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U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 4, 1999

Grace Park

WEST POINT, MISSISSIPPI

RHONDA GLENN: Grace Park fired a 67 today. 5-under par for the championship. Three strokes behind the leader, Juli Inkster. Grace, a wonderful performance by anyone, certainly by an amateur.

GRACE PARK: Thank you.

RHONDA GLENN: What do you feel about your day on the golf course today?

GRACE PARK: Well, it was hot, but, you know, I hit a lot of great shots into the green. Made the putts I needed to. Missed some good birdie opportunity chances. But no bogeys. Five birdies.

RHONDA GLENN: What was the strength of your game, would you say? Does it continue to be the fact that you're a long hitter? I heard you hit it almost to the end of the fairway on No. 10 today.

GRACE PARK: Well, yeah, I guess this does give me an advantage, having shorter irons into the green. But I've been hitting a lot of fairways and hitting great shots into the greens, giving myself a lot of chances for birdies.

RHONDA GLENN: She had an average of 262 yards on the two measured drive holes today, No. 5 and No. 9. She hit each of those shots 262. You had 29 putts today and hit 15 greens and 12 of the 14 fairways. Sounds like just say really good, steady round of golf.

GRACE PARK: Yeah, as I said, a lot of fairways, a lot of greens, and, you know, make birdies if I can. Otherwise, 2-putted.

Q. Grace, you've got some really, really, good horses up in front of you. How are you as far as chasing goes, chasing the leaders?

GRACE PARK: I'm not really thinking about that. I just want to play my own game. Just hope that I make a lot of birdies and do well. But I'm not going to worry about who is ahead of me or behind or anything like that.

Q. Is that the first time you've played with Se Ri, and do you consider her -- I know you're just coming out here -- do you consider her a rival at this point, or are you able to pretty much avoid that back home?

GRACE PARK: Well, I have played with Se Ri in junior golf; so, that's eight or ten years ago, but the first time since she turned professional. And in regard to your other question, I don't see myself as a rival -- anybody, really. I'm just here to do my own thing. Play my own game, and you know, I don't worry about other players out there.

Q. How is it played back home: You against her, or are people constantly making comparisons?

GRACE PARK: Actually, the year she started, I had already moved to the States; so I was just visiting there for the summer, and we got to play in a couple of those junior tournaments there. A few years later she came over to Florida over the winter to play some tournaments, and I saw her there.

RHONDA GLENN: The press at home does not feel that there is a rivalry between the two of you, the press in Korea, that is?

GRACE PARK: I guess sometimes they do. You know, I just ignore it because, you know, I don't believe in it personally, and I don't really -- I'm sure she doesn't feel that way, either.

Q. A couple of players said they thought big things were in store for you in the future.

GRACE PARK: I think I have been getting more attention than I had been. Maybe because my announcement of turning pro. But thank you to those players that said it. But I'm just looking forward to it, and I'm just anxious to see what's going to happen.

Q. Grace, you said yesterday -- I think it was yesterday or two days ago that you were going to not do the LPGA exemptions and just play straight up Futures TOUR. Is that your decision or have you been given some advice by friends and family to do these things?

GRACE PARK: A little bit of both. My dad has been looking forward to it. A good friend of ours, Carrie Graham, had been giving me a lot of great advice on it. I personally felt the same way about playing the Futures just full-time until Q-school.

RHONDA GLENN: When Laura Davis won the Women's Open, not having a card, she was given a card right away. You might be able to speed up the process a bit if you won this week.

GRACE PARK: That would be nice.

Q. So far, is this the way you envision finishing up your amateur career?

GRACE PARK: It's -- I think there are still a lot of holes to play. I'm just going to try to enjoy myself, and, you know, hope to finish my amateur career well and begin my next one.

Q. Grace, Mike said that when you first got here today, you were not in the best of moods; that you were a little kind of unsettled and stuff. And then making a couple birdies right off the bat kind of helped things, but is this kind of a natural state for you to be in when you play your best golf, and you really don't know what's going to happen, and then you get on the course and things change?

GRACE PARK: Well, I told them it was either going to be a great day or a horrible day. But I was a little bit annoyed with the weather, humidity on the range. It was so hot and I was sweating so much that I didn't want to have to be soaked before teeing off; so, I just said: Forget it. And just waited in the air conditioning place and started my round.

Q. Could you go through your card?

GRACE PARK: No. 1, I hit a 9-iron to 12. Made the putt. 2, I hit a 3-wood to the back fringe, 20 feet. 2-putted. No. 9, L-wedge to about five feet. 11, I hit a 5-iron to about 20 feet. And then 15, a 3-iron on two and 2-putted from 45 feet.

Q. Did you have a couple sand saves?

GRACE PARK: Got up-and-down on 8, 12, and 14.

Q. Long how long were the putts?

GRACE PARK: 8, I don't know, like between three and five.

Q. On 8 and 14, those approaches came up short.

GRACE PARK: I chunked them.

RHONDA GLENN: What were you hitting into 8? What were you hitting into 14?

GRACE PARK: 8, I think an 8-iron. I just chunked that thing like 20 yards short of it. And then 14. 8 also, I think. Chunked it again.

RHONDA GLENN: Thanks very much, Grace. Wonderful play.

End of FastScripts....

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