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KPMG WOMEN'S PGA CHAMPIONSHIPJune 11, 2016Lydia KoSammamish, Washington MODERATOR: It's my pleasure to now welcome in Rolex Rankings No. 1, Lydia Ko. Lydia, 2-under for the tournament, going into tomorrow. One shot lead. Have to be pretty happy with that, although this week has already been such a grind. LYDIA KO: Yeah, I mean the course, itself, makes us, you know, work hard out there. And with the tighter fairways and the rough growing out a little bit because of the rain overnight, it's definitely making it tougher. So I've just been trying to focus on my game and trying to focus on the shot I have. You need to be really creative out there. You could be hitting it on the fairways, and even though you are on the fairway, if you hit it on the wrong side of the fairway, you might need to hit a fade shot, draw shot, bunch shot. You're working hard out there. I'm just focusing on the shot I have in front of me and not worrying about what could happen and what might happen. MODERATOR: You talked about having a game plan, you and Jason, being creative. How much have you been able to stick to that game plan you had coming into this week? LYDIA KO: Especially with the pins being tucked on some of these greens, you think you've got an 8-iron and you think you should go right for the pin. He's kind of talked me out on saying, hey, this hole, if we come off with a 4, that's great. So we've been trying to stay patient. And I mean there are some par-5s that are reachable, those holes you're trying to go for it more and try to grab the birdies. You need to play it safe at the same time. But when you do have the chance, when it does give you that chance, you can try to go for it. But you could be trying too aggressive and miss it on the wrong side and there could be a really tough up and down. MODERATOR: You said Jason kind of talks you out of clubs little bit. How often does he have to do that? LYDIA KO: Well, I have this -- I'm like very -- I don't like to think I'm very wrong at times, so sometimes -- MODERATOR: A little stubborn, are we? LYDIA KO: Yeah, a little bit. Sometimes I hit a putt and go, fine, Jason, you were right. I kind of say it. But most of the times I try and go with my gut feeling. I'd kind of rather that when I am wrong, I go, hey, you chose it. What can you do? I thought that was the right thing. But I think the biggest time where he did pull me off was at ANA with that second shot going into the last hole. I think if I was pressured a little bit more I could have definitely hit the 3-wood and it could have been disaster, or it could have been good, who knows. But at that time he did pull me off. I trust him. And I've got to keep trusting him and also trust myself. MODERATOR: I saw you guys making the turn earlier today and I could hear your laugh and Tiff's laugh over the corner. I asked Brittany earlier, how much fun did you have? How much did that affect your round today? LYDIA KO: I have a pretty loud laugh, pretty distinctive, and so does Tiff, too. It was a good pairing. I saw that no matter what happens we're still going to have a lot of fun. And I think one of the girls was saying, hey, the spectators might think that this is like a practice round, not a tournament because we're having too much fun. And we just had a laugh. And with them, Britt and Tiff, they love having fun, and just try to get the positives out of everything. I think that was a great thing about our group. Q. You got more food in your golf bag than the beverage cart, usually? LYDIA KO: It's Whole Foods in my bag. Q. Brittany said today she kind of grazed out of your bag most of the day. What do you have in there now and what is Tina going to put in there for tomorrow? LYDIA KO: It's the usual, pretty much every day. One of the caddies was like, hey, do you ever come out without food? And I was like, I'd probably not be out here if the food wasn't here. We have in fruit and whatever Mama Ko cuts up, I'm eating it. And normally the places we go to has great fruits. She gets everything in season. And I love to eat peanut butter sandwiches sometimes with banana. I ate a lot of fruit out there and I ate an energy bar, too. I tend to eat a lot, yeah. MODERATOR: She's here for the snacks. Q. On the range this morning it looked as though you were trying to hit kind of a high cut with your iron shots, is that something that you felt like you were going to need or is it this golf course where you had to feel like you were shaping it both ways? LYDIA KO: It's probably a missed shot. I wasn't trying to. At the end I was trying to hit a few cut shots and draw shots, especially here, you know, you could be on the fairway, like me on 16, I'm on the fairway, but Tiff and I couldn't really go directly at it, because there's a tree in front. You need to move the ball both ways. If you hit it down the middle or the right side then it's fine. But you never know what could happen. So I've been trying to prepare myself. But I didn't hit it that great on the range this morning, but still I was able to hang in there today. So it was good to come off with a positive ball-striking day. Q. Is this as demanding a golf course in terms of shot making, moving it left, moving it right, that you've played? And secondly, what do you think of your position? You're 1-up going for your third major in a row tomorrow? LYDIA KO: Yeah, I mean, this course you could be hitting it great but you could end up being on the wrong side. So you do need to be creative. I don't normally work the ball that much, try and hit fades into the right pin or draws into the left pin. That's what we're trying to work on with the coaches, trying to get more comfortable with it. But not even these pin positions, just being on the fairway and being on the wrong side, you need to hit those shots, no matter what or you're just going to have to punch out. I think this course definitely requires it. The more comfortable you are the better. And what was the second question? Q. Your position? LYDIA KO: Oh, my position? Sorry, I have a bad memory. You know, I'm happy with my position. I didn't really know how it finished up, because I didn't get to see what the last group finished up. But obviously I've got to be happy with it. And I've just got to stay positive. It seems like the girls, they're playing really well, and they're playing consistent. I've just got to focus on my game. And I can't control what the other girls are doing. So just try my best out there. We've still got a long 18 holes to go. You just never know what's going to happen until the winner's putt drops on the last hole. Q. I was just going to ask you to comment on when you first started how to work the ball both ways, and when you started feeling really confident in that? LYDIA KO: I think it's still a work in progress. Working with David and Sean we've been trying to work a little bit more into it, and especially at the start of this week, we worked on trying to get more comfortable with the fades and draws and how even in certain lies I'd still be able to do it, and how I'm able to control it and go, is it going to be a hook or is it going to be a draw, because that makes a huge difference. I'm still not a hundred percent at it. I don't know it if you can always be a hundred percent at it. I think Bubba Watson is very creative in that sense. But I think the more I practice it the more I'll get comfortable at it. I've just got to do more practice, even for the future events. Q. The creativity you're talking about, the flop shot on 16, and then chipping off the green on 17, those aren't shots you practice normally, are they? LYDIA KO: Well, my dad, earlier this week said, hey, you know, because there are these slopes on the greens, if you put yourself on the wrong side of the green it's going to be really tough for you to go up and over the fringe or across the slope. So I chipped it twice. I was really happy with the outcome on 17. I was saying, man, the spectators must think I'm nuts, having a wedge in my hand. But you've just got to trust it. I knew that if I putted there it needed to be perfect. It could be short or it could be long. So I felt the wedge was the better choice. And these flop shots or these rough shots, I think that's the key around this course, with the rough being high. You never know what you're going to get. So I just try to commit to what I've been working on and ended up being good at those two times. Q. How tough was 18? They laid it a little bit longer today and it wasn't the best hole for you to finish on? LYDIA KO: I hit driver, 3-wood. I hit the tree on the left. But still it was a long hole. It was a beast of a hole. And yesterday -- maybe yesterday's option was better, hitting it in the trees and punching out. But it's tough. I think 18 normally plays as a par 5 on this course, before tournament. So I think that's why it's got that length. But that's why it's great. It's going to be rewarding for those players who hits it on the fairway and puts themselves in good positions. And if not you're going to try hard to make up and down. Q. You've already made a lot of history. How important is it to you to own records in the LPGA record book? LYDIA KO: I don't really think about it when I'm out there playing I'm just trying to play my best and trying to hit that shot in front of me. I only know about these records after you guys tell me again. There's no big list you can go and go, hey, this person did this at then and I never know until you guys tell me, so pretty much. But it's really cool to obviously have my name in those records amongst those amazing players. And I think that's the really cool thing about it. But when I'm out there I'm not thinking so much about records and what could happen and et cetera. MODERATOR: Amy turned in a 5-under today. Will you have a number going into your head tomorrow? I know 5-under seems probably a little crazy. LYDIA KO: Yeah, Amy Yang? MODERATOR: Yes. LYDIA KO: I mean she's so consistent. We've seen nine birdies from her in nine holes before. She's definitely one of the players that would do something like that. I think Catriona's 4-under yesterday, too, it was crazy. And it shows how consistent they are, and how they're making those crucial putts. I don't really have a number in my head, it just depends where they put the pin positions, where they put certain tees. Is the whether going to be good? So many factors that can change the numbers. But obviously the scores aren't crazy low. It's going to be interesting. And with the girls playing consistent, and there's a lot of big names, within four, five, six shots, who knows, that can change a round, and especially around a course like that. Q. A number of the great players, male and female, as they win more, as they get older, they really point to the majors more and more. Do you find yourself already doing that a bit? LYDIA KO: You know, my goal coming into the majors is trying to put myself in good positions. Trying to be a bit more consistent so that I feel like when I am more consistent and feel a little bit more and more comfortable, then I can put myself in positions, like right now, or try and contend. And I think that's an important thing. If I come into the year saying, hey, I want to win two out of the five majors, that can be a little unrealistic. Numbers sometimes are just numbers. All you can do is really try your best. To me consistency is the most important thing. Coming into this week I said, hey, I want to play four rounds, no matter what. And obviously to be in this position right now is really cool, to have this chance. But there's so many things to learn and experience part of these majors. And obviously if you're peaking at the majors, and you're playing your best at the majors, it's great. But there's like so many experience parts for you to learn during these events, too. Q. You're playing with Gerina tomorrow. She's never won on Tour, seems to be getting a little closer every time. How much of a threat is she specifically and why would that be the case? LYDIA KO: I mean Gerina has been playing really, really well this year. I think quite a few top-10s. She's been always putting her name up there with the leaders. She's a player that's been playing consistent and I think kind of like -- well, Ariya did, she put herself in positions, and then she had three wins in a row. I think Gerina is coming. She's such a great player. She hits the ball a long way. She's a great putter. So I think -- I'm not going to think, hey, it's me against Gerina. There's like 73 other players other than us, so I think I'm just going to focus on my game. We're going to try and have a good time. It's probably Brittany is the third? So it's going to be a great group. If I think of it as kind of a match play format like it's just me against this girl, I think I'll get too carried on with that. So I'm just going to think more about my game. Q. Your dad is not here this week, is he? LYDIA KO: He is. The whole family is here this week. Q. Kind of a nongolf related question. Seems like you're a really big Warriors fan. How did that come to be, and what do you think of their performance thus far in the finals? LYDIA KO: I like really watch their games closely, especially during the playoffs last year. It was really cool against the Cavaliers last year, and for them to be doing that again, this is kind of like déjàvu, almost. And I got to meet Andre and Steph in March last year for the Swinging Skirts Media Day. They were great. We all know what great of a basketball player they are. But they are just really school people. They were huge golf fans, too. I think that made them more of a fan that they were just so down to earth, but then they had that charismatic approach when they were on the court. I've been following them and they had a really great win, obviously, in the Cleveland games. My agent used to live in Cleveland, so he's not happy. Oh, yeah, he lives in Cleveland right now. So he's not happy. But I think the next one's a home game for the Warriors. It's exciting. Both the Cavaliers and Warriors have been doing really well this season, especially the Warriors with them setting these records. I think 88 wins or something this year. It's very impressive. MODERATOR: You know the Warriors records and you don't know your own records? Get it together, kid. Any other questions for Lydia? Thank you for coming in. Great job so far. Good luck tomorrow. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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