ANNE van DAM: (In progress.) ...short irons through the green. I can really pick and choose where to be aggressive and where to play a little bit defensive. I think that worked for me today. Hit a lot of good shots from the tee, hitting a lot of fairways, a lot of greens.
Then the birdies, I feel like they come towards you. If you get too aggressive you can short side yourself pretty easy. I've done that really well today.
Q. This season perhaps hasn't gone to plan so far. Coming into a major, I know it's three rounds to go, but how crucial is this week for you?
ANNE van DAM: Yeah, I'm always pretty patient and don't get too upset or too ahead of myself. Golf, you go in ups and downs. Yeah, I think I really almost took it as a positive with things that were going well and really had to make some changes, where I feel like if you just keep playing okay you don't really change anything.
So I think I got to a point where I was like, okay, I really need to work on some things. Took a few weeks off, went back home, worked really hard for to weeks with my team, and, yeah, feel like already last week saw big improvement.
Yeah, I think a round like that today showed with the work I've been putting into that. Yeah, came out today, so very pleased.
Q. That work, anything in particular? Swing changes? Short game?
ANNE van DAM: A little bit swing. Started working with a new coach, Dana Dahlquist, just working more on fundamentals. He works a lot on 3D motion and just kind of having the body move well, if that makes sense. Not focus to much on the club path which we golfers get too stuck with sometimes.
Yeah, just looking at how I was moving, how I was transitioning my weight. Yeah, it's been really good working with him so far.
Q. And just final one from me: Here in France. It's not long to the Olympics. How excited are you for that tournament?
ANNE van DAM: For sure it's -- growing up as a swimmer it's the highest thing you can achieve, so then when it became Olympics for golf, yeah, it's such an amazing stage to showcase the game of golf.
To be able to represent the Netherlands is amazing, and being in Europe a lot of family and friends will be there.
So still some good tournaments to go before that, but it's definitely, yeah, one I'm looking forward to a lot.
Q. Did that free you up to get that Olympics qualification spot and now a little bit more fun on the golf course with not as much stress?
ANNE van DAM: Yeah, I have very complicated qualification procedures, so I already qualified through the end of last year. So knowing that I had a very nice off-season kind of really being able to plan the year and plan the Olympics which made it nice.
Where in Tokyo it was right on the bubble, so for a long tomorrow you didn't know if you were going to go. So, yeah, I've had a really good off-season and really been able to plan my year very well.
Q. You do some really cool things off the golf course that are other Olympics sports. You were in that Iron Man a couple years ago for Grace Park.
ANNE van DAM: Yeah, I think I just don't like to sit still. I just like to do other sports. If I can pick anything, probably be cycling. Love to cycle a lot. Yeah, like you said, I used to swim and run a bit as well, kiteboard, surf. Whatever you can name, I like to do.
Always like to be busy, and really helps me. If I get too stuck in with golf it gets too much for me, so it was nice to get my head out of golf sometimes and really enjoy my time off the golf course doing other things and then come back and, yeah, put the focus back on.
Q. Are you still doing triathlon races? Is still a thing you're doing?
ANNE van DAM: No, not as much anymore. I did the one to raise money for Grace a couple years ago and haven't really planned to do a race because I don't like to swim too much when I'm in season because it really messes with how I feel.
So, yeah, nothing planned so far.
Q. Caught up with Jane and Grace recently?
ANNE van DAM: Yeah, we always stay in touch. That's the nice thing about social media, right? You can quickly send a message and stay in touch.
Yeah, they'll always be close to me, even though they're far away.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports