FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saturday, April 6th, 2019

NOTABLE QUOTES: AUGUSTA NATIONAL WOMEN’S AMATEUR, SATURDAY’S FINAL ROUND – JENNIFER KUPCHO WINS AT 10-UNDER PAR

NBC Sports Notable Quotes
Augusta National Women’s Amateur
Final Round
Augusta National Golf Club
Augusta, Ga.
Saturday, April 6, 2019

**GOLF Channel will re-air today’s final round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur tonight at 10 p.m. ET.**

Augusta National Women’s Amateur Final Leaderboard
Jennifer Kupcho -10
Maria Fassi -6
Yuka Yasuda -2
Yuka Saso -2
Zoe Campos -1
Kaitlyn Papp -1

On Jennifer Kupcho, 2019 Augusta National Women’s Amateur Champion at 10-under par (5-under 67 at on Saturday at Augusta National)
Mike Tirico – “The stage is clear. It is nice to have four putts from here to take care of business. How about do it with one. Finish with a birdie with style…How about it. A champions finish as Jennifer Kupcho is the first winner of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.”
Paige Mackenzie – “We have seen all of the emotions that Kupcho has gone through today. She figured out a way to grind it out and have the grit needed.”
Gary Koch – “The performance that Kupcho put on the back nine today. To play those last six holes in 5-under par with the shots that she played and the putts that she made, it is what great champions do. They come through in the clutch and she certainly did.”
Koch – “This is one of the reasons why we enjoy the second nine so much at Augusta National. So many things can happen.”
Frank Nobilo – “The rankings say she is World No. 1 for a reason.”
Tirico – “That shot, every time she sees the 13th, no matter what happens here, she is going to remember that moment.”
Mackenzie – “What an incredible day and what an incredible finish for Jennifer Kupcho.”
Tirico – “At age 21, that is a pretty good line, not only the inaugural champion at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, but doing it with a birdie on 18 and a second nine that she will remember forever.”

Jennifer Kupcho speaking with Augusta National Golf Club Chairman Fred Ridley and NBC Sports’ Mike Tirico in Butler Cabin following her victory
Jennifer Kupcho – “It was a lot of fun to play out there. To play with Maria Fassi, I’m sure you saw it on TV, we are definitely great friends and it has been a great time.”
Kupcho – “To hit the first tee shot, it was amazing. And to do it with Olivia Mehaffey there, we are great friends as well. And to finish it off with Maria Fassi, there is no other person I would have liked to walk these 18 holes at Augusta with besides Maria.”
Kupcho – “Actually I don’t know if it was said on TV or not but I actually got a migraine on the 8th green, and kind of from here over to the left, I just couldn’t see, it was blurry. I told my caddie, ‘Look, I’m looking for you to read the putts. Tell me where to hit it and I’ll do my best to hit it there.’ Amazingly enough, I know it was going to – I’ve gotten these migraines before – so I knew the blurriness would go away and I would just have a headache. On the 11th tee is where it started to go away and I was able to finally see. Kind of from there that is where it all started. I knew I was able to do it. I was just trying to get myself under control and get through those holes where I couldn’t see anything.”
Kupcho – “I don’t think I’ve ever hit two hybrids that well. I know on 15 I was not at all trying to go to the pin, I was trying to the right greenside bunker and it just curved around the tree. I was thinking I hope it carries because I wasn’t planning on hitting it there. I had a little adrenaline going on and it carried there.”
Kupcho – “It is just amazing. Just to be able to do it. My teammates came down, my two coaches from Wake Forest, my family, my brother came in last night just to watch me play here. It is great to be able to do that and get the first win after I hit the first tee shot of the tournament. It is a feeling I can’t describe.”

On Maria Fassi, 2nd at 6-under par (2-under par 70 on Saturday at Augusta National
Tirico – “One thing we will take away in addition to the talent Maria Fassi has, is her sportsmanship. Every shot Jennifer Kupcho has hit, she has been supportive. A fist bump, and hand clap.”
Mackenzie – “We have seen good touch from Fassi all day long. Whether it is chipping or putting, she has been in very good control of her speeds around the greens.”
Tirico – “They know what the other one is all about. They are sharing the competition here in this very unique day.”

Maria Fassi speaking with NBC Sports’ Steve Sands following the championship
Maria Fassi – “It has been a dream come true. It is amazing what we’ve been able to have out here today. The crowds were unreal. It was so much fun to play in front of them. Of course the ending wasn’t what I would have liked, but it was still amazing. Everyone was so supportive. It was amazing to be able to compete here at Augusta for the first time.”
Fassi – “I knew it was going to be like that. I said it a few days ago that it was going to be a birdie feast and it was. She had to make putts, and I had to make putts. I knew that is how that was going to go. She was hitting great shots, and I was just trying to save par on some of those holes. I did all I could. She played a great game and finished really strong. I’m really proud of her because I know we are going to be battling for wins in the future.”
Fassi – “It is amazing that we got this opportunity. We are just really lucky and blessed that we could be out here and represent women’s golf and even just golf. I enjoy that Jennifer and I had great sportsmanship because that is how I want people to look at us. Yes we were competing against each other but we were friends before all of that. This is what I want people to be watching when I play golf. I’m really happy I got to show that. We just played amazing golf. I don’t know how many birdies we had in between the two but it was a lot of fun to be inside the ropes and I’m sure it was a lot of fun for everyone out there as well. Making it to Augusta National and being the first time, it really is a dream come true.”

On the final-round pairing of Jennifer Kupcho and Maria Fassi
Mackenzie – “They completely delivered on what was a spectacular day on what was a spectacular day of entertainment, of golf, of classiness in sportsmanship. It was an incredible display.”
Tirico – “You see these two. They both want to win. Who wouldn’t want to be the first winner of this event, but the back and forth between these two. The respect pushing each other forward, go out and win it. Really, really respectful. Tip of the cap to these young women.”
Kay Cockerill – “Both are very appreciative of each other’s play.”
Tirico – “Two of the top collegiate golfers in America, and they have been front and center in terms of build up to this event and they have delivered with quality play under pressure. They keep stepping up to the moment.”

On the Augusta National Women’s Amateur
Tirico – “We have seen shots and putts, not just today but the first two days at Champions Retreat, that have really shown the depth and strength of the women’s amateur game.”
Cockerill – “Today every hole, every shot, we are seeing history made.”
Tirico – “Dreams beginning here today.”
Mackenzie – “The players are now part of history now. All of these women that played in this golf course in this competition are now part of the fabric of what is Augusta National Golf Club.”
Tirico – “A lot of this week has been about everything the game can be about. How inclusive the sport can be. You are seeing some of the examples of it. Leadership, sportsmanship, handling pressure in big moments and then some.”
Mackenzie – “It has been an impressive display of golf as well as everything we love about the game.”
Steve Burkowski – “The scoring conditions were solid. The golf was spectacular.”

Hall-of-Famer Annika Sorenstam speaking with NBC Sports’ Steve Sands
Annika Sorenstam – “It was incredible. I walked up there and really didn’t know what to think but then when I stepped on the tee and I saw my kids, my husband and the members at Augusta National, everything was really coming together. With all of the work at the Annika Foundation has done the last ten years to see these young girls having a chance to play here, it’s fantastic and historic for sure.
Sorenstam – “I’m very honored and very proud to be able to be a part of this to see what Augusta National can do. They can do amazing things and they have done so much for the game of golf. If you think of the opportunities for young girls around the world, they have some great partners…Again, it has been great to see the start here and I think we are going to have some really great effect down the road. It has been terrific.”

-NBC Sports Group-