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MCDONALD'S LPGA CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY COCA-COLA

June 11, 2009

Nicole Castrale

HAVRE DE GRACE, MARYLAND

DANA GROSS-RHODE: Nicole, congratulations on a great round, a great first round in the McDonald's LPGA Championship, and you set the record for the lowest nine-hole score at Bulle Rock since it's been here. Tell us about it.
NICOLE CASTRALE: It was good to start off well. Birdieing the first hole is always nice, the front nine all of my iron shots were going right at it, and it was a great feeling. And I rolled the putter extremely well today and drove it well. I just really stayed patient so it was good.
DANA GROSS-RHODE: Could we go over your birdies?
NICOLE CASTRALE: I birdied No. 1. I hit 9-iron to about 25 feet and made it.
No. 2, I hit a little 9-iron to about six feet and made it.
No. 5, I hit a little 5-wood to about 12 feet.
I hit 7-iron to about 20 feet.
8, I hit a lob-wedge to about three feet.
9, I hit rescue to three feet.
14, I hit 8-iron about 18 feet.
15, I hit lob-wedge again to about three feet.
And then I bogeyed 18. Rescue out of the rough, 20 feet.

Q. Did you have any indication like this morning that you were going to put it all together? Had it been sort of close or was there any feeling when you stepped on the first tee, like, okay, got it now?
NICOLE CASTRALE: No. That's the thing with golf, you can never say you've got it. Once you say you've got it, I don't think you have it. You are always trying to get better out here, and the last year I've grinded, haven't had it.
So I've been working really hard with my golf coach, Bill Harmon, and my husband, Craig, has been working on things, too. I think it's finally coming together. All I can do is keep trying to get better and see what happens.

Q. You had a good round here three years ago, a 64, and you finished Top-10 here the last two years; what is it about this golf course that suits your game?
NICOLE CASTRALE: You know, the golf course is in great shape. I like majors. I like when you have to hit great shots, especially this year, the golf course is playing very long. It's very wet.
But like I said, it's in great shape, and you have to stay extremely patient and really that's my goal the next three days is to keep doing what I'm doing golf-swing-wise and rolling the putter well and just staying patient.

Q. I notice your caddie lines you up on your full shots; is that unusual? How long have you been doing that?
NICOLE CASTRALE: On putts?

Q. Full shots.
NICOLE CASTRALE: Full shots we started in 2005. I've tried to get away from it, and you know, I've played my best doing it.
You know, eventually long term, I'd like to be a little more independent out there. I'm just not quite ready to do it; it's a little too much. I'm fortunate that Craig is out there when I practice and he sees what I can and can't pull off, basically. So he knows me probably better than I know myself, so if I can it do it, I will.

Q. Conditions, soft, the course, especially the greens, not much wind; do you treat that as a green light when you go out there the first hole and say, I can shoot right at the pins, or do you have to get into a rhythm?
NICOLE CASTRALE: You can definitely fire at the pins because the greens are receptive. There are some subtle downslopes, though, which makes it tricky, especially since a lot of these holes, you're coming in with mid- to long-irons, to even some hybrids or fairway woods. That's just with it being long.
Even though the fairways are a bit generous in spots, there's still a lot of tight driving holes out there; and you miss the fairway, you're going to get penalized, because the rough is extremely healthy, and good luck getting on the green if you're in it.
It's a major. It should be tough. You should be penalized if you miss the fairway. The golf course is in perfect shape, especially considering how much rain they have gotten.
It's playing tough because it's playing so long. No. 5, I didn't hit the best of drives, but I also had to hit a grip 5-wood into the green. That's not ideal, and I wouldn't really consider myself short.
You know, you have to step up and hit good shots.

Q. How is 18 playing?
NICOLE CASTRALE: 18, they played the back tee box. In years past, they had moved us up a tee box. So playing it back with it soft is definitely a long hole, and if you don't hit it in the fairway, it makes it tough.

Q. On the drive on 18, was it ever a consideration to hit iron out of there or was the hybrid the first and only choice?
NICOLE CASTRALE: On 18, I would consider that tee shot -- I let a good one get away there. I hit it really good, made a good, committed swing, and just kind of let one go.
The hybrid, it was sitting pretty good. You know, there's one place you can't hit it. I definitely wasn't going to hit iron, because it's going to turn it over and it's going to grab the nozzle and go left.
Rescue, you don't quite have -- it's not going to as much go left, but you still have to protect and, and I missed it where I needed to and really thought I hit a good pitch into the green and just went about two feet two far. Overall I don't look at 18 being a bad hole. I made two committed swings, and, you know, it happens.

Q. What is your philosophy about following up a 65 with another low round? Are you pretty much okay with that mentally?
NICOLE CASTRALE: You know, tomorrow I'm going to stand up on the 10th tee and try to hit it in the fairway. You know, that's my goal is to hit fairways and greens and to keep rolling the putter well. I can't go out there and compare what I did today. I mean, I might shoot 30 on the back nine and shoot even on the front nine.
So, you know, you just have to go out there and do the best you can and take advantage of the course when you can.

Q. When you've won and climbed the rankings as high as you have, expectations change, the way people look at you change; and when you're not at that level, it's like, well, what's wrong with her; is that frustrating or can you talk about it?
NICOLE CASTRALE: Well, I have pretty high expectations so nobody's expectations are going to be nearly as high as mine are.
It's tough when you struggle. Last year, if that's my bad year, then I'll take it. You know, it's been tough. I tried to -- it was a real fine line getting better from the year I won to moving to the Top-10 in the world. I may have regressed a little bit, but I've learned to grind the last year and a half, because I haven't had it.
You know, really that's the biggest lesson I think I could have gained from all of this, and I'll get it back. It's just a matter of time. I'm working hard. I've got great people around me, so, you know, it will come. It's golf. It's a game. It isn't perfect. So that's all I can do is do my best.

Q. You're one of I think seven or eight husband/wife caddie player teams on Tour. What works about that and what do you like about that?
NICOLE CASTRALE: You know, I think what really works for Craig and I is Craig caddied out here on Tour before we met, and Craig caddied a few Monday qualifyings for me when I came out and had conditional status in 2002 and 2003.
From the start, I trusted him, because he was very well-respected caddie out here and he was a good -- he's one of best caddies out here. I'm fortunate to have been able to snatch him on and off the course.
You know, it's been great. We've worked -- this is our sixth season together, and we keep growing and we keep getting better. We're out here trying to do the best we can, and we're very blessed for this to be our job, especially the way things are now.
So all we can do is be thankful and keep getting better and work hard and see what happens.
DANA GROSS-RHODE: Thank you all. Good luck, Nicole, the rest of the week.

End of FastScripts

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