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CN CANADIAN WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPAugust 21, 2013Jennifer HaBrooke HendersonAugusta JamesBrittany MarchandEDMONTON, ALBERTA THE MODERATOR: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the media center. Thank you for joining us. Pleased to be joined by four of our 20 Canadians. The four members of our National Women's squad are competing here this week as amateurs. From the far end, we have Brooke Henderson. We have Augusta James, Brittany Marchand and Jennifer Ha. Jennifer is from Calgary, so she's one of our Albertans that's playing in the field. Obviously, it's a big experience for everybody. Why don't we start with Jennifer, sort of going across. This is your first event. Tell us about your first LPGA experience so far, being at this course. How has it been for you the first couple of days? JENNIFER HA: It's been amazing. It's nice that it's so close to home. I played in the Pro‑Am event here in '07, and it's just a nice experience being back. Not playing in the Pro‑Am, but being in the field with all the names that you always hear about, so it's a great experience so far. THE MODERATOR: Brittany, it's your second event. You played last year. You've gotten a bunch of experience, I'm sure, now into your second LPGA Tour event, busy course, loaded school. What is your experience coming into this year? BRITTANY MARCHAND: It's another amazing opportunity. Any time I get to play an LPGA event, obviously, it's a great opportunity. It's good, like Jen said, to be able to play with the people you look up to, and the course is beautiful. This is always a great tournament. I love playing as a Canadian in this event. It's just a really good opportunity. Q. Augusta, you joined us last year in Vancouver, T12 at the World Amateur. Talk about the LPGA experience, the collegiate experience at NC State, the World Am, that whole connection of being at premier events and playing and training for it? AUGUSTA JAMES: Yeah, I've had the opportunity over the last‑‑ this is my third Canadian Open, and I've had the opportunity over the last couple years to play this event, and like you said, Dan, World Am. The way this event is run and its prestige around it is phenomenal. The Canadian golf support really shines through, so I'm excited to be back here, and I obviously have some lofty goals that I want to achieve in my third year here. I'm looking forward to getting the week started. The course is in phenomenal shape. THE MODERATOR: Brooke, you've had a very busy summer, amateur and professional as well. T35 at the Manulife Classic, and making the cut at the U.S. Women's Open, playing in your second event. Tell us about your experience now coming from last year's event, this year as well, preparation for this week? BROOKE HENDERSON: I've been looking forward to this event all year. Highlight of my summer was playing in the Manulife, Canadian Open this week, and U.S. Open. It's such a great atmosphere here with the pros here and the beautiful golf course. It just all the fans that are going to come up this week, I'm just really looking forward to it. THE MODERATOR: Real quick, we'll go from Jennifer over, having the chance to spend time with these LPGA players, these international superstars, how does that prepare you for kind of what you're trying to do? And what is the vibe for you and that whole experience of being next to and training with and playing with the best players in the world? JENNIFER HA: It just shows how far that Golf Canada has come. It's an amazing experience being with the people that you look forward to meeting and you look up to and you watch on TV all the time. It's a good experience. BRITTANY MARCHAND: It's always good to play with the LPGA pros. Obviously, that is our goal and that's what we want to achieve. So it's great being able to play with them. I know some of us have some really good pairings this week. It's really good to watch their games. But also I think it just builds your confidence because you can see how close you are. I think we've trained a lot, and Tristan and Ann have given us so many tools to be able to practice like the professionals do. I just think it really shows when we are out there on the practice range or we are playing that we are really close. We do still have work to go to get there, but I think our games are all able to play with these people, so it's good. AUGUSTA JAMES: Definitely, similar to Jen and Britt. We definitely have world class coaching helping us out all year with Tristan and Ann. Obviously, our sponsors for Golf Canada are what make all our travel opportunities happen, and give us the tools and the training aids and everything that we need to train like the pros. So, like Brittany said, being able to play out there with them you can measure yourself up but ut's a learning experience, a chance to maybe ask a few questions to see how their games are. I'm hoping with my pairing that I get to play with some good players this week. I just think it will help me achieve my goals because I want to play to that level and get that experience. BROOKE HENDERSON: With the opportunities that Golf Canada gives us, we're all just trying to get better and work hard every week so that we can improve and hopefully be out here someday. So it's awesome. Q. With Charley Hull playing so well at Solheim Cup last week and Lexi Thompson has already won on the LPGA and of course Lydia Ko won last year at a young age, all teenagers, does this put any added pressure on you guys to sort of develop quicker and keep an eye on turning pro a little bit earlier than we've seen in the past? GOLFER: Well, for me, I'm halfway through my college career and I plan to finish that out. I know that each of us have different goals. Teenagers across Canada have different goals as far as college and turning pro maybe before, after, halfway through. But everybody kind of develops at their own pace, and you can see that there are veterans out there still ripping up the links. So I try not to feel any pressure from younger kids, but I'm trying to develop at my own pace. I know if I put in the hard work, I'll get there eventually. AUGUSTA JAMES: I'm just trying to improve every time I get on the course, just for myself. There are definitely great players out there and I look up to them. But like I said, I'm just trying to improve for myself. BRITTANY MARCHAND: I'm a little past teenager now being 21. So I'm past that, but I think same as Augusta, I'm going into my fourth year at university, and I don't think I would have done it in a different way. I think that the college experience is really me having to study and playing golf at the same time, helped me a lot. It made me grow as a person. I think it's given me good experiences. I still think me preparing to go professional while I'm at school is still one way that you can do it. There are so many people like Stacy Lewis who graduated and is one of the best in the world now. So it doesn't matter what way you do it. There is always a way. If you work hard and put the time in, then I think it's possible. GOLFER: I agree with Augusta and Brittany. Into my third year at university, and it's the same for me. Being in school and golfing at the same time, it teaches me a lot of things about time management and life in general. I think that's going to help me prepare for when I decide to go pro. Yeah. Q. With golf in the Olympic games in 2016 and thereafter, does that become part of your goals as well long‑term? GOLFER: I think we all would love to play for team Canada and the Olympics. It's definitely a big goal. We love playing for our country, wearing Canadian leafs on our shirts every time we step on the course would be a great opportunity, and that is something that we're looking forward to. Q. A lot of you have a tough act to follow in Lorie Kane. Would you tell us what you've been able to take away from being with her both on and off the course? Are you able to emulate what he's done over the years? BROOKE HENDERSON: I've had the opportunity to play with Lori in the final round of the Manulife. It was a pleasure for sure. She's a great player and definitely a huge role model for all of us being Canadian, and the amazing player that she is. She's taught me so much and given me a little bit of advice here and there. It's awesome to be able to know her well. GOLFER: I don't think the rest of us know Lori as well as Brooke does. But down in the locker room, we're registering and she comes up and says hello, and she's always very kind to us, and an excellent role model. Her resume speaks for itself, so... GOLFER: Yeah, same as these guys. She's just, you know, someone to look up to. It's nice to have that. Obviously, we don't have too many Canadian women who have been very, very successful, but it's nice that we have those few and there are so many more up and coming, like girls that we play with on the National Team, and now they're starting their professional careers. It's just exciting that there are a lot of people following in her path now because it wasn't that way for a little while. So it's nice that we're the next people to come up and follow in her footsteps. GOLFER: Same as the other girls said. I briefly met Lorie for the first time in the locker room on Monday. She's just an amazing person. She has a huge list of all of her accomplishments and yet she's still so genuine. It's amazing to see that. It's kind of how I want to be if I ever get that there. Q. I think you've all alluded that Lorie Kane is an obvious role model and maybe more direct for some of you than others. But for some of the Canadian women, I was looking through the record books, they're not really of your generation, who have been your influences or mentors in your careers so far? GOLFER: Canadian specific? I mean, we all know Marlene Streit and Cathy Sherk on some level. I know them a little bit closer, so they've obviously had an influence on my golf career. They're kind of from another generation for sure, so they kind of bring that part to me. I like to look up to more current role model of Stacy Lewis. I think the hardship that's she went through with her surgeries and finishing college, she's now a top player in the world, I think she's a great person to look up to. GOLFER: I agree. I grew up watching my little sister play, and she's definitely been a huge influence on my game. Definitely Morgan Pressel and Lorie Kane are two that I've always looked up to. I've had the opportunity to meet both of them and play with both of them in events. So it's been truly amazing. GOLFER: Same as these guys, I know Marlene Streit a little bit from junior golf and amateur golf. She's always been a great influence in the Kane aspect. Obviously, people like Stacy Lewis, like Augusta said, it's good to see someone who has gone through school and gone through challenges and been able to come out on top. I've always looked up to‑‑ I loved Lorena Ochoa when she was playing. She was great. Also, I've always looked up to some of the other girls, Canadian girls, who have just started being professionals. Monami and Sara‑Maude, they went to school and worked hard in starting their careers. It's good to watch what they're doing and ask them questions and see how their games are growing. GOLFER: For me, the first pro I ever played with was Karine Isher, she was from France, and I played with her at Royal Mayfair in '07 in the Pro‑Am, and she just inspired me to get my game to the level I want it to be at. Q. Jennifer, this year you sort of came into your own. You medalled at the MAC Championships and then won another junior event. What happened this year that sort of turned the switch on and you seemed to have developed a lot quicker? JENNIFER HA: Yeah, the beginning of this year in January I had a little bit of a rough patch and my coach, Mike Morrow at Kent State, he retired, and I was very close with him so it was kind of hard. I was kind of going through a slump right they be. Making a few changes in my swing and my putting, and that was big. Tristan and Ann definitely helped me a lot get over that. And Rob Wakeling kind of took over the women's program in our school, and he really kicked my butt. He made me a stronger person, and I think that helped me throughout the season. THE MODERATOR: Ladies, thank you for joining us today, and good luck this week. I know you guys have had a busy week. I think you've had sponsor commitments and practice and coming in late. We also have, if anybody's interested in talking to our women's head coach, Tristan Mullally is in the back of the room. Ladies, thank you for joining us and good luck this week. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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