Questions For Annika Sorenstam
SI: What was the difference between this week and last week's 12th-place finish?
AS: This week I made a few putts early, and that really got me going. Last week I had a hard time reading the putts, and I simply couldn't make anything, but this week I was seeing them and making good strokes, and it all felt really good.
SI: Your consecutive-cut streak is at 48?
AS: So I have another 100 to go.
SI: Is that a goal of yours?
AS: That's never really been a goal of mine, making cuts. I want to win tournaments. I want to win majors. That's what I look for.
SI: What made it so hard to read the putts last week?
AS: Just one of those weeks, you know? They were new greens, but I don't know if that made any difference. This week I was simply seeing the lines better and I had a good flow.
SI: Last year you said your goal was to win the Grand Slam. Is that still the aim for 2005?
AS: Absolutely. I'm focused on the majors, and those are always tournaments I want to win, but that doesn't make winning this week any less exciting. I played really solid. I hit 18 greens [on Sunday], and I want to build on that and keep it going. It seems like it's working.
SI: Rumors about steroid use surfaced in local papers this week. Do you have any response to them?
AS: No, no response. It's silly because I know how hard I worked in the gym for five years to get where I am. In a way it's a compliment that someone would even think that about me, but there's nothing to it. I brush it off because there's nothing to talk about.
SI: What is your workout routine?
AS: When I'm on the road, I work out three times a week. At home it's four or five days. I work with a trainer who makes sure I do everything right and who pushes me really hard.
SI: Is there a nutritional aspect?
AS: Well, I've always been careful about what I put in my body. I studied nutrition in school. I didn't finish college, but if I had, nutrition would have been my major.
SI: Do you ever cheat? What's your favorite cookie?
AS: For the most part I try to stay away from the bad stuff, but, well, I love ice cream. I love a good banana split.
--Staff and LPGA transcripts
SI: WERE YOU EVER INTIMIDATED BY ANOTHER PLAYER?
AS: IT HAPPENED TO ME WHEN I WAS YOUNGER. WHEN I PLAYED WITH SOMEONE I ADMIRED, I PAID MORE ATTENTION TO THEIR GAME THAN MY OWN.
KEY STAT
41 Wins by Annika Sorenstam in this millennium, the most by any pro golfer on any tour.
COLOR PHOTO
STREETER LECKA/GETTY IMAGES (SORENSTAM)
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Better putting led Sorenstam to her 60th LPGA win.