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CURTIS CUP MATCHJune 7, 2014Alison LeeEllen PortAshlan RamseyST. LOUIS, MISSOURI Q. How do you keep your team from getting too excited with a big lead going into tomorrow? CAPTAIN PORT: Good question. I think we're going to have a nice, family dinner tonight and I think they are going to really enjoy some of the things we do together with their moms and dads and grandmas, and they are going to go to bed and wake up and go play golf. They have done that all week, and I think they will be fine. They have been in this position before. They know it's not over till it's over. So I'm confident they will be calm enough, yeah. Q. Can you talk a little about Alison Lee, 3‑0‑1, and playing her in all four sessions so far? CAPTAIN PORT: I'm so, like, crazy, is she 3‑0‑1, what are the records. Q. That's correct. CAPTAIN PORT: We had a game plan. We really worked hard in pairing people. There were a lot of different ways to go. Her and Ashlan, I will turn that around and say what an unbelievable partner Ashlan Ramsey is with Alison Lee; and that's why Alison Lee played that many matches, because of the strategy that we had coming into this; the force that they were together. She and Kyung obviously had a great thing going, and I think Kyung‑‑ the partners that Alison played with, they were such good teammates. And I would say Alison, not speaking for her but she would say, I wouldn't have done this without my teammates. That's the beauty of this; it's such a team event for us. I'm thrilled for Alison but it's not about Alison and she knows that. I talked to Alison and each of my players and asked them, you know, do you want to go; do you have this in you, are you‑‑ and she looked at me with those big, beautiful eyes and said, "I want to play. I'm there, Captain, I'm there for you."  So I checked with her to make sure she had the energy and stamina to go and she just partners up. She's a very versatile player and does well with different people, but Kyung and Ashlan are as much a part of that equation as Alison. And who else did she play with? She played with someone else‑‑ no, Kyung and Ashlan twice, that's it. Q. So not to take anything away from how well your team is playing, but do you think that anything needs to change in this format looking ahead, considering that potentially you'll only need a half a point to win the Cup in singles? CAPTAIN PORT: That's a good question but that's not the time to even reflect that. These matches were not a blowout match, and I think people need to understand that. The home‑course advantage was huge in this. Holes are being halved with birdie. So it's not a format issue. It's the excellence in this situation of this particular team, because every one of those matches‑‑ these score sheets, I sat down with them yesterday; they could have went either way. So I just feel like it was just that this is one of those cases where at this point in time, you know, we didn't get that match, Annie and Erynne, they came back and played beautifully and looked like we had that match and they fought till the end. Stephanie sticks it here and we were 2‑up and could have been 3‑up. I think probably can't answer that format question right now. I just think, sometimes, that's golf. And home‑course advantage, and this particular golf course, being very difficult and the fact that we got to see it more than they did, I think is a big factor in this, as well. And, my girls got their game ready. Not all of them will say they were playing the way they wanted to in April at the practice session. And they knew they were on the Curtis Cup team and prepared and got their game ready, because they weren't ready in April and I knew it. I don't know if they knew it, but they were ready when they showed up here. Q.  How many times did you guys play? CAPTAIN PORT: We came here on a Thursday afternoon and played nine holes. We played 36 on a Friday and they were dying. They were exhausted because this is a hilly course. And then we played an 18‑hole match, competitive match, against the great men players here. So we saw 36, 18 and nine, so we had 2 1/2 days here. Q. That was in April? CAPTAIN PORT: Yeah. Q. Where is your party? Who is hosting it? CAPTAIN PORT: Jenny is hosting it. Family night with all the parents. Q. So you're not cooking? CAPTAIN PORT: No; they are waiting for me. Q. The rain delays, how much did that affect you guys? CAPTAIN PORT: I think it was kind of a wash. They came out and won that match when we were 2‑up, and Emma Tally came out and had a six‑foot birdie putt and missed that, and she wouldn't have missed that if we had not had a rain delay. I was a little concerned but we were fine. We maintained enough of a lead. They did great. It was a wash and didn't bother us too much. Q. Tally's putt, was that after the first or second? CAPTAIN PORT: After the first delay. And then, every putt, like I'm saying, the score might look like it's one‑sided but these matches, when you take them, a lot of them could go either way coming down, and we've lost matches coming down these last three or four holes. So, you know, my girls just really seemed to make those putts and hit a few key shots when they needed to. Q. Did you think you would play this well? CAPTAIN PORT: When I saw how they were playing, I don't know‑‑ we just worried about how we were playing; yes, I think if you asked the people, if you look at the rankings of these girls and how they play, and the way I watched them play for the four days when we paced ourselves, like I said, they all brought their game. In April, they were not quite where they needed to be and they knew they were on the Curtis Cup and they prepared. They were really, really good on Thursday before we came. They were loose. When I loved, really, is how loose they were and how much fun we were having, and the right perspective. We were not silly and goofy. We were enjoying each other and they were playing good golf at the same time. I never saw anything changed as the approach came closer. There were no more nerves. They were comfortable on the golf course. They weren't missing shots. Long way to answer your question; nothing surprises me, and so I'm not surprised by my team. Q. Getting dark at the end. ASHLAN RAMSEY: It was, tough to read putts, but didn't affect us too, too much. Q. Any concern after 16? ALISON LEE: Yeah, I wanted to go in because I was getting tired. Clutch putt to Charlotte on 16; that was clutch to extend the match. But I feel like overall today, we held each other's backs really well coming in, especially the last few holes when I wasn't hitting the best shots and we kind of got lucky, because they weren't playing their best, either. So yeah, I feel like, you know, just everything held together for us. Q. You made some incredible putts in the middle of the rounds. What was happening? ASHLAN RAMSEY: The beginning of the round, I kind of got a little bit frustrated because I was hitting the putts I wanted to hit. I just wasn't reading any putts correctly, really. And so right there in the middle, I finally read a few right, and you know, got them to go in. But that definitely helped my confidence, and I think it helped Alison's, too, just to see something positive get going. Q. You've played all matches. Tired? ALISON LEE: Yeah, I kind of almost collapsed on hole 15. I just sat down on the grass. But yeah, you know, especially today with the delays, I'm sure everyone is kind of exhausted, and, yeah, I feel like some people are going to have to play tomorrow, too. Yeah, this is a battle, especially this kind of tournament, playing 36 holes two days in a row and then going into singles tomorrow. And I'm really glad we get to play in the afternoon tomorrow so we get some good rest tonight. Q. Was there something about foursomes? She put you out twice, both in foursomes. Was it a format that you liked? Was it something where you shined? ASHLAN RAMSEY: I do like the format. I am typically a solid player and pretty consistent player. I don't really make too many bogeys or too many birdies. So I feel like that's why I work well in this format, and especially with Alison being a great player, just it makes it a lot easier to play well with someone like Alison. Q. Do either of you have a preference when you would like to go out tomorrow? ASHLAN RAMSEY: Bronte and I have been talking‑‑ ALISON LEE: I don't have a preference as far as order‑wise. We're all good players and we can play anywhere in the lineup. I think it will be a good match. Q. Did she talk to you in advance about potentially playing all five matches? ALISON LEE: No. Q. Were you surprised by that? ALISON LEE: Kind of, because I didn't know how she would set it up, but I think she did that because I was hitting it pretty decent today and I was sticking all the shots. So, yeah, I mean, Captain Port, she's done a great job with the whole team and she'll continue to do a good job. She's just the best captain. Q. You only need a half a point. ASHLAN RAMSEY: It looks good. It's been a fun week. We are trying to take it all in. Really honestly I'm trying to remember the moments and make sure I don't forget them. It's still been a great week with my best friends. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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