KELLY THESIER: Good afternoon, everyone. We’d like to welcome in our current leader, Brittany Lincicome. Brittany, 1?under par 71 today, leading by one shot entering the final round. Were you nervous at all today? I heard there might have been only a banana I think you ate?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yeah. Nervous was probably an understatement. I was fine all morning. I got my 10 hours of sleep. I watched “Puss In Boots” was on TV. I watched kids’ movies, was doing fine, and then when it came time to kind of eat lunch, it just wasn’t happening, and then on the course like I took some stuff to calm my belly. I did have a banana, a few bananas actually.
And yeah, I think because I haven’t been in this position in a while, it just kind of all caught up with me. Just tried to take multiple deep breaths out there. I don’t think I calmed down until really the Back 9 probably. Hopefully going into tomorrow it’s kind of out of my system, I kind of know what it feels like to kind of be in this position and I will kind of dominate again.
KELLY THESIER: You talked about on the Back 9, we saw some impressive shots, especially I guess 16 really when you look at the up?and?down you were able to make. How kind of were you able to calm those nerves and be able to go out there and produce those types of shots?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: That’s a good question. It’s actually two days in a row I’ve done that. I’ve made a long putt on that hole to save par. It’s not an easy. It’s right in between clubs, 5?iron doesn’t get to the green and it rolls back four yards or 4?iron flies the green. So it’s kind of you pick your poison, and then I just missed it altogether and I ended up in the bunker.
But those last three holes, especially 16, are very tough. You don’t want to be down to make birdies. You’ve definitely gotta skin on the field because they’re really tough.
I kind of knew at 16 that if I bogeyed it, it was going to be okay. I had already kind of had that in my mind. But it’s not an easy hole, and I’m in between clubs and there’s nothing I can do about it. It was nice to make the par, though.
KELLY THESIER: We just had Inbee Park in here and she was talking about watching you on the par?5s and how much of an advantage you have. But you’ve been able to take advantage of that. You are now 11?under on the par?5s this week, birdieing three of the four today. How much of a mentality is that for you every time you step on the par?5 knowing that they’re birdieable holes for you?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: I hate talking about it because I feel like I’m going to jinx myself. But yeah, today, you know, I had a 5?iron into one of them, I think I had a 7?iron into one of them, I actually close to reaching 9 today, which hasn’t been possible. I hit 3?wood to two inches off the front of the green. So I still feel like today was not as good as yesterday considering I don’t feel like I hit the greens as many times, especially with ?? I hit the green with the 7?iron, but the 5?iron I missed way right and got it up?and?down.
Definitely if I can hit it in the fairway and obviously hit it on the green and two?putt or one?putt even to be able to be stress free kind of helps your round obviously if you can two?putt and make birdie and go to the next hole.
KELLY THESIER: We’ll open it up for questions.
Q. You were cracking me up today because you reminded of me out there on the golf course. It looked like five, six, seven times you hit a shot and you were just pissed, but it ended up being solid followthrough and you hooked through this and the ball would end up 20 feet from the pin. Is that just the way you follow through? It looked like you were unhappy, what, about five, six, seven shots and they all ended up pretty good.
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Really? I’m going to have to work on that tomorrow.
No, I’m not really sure what my face was doing. I know a lot of clubs today we were in between, so maybe I felt like they should have been further or maybe I hit it too far and needed to come back, especially like the second hole, I hit whatever club I hit in there it went way past and I was obviously frustrated with ?? you know, obviously hitting the green is good, but you still don’t want 20, 30?footers trying to two?putt and save your par.
So overall I felt like I drove it really well, and second shots were okay. Didn’t really have too many opportunities for birdies unless it was a par?5.
Q. So when the nerves are cranking, is there a certain part of your game where you really feel it?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Probably putting. Putting I feel like I take a few more deep breaths and kind of let all the oxygen out and just kind of try to make a nice, smooth tempo. It could happen with driver, too, but I feel like my tempo the last couple days has been really, really good. And that’s kind of my swing thought when I step into it, my caddie even says swing 70 percent and it’s going pretty good.
Q. So were there any putts today where you felt like nerves got the better of you?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Oh, yeah. Like probably all of them on the Front 9. They were all not hit in the middle of the club face. Distance control was not very good. I left most things short.
My caddie and I kind of talked about that tomorrow, she’s like, it’s not life or death. You’re going to still be breathing after the round. We’re going to be more aggressive. You know, we were doing a lot of good things off the tee and hitting the approach shots into the green being really smart, and just the putting I was leaving everything short. I was not aggressive, and it was kind of a wimpy kind of stroke I guess.
Q. And then there are a couple of girls behind you who have been in this position a lot. Are you going to be paying attention to the leaderboard at all tomorrow or how are you going to approach your chasers?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: No. I will hopefully not look at a leaderboard all day, which is good ?? I feel like for me that’s how I’ve always played. I’ve never looked at a leaderboard. I feel more comfortable that way. Obviously I know I need to birdie as many holes are out there. I know which holes I can birdie andwhich holes are par holes, so kind of stick to the same game plan I’ve had all week, but Nancy Lopez told me like two years ago in Phoenix that I need to look at the leaderboard. She’s like, you need to know where you are, which from a Hall of Fame member I should probably listen to her, but it hasn’t quite caught on yet.
Q. I think she told Lizette the same thing. I also noticed on the first tee, first of all, you looked very calm on the first tee, but you also had your headphones on right until literally 30 seconds before you put the tee in the ground. Is that normal and just a way for you to stay calm?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yeah. Very normal. Normally I’m either texting somebody or listening to one of my favorite songs before I go so it’s in my head for the whole round.
Q. So it is music being played?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Music, yeah. Country or whatever I’m feeling at the time. I think it was country.
KELLY THESIER: Do you remember what the song was today?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: What’s the song that you just downloaded? (Inaudible). I couldn’t sing it for you. But my caddie likes to sing, though, so whatever she’s singing we kind of sing it together.
Q. Brittany, what does this mean to you to put yourself back in this position to give yourself this chance?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yeah, I mean I feel like I’ve been working really hard and doing a lot of the right things, and for it to finally come together this week, obviously the week of a major, but more importantly, just for the people in the Rochester area, it was so great to come out, the fans are so supportive, and they’re all out there.
I can hear them cheering for me, and it’s just great to be back in this area. And obviously we’re going to miss it, and hopefully we can come back here soon, but I think it’s just great to ?? I think it’s just the vibe, the golf course sets up great for my game, and the fans and spectators and everybody out there are really welcoming, and it just means a lot actually. It’s great. To have my boyfriend and dad here, too, it’s nice.
Q. Could you just bore us and give us the details with the birdies, just the clubs?
KELLY THESIER: She warned me that she might not be able to remember all of them.
Q. Whatever you can do.
BRITTANY LINCICOME: 7. Oh, yeah. I hit a sand wedge, maybe a lob wedge. Sand wedge or lob wedge to like a foot and a half, two feet. And then 9 I hit 3?wood just like two inches short of the green and putted it up to three feet and made it.
12 is a par?5. 12 I hit right in the middle of the fairway, had 5?iron into the green and hit it right and then chipped it up to six or so feet. Is 14 another par?5? Knocked it on the green with a 7?iron and two?putted. That wasn’t too bad.
KELLY THESIER: You remembered that pretty well. Any other questions for Brittany.
Q. Brittany, I know yesterday you mentioned you’d rather almost be a shot behind coming into today?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yep.
Q. Safe to say you’re comfortable with signing up for having a shot lead going into the final round?
BRITTANY LINCICOME: Yeah, maybe it’s a different mentality now that I’m getting older and more mature, maybe one ahead is where I need to be.
You know, I’m still just going to play it the same way I’ve been playing it, just fairways and greens and take the birdies when I can and hopefully nobody shoots 65 tomorrow, which I’m sure somebody will. Hopefully it’s me though.
KELLY THESIER: Any more questions for Brittany? Well, thank you very much, and wishing you the best of luck tomorrow. And hopefully you can eat a little bit more than a banana before you come out.
BRITTANY LINCICOME: I hope so.
Thanks to the LPGA Tour and ASAP Sports for the text, and Alex Fisher of Alex Fisher Photo for the photographs
