THE MODERATOR: We're here with Esther Henseleit. Talk about your round. How do you feel coming off your first round at Baltusrol?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Yeah, I feel good. I played some nice golf, some good birdie chances, and I feel like if you hit the fairway off the tee, you do get some chances, so you really have to focus on that and get your ball into play. I did that pretty well today. A few bogeys. I left a few shots out there, but overall a good day.
Q. We've heard so much about the uniqueness of this course and it closes with two par-5. You went birdie on 17, bogey on 18. What did you see out of those two holes?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Yeah, I really like it. It's cool to finish with two par-5s. You feel like you have a chance to have a good score on those two. 17 I played pretty nice. 18, I got a bit unlucky into the green that my ball just caught the fringe long and didn't come back, and then I had pretty much an impossible shot and had to hole a 12-footer coming back with quite a bit a break and missed that one.
I really like both holes. It's definitely challenging but also gives you a good chance.
Q. It's a pretty tough start here and you made three birdies early. Could you take us through that?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Yeah, I was thinking after the practice rounds, if you get through the first six holes pretty close to even, you're doing a good job. To birdie 3 was definitely a bonus. I got pretty lucky with my drive on 1. I missed the fairway, but my lie was good, so I could get it to the green.
I mean, 4 is just a bit scary to be honest, especially that pin today. I feel like normally the wind is hurting a little bit on that hole, so it's a bit easier to stop the ball on that top plateau. Today it was helping, so you kind of had to land the ball on the bottom tier and roll it up. It's a tricky shot, but I managed that one.
Yeah, when you get to 7, you feel like you have some chances coming up.
Q. I feel like a lot of folks on this side of the pond got to know you for the first time at the Women's Open a few years ago. How are you a different player now than you were then?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Well, I think probably everyone can see that I worked pretty hard on my technique and my long game. I made a lot of improvements there.
My putting, always room for improvement, but I feel like I'm going into a good direction there, and I think I just have more shots around the greens.
Just getting used to being out here and playing really tough courses every week.
Q. How would you sum up your year so far?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: I didn't get off to the best start, but it's been pretty solid. I missed a few cuts by one, which always hurts a bit.
But I felt pretty confident coming into this week. I played some nice stuff. Just felt like every putt was okay, but it didn't really all come together. It's nice to see a good score coming together today and going into the next few days.
Q. Did you have a good run in Atlanta at the KPMG?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Yeah, I had, I think, a top-15 finish there.
Q. What did you learn about this championship and yourself with that experience?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: It's just my favorite tournament of the year, and I'm always looking forward to playing the KPMG. This is even more special because I have a good friend who's a member here, so I came over early and played a couple rounds about five weeks ago.
It's just the best tournament of the year, and it's great to come back to such a special place like Baltusrol. It's just fun to be here, and just grateful to be able to play here.
Q. A few players hadn't seen it until this week. What were your initial impressions when you got here?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Well, I really liked it right away. The weather was a bit better than it was last year. And the fairways are a bit firmer now, but other than that, it was pretty similar. I just really like it. It suits my eye. Some tricky holes out there, but if you get yourself in position, you really do get some chances.
I think it's a pretty good golf course.
Q. What is it about this event that makes it your favorite?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Well, they always take great care of us. The food is always good. It's always great golf courses. You just feel like the spectators are always fun and everyone is in a good mood, and I just really like the vibe of it.
Q. Who's your swing instructor?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: It's Reece Phillips. He's also caddying for me, so he's with me all the time.
Q. Has he been your swing coach for a long time?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: We started working together about two and a half years ago.
Q. What's the biggest thing you improved?
ESTHER HENSELEIT: Well, the biggest thing in my swing is always keeping the club face strong, so working on that, especially on the top of the backswing.
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