First round player interviews from the Saint Four Ladies Masters in Jeju

Saint Four Golf and Resort, Jeju, Korea
Friday 14th November 2008

Q.How was the game today?
A. Absolutely fantastic. I am satisfied with everything. I feel excited to set a new course record. I showed 100% green in regulation and hit excellent iron shots.

Q.Pins were located in tricky positions. How did you feel?
A. I did excellent iron shots, which helped me get over tricky pin positions. I had to change putters to cope with fast greens.

Q. After this event, you will move to the US. What is your goal in the US?
A.Since the event is my last game in Korea, I want to play as good as I can. If you play in Jeju, you have to focus on increasing your lead when the weather is good. Bearing that in mind, I tried my best today and achieved quite satisfactory results.

Q. What would be the most difficult challenges in this event?
A. Rain and wind. Up until today, the weather has been so good that I earned high scores. But nobody will expect how the game will unfold, if it rains tomorrow. The course is good right now. If the weather continues to be good, I may be able to finish the game at double digit under-par scores.

Q.If you win the victory in this game, you will get LET seed…
A. Yes, I will earn LET seed, if I win. I look forward to participating in major European events.

Q. What would happen next year if you maintain your best performance throughout the year.
A. If I win this event, I will receive LET full seed. Then I’ll apply for Q-school in the US and earn full seed there, which will lay a foundation for me to move on to the US tour.

Q.What differentiates you and Shin, Ji-Yai?
A. Shin has a strong, unwavering spirit that helps her rise to all kinds of challenges. She stays calm whatever situations are. But I think she is also affected when playing with a long-distance hitter.

Chae-A Oh (KOR) 68 (-4)

Q.Great round. Talk about your game today.
A. I played quite well. I did 10 rounds of practice in this course. Today, I struggled with shots but made some good quality putts. The greens are quite fast here.

Q.Jeju is well-known for difficult greens, which causes many golfers to struggle with putting…
A. The golf course here seems to be free of mountain break, greens are not difficult.

Q.You are born in Jeju. Did playing in your hometown affect your play today?
A.Yes. I live only 15-minute drive away from here. Usually, I have to stay outside during tours. Yet playing in Jeju, I can stay at home, which makes me comfortable and relaxed.

Q.After your first victory, you didn’t exhibit good scores. Any particular reasons for that?
A.I struggled somehow with driver shots after the victory. I kept committing golf hook and slice, which made me keep changing grips even today. After securing the victory, I think I became overly ambitious, which undermined my performance.

Q. Your expectation for tomorrow?
A.If I do putting well, I will play a pretty good game.

Q.What led you to play golf?
A. I naturally came into contact with golf, as my father ran a small golf course until I turned the third year of middle school. The first time that I grabbed a golf club was when I was 8 and I started my career as a golfer when I was 14.

Veronica Zorzi (ITA) 69 (-3)

Q. Great round. How many birdies did you have today?
I had four birdies and one bogey.

Q. What was the best part of your game?
I think the best part of my game was the putting because I made 28 putts, which was good.
I made two long birdie putts and the other two were short but makeable.

Q. How was the long game?
It was good. I think I hit 16 greens so it was pretty good. I am happy.

Q. How were the conditions?
It was a good day; the sun is shining. It was a little bit chilly and windy but that is perfect for this period.

Q. What were your reasons for coming to Korea?
I didn’t play so much this year because I started the season late. I wanted to come and see China because I had never been there before. I spent five days travelling in China. I went to Shaanxi to see the Terracotta Army and then I visited Shanghai, saw some Pagodas and did some shopping. I arrived here on Tuesday so I haven’t seen so much of Korea.

Q. What will you do after this week?
I will go home for three weeks and prepare for Dubai.

Clare Queen (SCO) 70 (-2)

Q. How satisfied are you with the first round performance?
I’m pretty happy. I didn’t do much wrong. I had one bogey and that was a poor chip when I missed a green. The rest, I think I hit nine greens on the back nine which was good. I wouldn’t say I putted particularly well but it was good from the point of view that I gave myself a lot of chances.

Q. How did you make your three birdies?
I hit it in to about 12 feet on four and holed a nice putt. I hit it to 10 feet with a seven iron on 13 and on 15, the par five I made a 15 footer for birdie. I think I missed three putts inside five feet for birdie so I left a few out there but hopefully I’ll get them back tomorrow.

Q. How have you prepared for this tournament?
I’ve been out in Palm Springs. I practised with Mel Reid out there and Lydia Hall. That was good because the weather is bad at home. We had two weeks of really good practise so I’ve come here feeling quite fresh and I feel that my game is quite sharp.

Q. So you’re not jet lagged?
I haven’t struggled at all so that is not a bad thing. I flew from San Francisco to Seoul so it was only about 11 hours and I’ve not had any problems.

Q. What are your thoughts on Korea?
The course is fantastic, which is a major positive. It’s been a bit of a culture change compared to what we’re used to but it’s good to have that because it makes you stronger. You have to deal with quite a few things and it’s not a bad thing to experience it. I’m enjoying it. I’ve not struggled with the food and it’s been good so far.

Q. What do you need to do to keep this going?
I felt that towards the end of this season I’ve put a bit of pressure on myself again. My concentration on the course wasn’t great so I’ve been doing quite a bit of work on giving myself things to think about without thinking about my score. Today I chatted to my caddie and really did think about one shot at a time.
I did some work with my coach Ian Rae before I went to Palm Springs and we played some golf with Kathryn Imrie out there and she helped me a little bit. It was good to be out there.

Q. What is next after this?
I am on a round the world trip and rather than going home to the cold I am going to Thailand after this. I’m going to Singapore for two days next week to have a holiday and then I’m going to Thailand to play for two week’s practise. Then on to Dubai, so it would be good to get a couple of good weeks and move up the New Star Money List a little bit. There is no pressure as I’ve got my card so it would be nice to have a couple of good performances.

Margherita Rigon (ITA) 70 (-2)

Q. Can you talk about your round today?
I had three birdies and one bogey. I three-putted the par three. The pin positions weren’t very easy.

Q. How did you make your birdies?
No 10 is a par five and I put the second shot on the green, to like eight metres and two putts. Hole 18 was my ninth, I was half a metre from the hole with a five-iron. I put it 20 cm from the hole on number one with a 52 degree wedge. I putted from four metres. The other birdie was on seven, the par three, where I made a very good putt.

Q. What was the best part?
I am very happy with the long game. I didn’t putt very well. My touch was good but I didn’t make many putts. I think the greens are tough but I love the tournament.

Q. What preparation have you had for the tournament?
I just changed my coach one month ago. I just started with an English coach, Lawrence Farmer, the same as Melissa Reid. I had a very good Spanish one but it was too technical so I was thinking about my swing all the time on the course and not playing. I hope it will work! The stroke is much better with the irons so maybe that will be the solution.

Q. Why did you come to Korea?
I wasn’t playing very well this year so I really needed to play well here to keep my card. I really enjoyed China two weeks ago. I was 30th but I had a bad first round. I know I need to play well here and in Dubai. I’m hoping to be saved by a good result this week.