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LPGA TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

December 2, 2010

Annika Sorenstam

ORLANDO, FLORIDA

ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Obviously I'm honored to be part of the Commissioner's advisory board. I mean, it does several things for me. It keeps me in the loop with the LPGA. It gives me a chance to give back to an organization that I care about and also continue to be part of golf, talk about some of the things I experienced as a player and some of the things I think is important for the growth of the game and so forth.
So we talk about pretty much everything. We talk about the schedule. We talk about policies. We talk about rookies. I mean, you name it, TV, media. We talk about everything.
We bounce ideas back and forth. I mean, it's a mixture of people on the board. I mean, Nancy Lopez is part of it. So we have got two players. Charlie Mechem is on there, so obviously it was his expertise, Herb Lottman which as you know is has been part of the PGA for many careers and Mike Whan. It's a fun group of people and we sit there and brainstorm and hopefully come up with some good ideas, so he will take that onto either the membership or the tournament organization or sponsors, whatever.

Q. How would you assess the state of the LPGA right now, given the tough economic times?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, there's no doubt it's been tough. I think we all know 2010 has been a touch year. But one of the things that I learned today is, the response from LPGA players, the sponsors satisfaction with the players and the organization is as high as it gets; so, meaning product is really, really good.
What's been hard is obviously companies spending money. I think that's not just the LPGA. That's basically any sport and entertainment right now. So it's just kind of weathering that storm, figure out how can we show them that, hey, we are value for the money. I think that's really what Mike is working hard on right now.

Q. Do you get the sense that things will be stable or a bit better next year?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Absolutely, yeah.

Q. How is Mike doing?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I think he's doing well, yeah. I like his energy. He knows a lot about the game. He is a forward-thinker. He comes from -- it's been with TaylorMade and he's been with Proctor and Gamble. He comes from big brands, global brands, and I think that really matters today. I think he has a lot to add to the tour that way.

Q. How important is it for someone to step up to take on a roll on the Tour of being a superstar?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I think we have had that for a while. Now we are seeing something different. We are seeing, you know, five or six players battling for Money List, Player of the Year, Rolex Ranking. It makes it a little different than it used to be. I remember coming to this last event, and there was nothing really to play for. It was already decided.
So I think that makes it exciting this week. There's so much at stake here for a lot of different players. At the moment, I don't necessarily think that you need to have one player to dominate. But you know, get a few up there next year, it could be exciting to battle back and forth.

Q. You know what it's like to operate in difficult economic times. You probably retired in the worst possible time, and yet you launched businesses during that. How are they doing and what have you learned about thriving in these times?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, I've never shied away from a challenge. Like you say, I could not have picked the worst time. But I think it just tests yourself. It tests who you are and what you want and what your values are and what you stand for.
I think that if you can ride this storm, I think you can handle a good time. So it just makes you tougher. We all know that things are not going to be smooth all the time. You're going to weed out some things that don't work. You just have to work very, very hard.
I feel like, you know, we, as a team, at Annika, we are working harder than we have done in a very long time. I used to go to the gym, I used to go to the range. I mean, I worked very hard on my game but now I feel like I'm working equally as hard together with my team to be innovative, to come up with ideas, to share with what we have, to just get exposure in the different areas. It's very competitive.
But I enjoy the challenge and hard work and building something from scratch to something really significant. All of the businesses do I, they are very, very different. We talk about wine; that's one thing. We talk about foundation; that's another. We talk about academy as one thing, clothing, golf course design, they are all different. They all have different goals in each one of them, but golf is hard, it's been hit hard.

Q. Sounds like a Greg Norman type --
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I admire him --

Q. Have you talked to him?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I have. I have had a chance to meet with him a few times, and I certainly admire him for what he has done, on the course, of course, but off the course, I think he's very successful. He's a little bit of a role model. I would love to get to where he is one of these days.
There's some great other players, of course; Jack Nicklaus, very successful, Gary Player, Arnold Palmer, just to mention a few. Not many female -- well, I can't think of really any female golfer. I mean, Nancy is still involved in a lot of things, but she doesn't have the businesses. And I would love to continue what I do and get to where Greg is one day.

Q. What is your thoughts on transgender players?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, it's really not much to say. I know that the membership voted on changing the rule, and I can only agree that that was the right decision to make.

Q. Do you miss it more now, or on these mornings when it's 50 degrees and you don't have the 7:00 tee time?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Yeah, I'm just fine with that. I don't miss it. Life is very good off the course. I'm very happy. Family life is good and business is good. Again, I'm staying involved with the LPGA. It's just golf in general. And I feel like I can choose a little bit what I want to work with. I mean, I'm doing the things that I enjoy. These are my passions and I do them.

Q. Any particular area of interest, especially key to getting advice and counsel?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I mean, we talk over the phone a few times a year. Most of those calls are just to update us, hey, what's going on. There's some times where he wants an opinion. Right now it's more talking about what is happening here and what is next for 2011.
As you all know, the Tour has changed. Just the companies; ten years ago, a lot of companies was 75 percent domestic, 25 percent international. Here we are ten years later and companies are the opposite. You know, they are 75 percent international, 25 percent domestic, and the LPGA is not any different, as we all know.
It's becoming a global tour, and how do we adapt to that, how do we embrace that, how do we make the most out of that. I don't really think anybody has the answer. But he's working very hard to obviously create opportunities for the professionals. That's going to include, you know, like we see, all of these international tournaments.

Q. What's your thought of the course here today and the players?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: I haven't played this course in a while, but I really must say, I think it is a great venue. Grand Cypress, people know what it is, it's a true golf course, to have the Tour Championship here, I think is a wonderful finish to the season. All I can say is the condition looks green, but I don't know, I haven't been inside the ropes. But I'm happy to see an event in Orlando.

Q. Any players that stick out to you that you've seen from your experience?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Like I said, it's a race to they can, race for a lot of things. We have had some new names race to the top this year. I mean, names that have been around but not necessarily been in the top. I think it's exciting to see if they can hold down the finish line. It's great to see someone like Cristie Kerr being so consistent out here; Suzann Pettersen, being No. 2 in the world, has not won a tournament, I think that's exciting and puts a lot of pressure on her this week, see if she can hold up. To me there's a lot of stories and I think that's a lot of fun.

Q. Two South Koreans have a chance to be Player of the Year; can you just talk a little bit about their ascension to the top of the game and how they go about it?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I think that they -- I mean, they work very hard. I they we all know that. You come here in the morning, here on the putting green and a lot of them are still here ten hours later. So the work ethic is impressive. I think that technically they are very sound. They work very hard on their techniques. It just seems to me that golf fits them very well and they are very dedicated.
Their demeanor on the golf course fits them very well but they don't really get very much up and down. They are very even keel on the course and they keep their emotions on track most of the time. I mean, if you go to Korea, I mean, golf is so popular, so what we see here is really I think the top of the iceberg. So whoever finishes No. 1, I mean, again, this is another motivator for other young Koreans to come and play here.

Q. As a Florida native now, do you like having the LPGA back here?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Absolutely. Like I said, I'm happy to have a tournament back here in my backyard, but also a lot of the players's backyard. This is a golf city, and we need to have an LPGA event here and what I've seen so far, it seems like it's been received well by fans and hopefully the city will embrace it and it's something that make can stay here for a while.

Q. What does this place or this state or these people have to do to impress the LPGA Tour that, yeah, a tournament like this does belong in Florida? Or is it just a sponsorship thing?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I don't think that Grand Cypress or Orlando have to impress the LPGA. The goal, we came here, we want to stay here. A lot of it has to do with money and sponsorship and support and so forth. I guess time will tell. I'm not really sure. I guess they will evaluate it after the week.

Q. Are you surprised that a lot of these Sun Belt areas, Florida, Arizona, Texas, even southern California, have so few LPGA events on the schedule?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I agree, unfortunately it's a true observation and I hope we can get a tournament back in Phoenix, for sure, Texas. Like you said, they are all golf crazy states.
It's funny, we are in some states and some cities you wouldn't even think about and we have some huge fans there, followers. Hopefully next year or the year after, we will get back to those cities.

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