate?
TIFFANY JOH: To my roommate's father, yeah. He was a really big golfer. I'd only met him once or twice. But every time I met him -- I don't know if it was just because I was a golfer, but he was so nice and asked about everything.
My roommate doesn't play golf at all. She probably doesn't even know what par is or bogey is. But she's always coming up and she's like, "How did that Curtis Cup thing go?" And I'm like, "oh, good."
And she's always been there for me even when golf isn't going well since she doesn't really know what's going on. I think a lot of that has to do with her connection to golf through her dad.

Q. What is her name?
TIFFANY JOH: Beth Wallace is my roommate, and Chuck Wallace is her dad.

Q. What did he die from?
TIFFANY JOH: Cancer.

Q. How old was he?
TIFFANY JOH: He wasn't old at all. Probably early 50's.

Q. Did that happen recently?
TIFFANY JOH: Yeah, it happened six weeks ago.

Q. I guess you can't talk about being a runner-up to a Trojan anymore. I don't know in Pac 10 if you were runner-up to them as well?
TIFFANY JOH: Yes, we were. The last three tournaments we played against them we were.

Q. With that on your mind today was it time for to you beat USC?
TIFFANY JOH: It was on my mind, but not like that. It was more like, oh, my gosh. How much crap is Maria going to give me for coming in second again or something?
But it's not really something that concerns me at all.

Q. You mentioned the start in the first 27 holes just not going well; what clicked in? What happened that turned things around in your mind? Was it something specific with your game?
TIFFANY JOH: I think I just made a couple of putts when I really needed to. Even then I wasn't dropping bombs like I was yesterday. But I think what really helped was after the first round, I didn't hit any putts. I just kind of sat on the putting green and looked at my ball and tried to convince myself that I was still a good putter. I was just kind of talking to myself there. And I think that helped when the pressure got high towards the end.

Q. Did you have negative thoughts when you were down throughout the first 27 holes, whatever it was? Did you think this is not going to work out for me today?
TIFFANY JOH: I'm Tiffany. I always have negative thoughts (laughing). I had negative thoughts when I was teeing off this morning, so, yeah (laughing).

Q. You've accomplished so much as a Curtis Cup player, you've won this championship before. Why would you have negative thoughts on the first tee?
TIFFANY JOH: I think it helps me just to lower my expectations so I can go out there and play. I think that's what helped me in the end when I was down. I was just thinking, oh, whatever happens, so what. You come in runner-up. I think I tend to think in the worst-case scenarios, so no matter I'm probably not going to see the (indiscernible).

Q. But deep down you have to believe that you're a good player? You were one of the favorites coming into this match. Deep down?
TIFFANY JOH: Really, really, really deep down. Like very deep down like core of the earth deep (laughing).

Q. That bad?
TIFFANY JOH: I mean, I really had to talk to myself a lot. Even coming down seeing it, I had to talk to myself the entire time. I must have looked like a loony case walking down to 17. I was just like, no, I think you're okay. I think you're going to be okay (laughing).

Q. You're on the Curtis Cup team, lot of pressure in playing in that, and the pressure of winning this championship two years ago. It looked like the pressure may have gotten to her in the end. You seemed calm, relaxed. You were playing at a good pace?
TIFFANY JOH: I think towards the end when I just started making my come back, I just kind of got away from it all mentally. I was just looking up at the clouds and I was thinking, Wow, Erin Hills is so pretty. I think that's what helped in the end when things were getting so tense.

Q. Did you hear from Carrie at all last night?
TIFFANY JOH: I heard maybe two words and the rest of it was Tyler, the little kid on the phone. It was like, Hello, hello. And she's like, oh, I got to go. I'm like, I know.

Q. Any other teammates? You said Maria talked to you?
TIFFANY JOH: Maria. That's the first I've talked to her since school ended because she's calling from Colombia. Other than that, I talked to Alison Whitaker over the summer -- actually I talked to her whole family last night calling from Australia.
But Sydney texted me a little bit joking around. Why don't you just practice those 60-foot bombs that you just dunked on me, running everything in.

Q. What does it mean to you to win this again?
TIFFANY JOH: It means everything. I think back when I first won it, I didn't really know what I was doing. I was just kind of out there thinking, oh, bonus rounds. I get to play another round. I think I just kind of stumbled into it. Afterwards, I realized how much it did for my confidence, and how many doors were opened to me including Curtis Cup.
I think winning it this time around when I really wanted it, it was that much more meaningful.

Q. This one's sweeter, you think?
TIFFANY JOH: Yeah, just because I had to work harder for it.

Q. It's completely different. Last time you played in the Fall you were 11 under for 31 holes. You were just uncatchable. This was more grind it out?
TIFFANY JOH: This was trying to scratch my way back. I think that's what makes it taste so much sweeter.

Q. Kind of serious out there for you today?
TIFFANY JOH: I know, right?

Q. Is that how it was planned? Was that by design?
TIFFANY JOH: I think nowadays I've gotten a little older. I tend to kind of do whatever my playing partner does. If they're really, you know, jovial and really talkative, then I'll do that. If they're more serious, like Jennifer Song is, I'll kind of back off a little bit.
I think I learned that it's not always that good to be as talkative and loud and boisterous as I am on the course. Some people look at it as a distraction for them, and that's the last thing I want to be for a competitor in the finals of the WAPL.
So I think I've learned kind of my boundaries when I can be boisterous and loud and happy, and when I can kind of back off and let them have their space so I can create a good environment for both of us playing.

Q. You've got the Women's Am. Anything else?
TIFFANY JOH: Just the Am and summer school.

Q. Is the World Am out there in October?
TIFFANY JOH: Yeah, I was thinking about that a lot this week, actually. That's one of the teams that I would really love to be on with people from Australia. I love playing in Australia. No matter what, I love representing my country. But at the same time the pool for talent for getting selected to that team is a joke. It's ridiculous how hard it is to make one of those teams.
It's something that always is going to be on my mind, something I'm going to work hard to get.

Q. A little disappointing that you're not going to the Open next week and some of these other players are?
TIFFANY JOH: Yeah, a little bit. But I mean, who had have thunk? I didn't make qualifiers. So I really didn't deserve to go, so, I'll just take what I have right now and run.

Q. How many classes are you taking in the Fall?
TIFFANY JOH: I'm taking two in the first session and two in the second session. Little Spanish in the second session there. Communicate with Maria. I'll have her take my test.

End of FastScripts

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