THE MODERATOR: All right, here with Hannah Green, 2019 champion of the AmazingCre Portland Classic.
How does it feel to return here to Columbia Edgewater? I know you've been back since, but just being back here in general, how is that for you?
HANNAH GREEN: Yeah, it's really nice. Obviously we played here in COVID, but unfortunately we had bad fires that year and didn't have spectators, so it was just a little bit different to come back to Columbia.
But it's really nice. I love it here. I don't know, I really enjoy the city, the food, and the golf course.
THE MODERATOR: Columbia Edgewater is a great course. Have you been out there yet this week?
HANNAH GREEN: Yes.
THE MODERATOR: How did you find it?
HANNAH GREEN: Yeah, really nice. I know Jim, the superintendent pretty well. When I won in 2019 we took some photos and kind of stayed in touch ever since.
Really happy to be back. The course looks great. I played to the front nine this morning and then tomorrow I'll play the back nine in the pro-am.
Course is looking good, and hopefully gets nice and firm and fast for the weekend.
THE MODERATOR: You know Jim just from winning?
HANNAH GREEN: Yeah.
THE MODERATOR: That's cool.
HANNAH GREEN: Yeah. He has a photo of us from when I won in 2019 the turf department, so it's pretty cool.
THE MODERATOR: Awesome. Are you like a golf course nerd? Do you know the superintendants well?
HANNAH GREEN: No, not so much. I think it was in Australia turf management like golf day, so I feel like I should probably appreciate them a little bit more.
No, just because we finished quite late in 2019 and Jim was still hanging around, and we took a photo together and, yeah, he's just stayed in touch. Usually doesn't happen, so it's actually quite nice to have that relationship.
THE MODERATOR: That's really cool. That's an interesting one. You're the last 72-hole winner of this event.
HANNAH GREEN: Yes.
THE MODERATOR: Georgia was the last winner. We talked to her earlier. She was the last winner here.
Tell me, does that give you an advantage having played 72 holes, having won in 72 holes when that hasn't been played in a while?
HANNAH GREEN: Yeah, even when I returned in 2020 I think I played in the final group, so I had some good -- almost a good result. I was in contention defending this trophy.
So hopefully, even though it has been a couple years since I have been back that I can try and get my hands on the trophy again.
I think it makes a difference with just how your attitude is, because I'm also going back to Australia next week, so just in a very good mindset.
THE MODERATOR: What is it about this course and this area, this tournament, that makes you so successful here?
HANNAH GREEN: I think just I really enjoy the golf course. I feel like even though it's short it's rewarding for those who hit the ball well. I feel like this year I've been pretty consistent with my play, so I'm just hoping that the putter warms up a little bit.
And then, yeah, going back home to Australia, that always gives me good -- gets me in a good mindset as well. I guess a lot of the girls have been posting about Proud Mary Cafe, an Australian style cafe, so I've been eating there already. Just a little bit of taste of home.
THE MODERATOR: Awesome. Why are you going back to Australia? Just for a break?
HANNAH GREEN: For a break, yeah. I've been on the road since Evian, so just to go back home before the final few events of the year just to reset and see my coaches and see my family.
THE MODERATOR: Questions.
Q. What part of one's game do you think has to click the most in order win out here?
HANNAH GREEN: I feel like all of us are really good ball-strikers. I just feel like whoever usually comes out on top is the one that holes the most putts during the week.
I actually played with Ally last week the first two rounds and I was saying to my caddie, I feel like her first nine holes she didn't putt that great and then all of a sudden saw a few go in and then the whole must have looked a lot bigger.
I feel like we're all pretty consistent off the tee. I feel like most of us are pretty accurate, and hitting greens is usually okay.
But I feel like once you see a couple putts go in, that's where you get the confidence and that's what hopefully gets you in contention.
When I won here, that's really what got me over the line, was my putting. I'm hoping I can remember those putts I made coming down the stretch and try and do the same thing again.
Q. Coming off a pretty good stretch of golf for you, I want to know what the key has been to your consistency. You said you wanted to warmup up the putter. What has maybe been lacking in the putting?
HANNAH GREEN: Yeah, I feel like I've been, yeah, hitting the ball a lot better this year. I feel like last couple years I've had a great start to the season and then kind of the back half of the season has kind of dropped off.
So that was one of the things with my coach that we wanted to make sure we were keeping on top of and just making sure that I'm still striving to go win events.
Yeah, I feel like I've been working hard with him and obviously as well as my caddie, trying to work on that when we're on the golf course.
But, yeah, the last couple weeks the putter hasn't been as nice as I would like it. I've been struggling a little bit to read the greens, not necessarily like putting I think.
But I think that comes with confidence, so it was already nice just to play nine holes this morning and hole a couple putts just because I remember which way they break.
Yeah, hopefully just give myself the opportunity to make those putts as well.
THE MODERATOR: Last one from me. One part I think that's so hard of the tour is all the traveling. You said you have been on the road for a month. How does that mentally wear on you, and how do you keep yourself confident, happy, while you're traveling so much, and working hard?
HANNAH GREEN: Yeah, I've been on the road for I guess eight or nine weeks, so it's actually gone by a lot quicker than I usually feel like it has.
In 2019 I gave myself a rule to do eight weeks maximum, but sometimes that doesn't always happen living in Australia.
But I guess surrounding myself with the right people, that helps with the homesickness. And actually having some people come from home to see me overseas. That's been helpful. For me to be able to go home, that probably helps a little bit more versus people coming to see me.
But it's definitely not for everyone, and I know a lot of people have unfortunately not made it out here because of it. Hopefully that doesn't happen to me and I keep the people that are around me now around me for a while.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you so much.
HANNAH GREEN: Thank you.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports