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RICOH WOMEN'S BRITISH OPENJuly 31, 2013Paula CreamerST. ANDREWS, SCOTLAND COLIN CALLANDER: We welcome Paula Creamer. Is it good to be back at St. Andrews? PAULA CREAMER: It's great, being back at St. Andrews, there's a lot of media going on with Inbee, and just to be coming back, it's pretty special. A lot of great memories here and hopefully they will continue through this week. COLIN CALLANDER: Do you feel a little different here than other courses in the rota? PAULA CREAMER: Oh, yes. Just as a golfer, doesn't matter if you come here for an event or not, just being the Home of Golf and all the history that's happened and just to kind of walk these fairways where the greatest players have ever played, it's humbling and it's exciting and at the same time you want to do well and be contention on Sunday. COLIN CALLANDER: I think I'm right in saying you might have been here a few times over the years not to do with the championship; is that correct? PAULA CREAMER: Yeah, I came here before the Open in '07 spent about four days out here and took all my pictures so when I came for the first Ricoh event, I got it all out of my system and I was ready to focus on golf. I didn't do that this year, but I definitely took all my pictures on Monday, so now I got it out of my system for the tournament. Q. A riddle for you: Can a player win a Grand Slam by winning four, when there's five Majors? PAULA CREAMER: I believe that if Inbee does win this, it's a Grand Slam in my eyes. Whenever you win four Majors in a row, I think it doesn't really matter what you call it. It's impressive as it is. You know, we've had five Majors in the past and it went to four and now we have five again. I don't think it makes it any different. But you know, I think that it's kind of a no‑brainer in my eyes as a golfer; if you win four Majors in a row, that's a Slam to me. Q. Of all the years to add a fifth major, is it kind of unfortunate that it dovetailed with Inbee's historic run? PAULA CREAMER: Not unfortunate, no. No, I don't‑‑ who is going to say that Inbee was going to win or somebody was going to win three majors in a row? You can never predict that. But like I said, you can't take away what she's done now. It's kind of nice coming into this week, all the hype is on Inbee and you can kind of float under the radar. But, you know, for what Inbee has done, whatever happens this week for her, just in the sense that we added a fifth major doesn't make it any different to me. Q. In the six years since you were last year, St. Andrews, the Old Course, has undergone quite a few changes. Have you noticed them, and do you like them? PAULA CREAMER: I think for me, what is it, 11, the par3, adding a section on the green, just a couple more pins there is a little bit different, making it a little bit bigger, it's a little bit more playable. Yeah, the changes are noticeable. I think if I came out and played every year, it would have been a little bit more of a drastic change. When we come here, it's just always blowing all over the place in the wind and things like that, so you don't really get to study each section. I think the changes are good. I don't think you need to do too much out here. It's history and it is what it is. But this grass has been around for a long time, and it does need to kind of get worked on at times, and I don't think it's a bad thing. Q. You mentioned coming to St. Andrews and taking pictures and all the rest of it, where would St. Andrews or the Old Course rank in your favourite golf courses? PAULA CREAMER: Oh, it's definitely up there. I just think the fact that you can come‑‑ I've never smiled so much on a golf course when you're wearing your rain gear and you're trying to hit a huge cut into a right‑to‑left wind. Normally you're thinking, gosh, how many holes do we have left. And when you're here, it's just like, okay, it's just keep going and bring it on. I think that that plays a huge impact on where it would lie‑‑ definitely be my Top‑5 for sure. It's just a great golf course whether it's sunny or howling wind. Q. If Inbee were to win this week, would you consider it the single greatest achievement in LPGA history, and if she doesn't, what would you consider now to be the greatest achievement in LPGA history? PAULA CREAMER: Wow. Q. Good luck with that. PAULA CREAMER: Next question. (Laughter) goodness. Welcome back. Welcome back. Q. I'll be here all week. PAULA CREAMER: Can you repeat that one? Q. What would you consider now to be the greatest achievement in LPGA history, and if Inbee were to win‑‑ whatever you can think of‑‑ PAULA CREAMER: That's a loaded question. COLIN CALLANDER: Three girls have already won three Majors in a year. PAULA CREAMER: Oh, goodness, definitely if Inbee wins this week it could be the greatest thing‑‑ gosh, I'll have to get back to you. Honestly I really have to give it some thought. Q. In fairness, that was a hard question, but I just wanted to wake you up for the week. PAULA CREAMER: Thank you. Q. And secondly, there's kind of some singular focus about one player this week, and rightly so; does that carry over to the players? I know you guys are all worried about your own games and care about your own results, but is there any talk amongst you? PAULA CREAMER: About Inbee? Oh, for sure. Without a doubt. Like I said, it's kind of nice, everybody does talk about it, you can go about your business. You see someone's name on the board, everyone is kind of watching what Inbee is doing in a sense. But you still have to worry about your own game, like what you said. But just playing junior golf with her and kind of really just growing up with her, it is exciting to see. Do I want to be that person to hopefully stop her? For sure. At the same time, if she does win, that's amazing; and to be a part of that and to actually know her and play at the same time, that would be incredible, too. Q. With what she's got going right now, and you came aboard when Annika was just starting to wind down and the heart of Lorena; how does she stack up perception‑wise or feeling‑wise as a dominant player with those two‑‑ and you can even throw Yani in if you want. PAULA CREAMER: To me she's just very different than Annika, Lorena, Yani. Sometimes you want to know what she's feeling; what is going through her head. With Annika, with Lorena, with Yani, you knew what was going on. We have so much respect for players that dominate the game and raise the bar and change what we're doing. With Inbee, it's much harder to see. Obviously she's one of the greatest putters. She has so much confidence in it, and the way she plays the game, it's so steady. She never makes mistakes and if she does, she somehow manages to walk away with a par. And you know, when you watch‑‑ I played with Annika a lot in '05, and she was just constantly a fiery player. Same with Lorena. You see they are not going to let it down, and watching Inbee, playing with Inbee, is very different to that. Q. A lot of players have mentioned how inscrutable Inbee is, and you mentioned also that you grew up playing junior golf with her; have you ever seen a more human side even away from the course‑‑ would you describe her personality? What have you seen that the public doesn't see on the course? PAULA CREAMER: She is, she's a really nice girl. She's definitely in her world when she's out on the golf course, as so she should be and so am I. But she is, everybody's different when they are outside of their golf clothes and that kind of thing. She's always been like this playing golf, always been very much to herself. That's just her demeanor. That's her personality. She does act (inaudible) and thing like that and ask about how you're doing, and especially we have like a junior golf relationship going through here. We've seen each other grow up, as well. But Inbee is quiet, and there's nothing wrong with that. That's just who she is. Q. I'm writing a story about Lorena winning here in 2007, and obviously she's not here to repeat her feat, but going back in 2007, coming here for the first time to the home of the golf, do you think it was meant to be for her? PAULA CREAMER: Well, obviously every top player wants to win and be on the big stages, and being the first time it was here, looking back on it and what Lorena has done for golf, yeah, definitely. She played great that week. I know I played with her in a couple British Opens before that, and she struggled. She never liked playing in the wind over here. She always has hit a high ball flight. To kind of come and defeat all of that and win at St. Andrews, it's pretty remarkable. Q. Do you have a special memory, when she won here, something she said, something she did? PAULA CREAMER: I remember on Sunday, I was watching from my balcony, and it was pretty cool to see‑‑ you know, it was raining, and then all of a sudden, it just stopped. It kind of really ‑‑ stuff like that, it's just meant to be and that's the way it goes. I remember watching her walk over the bridge on 18 and thinking to myself‑‑ I played well that Sunday, but still, I was thinking, man, I wish I could be in her shoes right now and feel that feeling. But when the rain stopped, just you knew it was meant to be. COLIN CALLANDER: Paula, thank you very much indeed. Good luck this week. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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