LPGA Professional and three time winner on Tour Nasa Hataoka speaks with the media following her playoff loss to Gaby Lopez at the 2020 Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. Hataoka finished the tournament with a final score of -13 under par and in second place.
LPGA Tour: Nasa Hataoka speaks about coming up just short at The Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions
Q. What was this whole experience like? Were you feeling pressure? Were you ready to go? What was this like?
NASA HATAOKA: A lot of feelings, all the feelings, everything. Being so long and taking so much and just having this playoff, it’s a lot of feelings, yeah.
Q. Tell me about the first hole, the first playoff hole, when you were short and had that amazing chip up onto the green.
NASA HATAOKA: I’ve been practicing those shots all this time, so I just went for it.
Q. And then the second shot when you knew Gaby had made the birdie, what were the thoughts going through your mind as you stood over that putt?
NASA HATAOKA: I did feel the pressure when she made that birdie putt. I thought I was going to be able to make it. I was going to make it, but it was not a putt that a person who was thinking they were going to make it could do it.
Q. Tough putt?
NASA HATAOKA: Yeah.
Q. What do you take from this experience? A lot of pressure, a lot of feelings. What do you take from it to grow for the future?
NASA HATAOKA: As much as I thought with all the pressure and everything, I was able to play as usual. So I think for the future I would try to adjust myself for that, to not feel the pressure, just keep playing the way I always do.
Q. But this is still a great way for you to start your season. How do you move from here? Is this a good way to start your season?
NASA HATAOKA: Being a celebrity Pro-Am, I thought I was going to just enjoy it and have fun, but then being able to be in the final and do the playoff, that was a really good experience, and I think this would help me in the future. When the tournaments start to get harder and harder, it will be a good lesson for me.
January 20, 2019
Lake Bueno Vista, Florida
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports