MICHELOB ULTRA OPEN AT KINGSMILL

May 3, 2003

Grace Park

NEAL REID: A nice day out there today, you finished with a good birdie on 8?

GRACE PARK: I know that birdie on the last hole made up for all of the ones that I missed on the backside, a little streak where I missed every single putt.

NEAL REID: How do you feel you played overall?

GRACE PARK: Starting out of the round I could not hit the green to save my life but I got some amazing up and downs to stay par.

NEAL REID: What where some of those?

GRACE PARK: Starting at the first hole, I chunked my second shot from 110 yards. I had like a 20-yard approach shot. I got up and down for par. I hit it in the bunker on 2, bogeyed. No. 3 I birdied. No. 4, 5 I missed every green until the 8th hole. From there on I hit every single green and very well, to.

Q. You missed the first 7 and hit the last 11, is that right?

GRACE PARK: I hit one which was on the third hole, par-5, I hit a 3-wood on the green just front and had 30 pace putt for an eagle. But other than that, I didn't hit any greens.

Q. On the fifth hole the double bogey, the flag was just on that small part of the green, were you going right at the flag?

GRACE PARK: Nobody goes right at the flag. I was aiming an it a little left. I got a 2 club longer than I should have and choked down too much and tried to swing it easy and ended up blocking it way right.

Q. What club did you hit off the tee there?

GRACE PARK: A 6.

NEAL REID: So the roller coaster continued today?

GRACE PARK: Another roller-coaster.

NEAL REID: You're still leading the golf tournament some you must feel pretty good.

GRACE PARK: It surprised me to see that nobody took charge of this course. It's understandable, we played later in the day. The temperature changed. The greens were not easy today.

Q. How so?

GRACE PARK: The poa annua stuff, it kills the break. It adds the break. The speed was hard to judge the rain, but it dried up. I was clueless out there.

Q. Is it at all unnerving just 4 strokes back you have Pak, Sorenstam and Meunier-Lebouc, did you expect some real strong players going in?

GRACE PARK: I think everybody expected that even before the tournament began. We knew the course like this would bring the best players up at the top and that's exactly what's happening.

Q. Do you like to play from the lead, or do you prefer act shot or 2 back?

GRACE PARK: I don't get to play in the lead very much so I will take what I have right now and, you know, it just means that I'm ahead of everyone. As long as I stay ahead of whoever is right behind me, I win.

Q. Do you recall how many times you started a Sunday solo in the lead?

GRACE PARK: Do you really want to know?

Q. Yes.

GRACE PARK: I don't know. But I have never -- knock on wood before I say -- I have never lost a tournament with the lead going into a final round from Junior Golf on, so that's the record that I have.

Q. Why do you think that is?

GRACE PARK: Because as I told you, I just have to play a little better than whoever is behind me. I guess I have been able to do that every single time.

Q. I think you talk to most golfers, they've blown a lead or two in their careers, fairly early on before they even won a tournament, you haven't been through that, it must be a certain poise and confidence you take to the tee on Sunday?

GRACE PARK: Well, I only have 3 wins, that's not much.

Q. You said since Junior Golf?

GRACE PARK: Right, right. I don't know. I was born with it.

Q. Can you talk about the nature of the ruling you got at 16?

GRACE PARK: No. 16, it was just a cart path drop. I got the nearest point of relief and take a club and drop and hit.

Q. So you wind up going from beneath the wall to a top of it?

GRACE PARK: The rules official had to determine which side was closer so then I could take the club length from there on.

Q. Grace, did you make any adjustments, you said you went from missing virtually every green from the first 8 to hitting everything thereafter, any adjustments in mechanics or temperaments or anything?

GRACE PARK: No, no. The missed shots actually didn't feel all that bad. It was just one or 2 missed shots and, you know, I wasn't on the green. All week I have been swinging very well, and you know, I feel very comfortable over the ball. So, you know, I just get set and tell myself to rip it and I start coming together.

Q. Is it difficult to adjust from playing in 70 degree temperature one day to rain and mid upper 50's the next day?

GRACE PARK: Welcome to the TOUR. It's something that we have to learn adjustment. I will tell you it was difficult. Starting out the round I left a bunch of shots short because I thought I could hit it as far as I did when it was almost 85 degrees yesterday or the day before. It was cold, a little breezy, you know. The ball doesn't fly as far and it took me a couple of holes to kind of get that set in my head.

Q. Does 18 strike you as a good dramatic finishing hole for tomorrow? You made a 20-footer there today, Rosales chipped in for birdie, Karrie made a 6-iron for eagle out there, is it a good finishing hole?

GRACE PARK: Yes. You just said it. Obviously you have to hit a perfect drive from the tee to have any chance of an exciting finish. But, yes, we are seeing eagles. I birdied it twice, bogeyed it once. Anything can happen. I liked it. I birdied it today.

NEAL REID: Thank you, Grace.

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