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EVIAN MASTERSJuly 23, 2008Annika SorenstamEVIAN-LES-BAINS, FRANCE THE MODERATOR: Annika Sorenstam, you were a champion here the first year that it started on the LPGA Tour schedule in 2000. You won two years later. You've been having a phenomenal year this year: Three wins, eight Top 10 finishes in only 13 starts. So coming back here, how are you feeling about your game and ready to go in Europe? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I feel good. It's always wonderful to come here. Evian is just an amazing place. You know, seems like this tournament has grown every year. It just seems to improve in every area. It's just a wonderful place to come. They treat you very well. I love it here. Like you said, I've played well here also, and it has some wonderful memories. I'm looking forward to the week. Q. Does this tournament have a special place in your heart and your affections? Maybe one that you might miss in the future? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I will miss this tournament for sure. Like I said, I've been coming here for a while, and I've seen the tournament grow from just being just a regular stop on the European Tour to becoming one of the best tournaments on the LPGA. It's so nice to see the commitment from Evian and everybody here. I remember the first time I played here I think there was -- well, there were no ropes. There were maybe two spectators, now we have thousands. So it's been great to see the tournament grow. I like it here very much. It's so beautiful. My parents always come here. I bring other family members. It's just a great place. Q. Frank Riboud said you were part of the Evian Masters family and that you would come back to Evian. What did he mean by that? In what way would you come back? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I'm not really sure what he meant. I haven't spoken to him, but I take that as an invite. I hope to be back. Next year I will not be playing, but it's a great group of people to work with. And Frank has been very, very supportive through the years. Not just to me but to all of the golfers in general. Hopefully, I can find other reasons to come here and be part of this event. Q. Many people say that the duel with Lorena will not take place because you'll be retiring. Is this the last opportunity? Do you feel this duel can still take place? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, I haven't retired yet. I have another five months to play, and I think that equals about ten tournaments or so. I mean, they will not be all head-to-head with Lorena, as there are many other good players here and some are team events. But the season -- we still have a lot of tournaments left in the season, so I'm going to do my best and I hope to -- I have a chance to win the money list. I have a chance to win player of the year, so that's my goal. Q. You said you didn't want it to be a farewell tour. But now making your last trip to playing a trip in Europe, next week your last major. Are there any emotions creeping into it? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I care very much about the different tours. Like I said before, I've seen a lot of these tournaments grow into fabulous tournaments. They all have a little special place in my heart. When you've been a part of something for so long, of course you care. There are some emotions. But I didn't want to make this a farewell tour because I'm still focusing on my game, and I didn't want it to be some kind of tribute or something like that. I'm here to play, I'm here to compete, and I'm here to finish on a strong note and I'd like to focus on that. For me, I've never really been an emotional player in certain ways. I mean, obviously, when I win there is joy and happiness and when I don't win I'm unhappy and sad. But I've never been emotional. In the sense, I come here and start thinking that this is my last time at Evian or this is the last British Open. I mean, this is a choice that I've made. You know, I know that going into the tournament. I'm sure that next year I'll reflect back on these tournaments and say I'm going to miss a lot of it. But I have so many other fun things in life and other priorities. You know, I've had a fantastic career, and I'd like to leave it on top where the memories are fantastic, and when I still have a lot of energy to give to something else. Some of the things I'm going to do have to do with kids and golf. It has to do with the Annika Academy, designing golf courses. I'm going to be involved in golf. It would be different and I would be definitely a lot more sad if I couldn't be involved with golf. Q. Tomorrow you are going to play with two Swedes, and two old winners here, does that mean something to you? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, it's going to be a nice pairing with past champions and two Swedes. That doesn't happen too often, so I'm looking forward to that. Q. I think the two Swedes are former Cup captains. I think you made it pretty clear you're not going to play in the Solheim Cup or any other tournament next year. That is the case, right? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yes, I'm not playing any tournaments next year. Q. Okay, I just wanted to check. ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yes. Q. You talked about the daily grind of the tour that may be something you wouldn't miss. But this tournament maybe doesn't count as a daily grind. What is it about this tournament, this venue that makes it stand above the rest? ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I think to answer your first question, I mean the daily grind is not necessarily a tournament. The daily grind is when you have a week off, and you need to be on the range, and you need to go to the gym. I mean, we don't have days off. We don't have weeks off. We might have from competition, but you know when you come here it's very glamorous. It's first class. This is the fun part. If it was so easy just to come to tournaments and then play good golf, then I probably would never stop. But that's not how it works. It's all the preparation and all the hard work to be able to first of all be invited to this tournament. This is a unique event, because if you look at the clubhouse the way everything is setting up, you have the little garden, the hospitality area. It's just a lot more relaxed than other tournaments. This is not an ordinary event. So this event I'll certainly miss more than some other tournaments because of that reason. THE MODERATOR: Thank you all for joining us. Annika, thank you. End of FastScripts |
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