	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 7, 2016

Lydia Ko

San Martin, California

LYDIA KO: The back nine, the wind started picking up. But because of the wind, the greens and the surroundings of the greens got firmer. But I think that's what you have to expect, to be a little softer in the mornings, and definitely firm up as the day goes on, and especially in the afternoons.

Q. How was it to get the ball close to the hole?
LYDIA KO: I think some holes if the wind is helping and the pin's at the front, it is a little more difficult to get it near it. But this wind was a little different, too, when I played the last two days. The hole is coming this way, we played it downwind today but it was into. Some holes were a little easier because of that. Some holes were a little tougher.

But it's the U.S. Open, it's a major, so there are going to be holes where you can't really go for the pin all the time.

Q. What did you think when you saw the scores this morning? It didn't seem like a U.S. Open for a while?
LYDIA KO: Yeah, Mirim, I don't know what course she played, maybe the ladies tees, maybe a different course. But she played fantastic. I saw -- we were checking the leaderboard, she made two bogeys and still shot 8-under. It's very impressive. She must have hit a lot of fairways and made good putts. I think obviously that's the key.

Q. What did you feel like wasn't as sharp?
LYDIA KO: My short game wasn't as good. When I did miss a green, I didn't make that many up and downs. In majors, it is tough to get around the pin. You do have to scramble. And that's what I was missing today. And with -- it's not like I shot the ball terribly, it was fine, it was just the putts didn't drop. And those few putts that sometimes lip out, lip in, those are the two or three shots that can swing from over par straight to under par.

Q. Seemed like everybody in the group was scrambling a little bit. Did you talk amongst yourselves about how difficult things were going?
LYDIA KO: We're talking out there, but we're not saying how difficult it is. We're talking about where we're staying, what's for dinner. We talk about food. But we were still talking. It was a good group. I played with Lexi a lot this year, so I think we're both used to each other. Brooke is also really fun to play with. We had a good time. Hopefully tomorrow all three of us can play a lot better and go from there.

Q. What do you expect the next two days when scores are low like this?
LYDIA KO: Yeah, I would say I think we had the -- with how nice the weather has been and with the wind picking up in the afternoon, I think the greens naturally are going to get much firmer and even the fairways, too. So even if they had the same pin positions, because it is firmer, they're the same pins that were approachable, might be a little tougher to get near. But I think that's what we're all expecting, to be a little bouncier.

But you have to play smart. Some holes you need to go for the middle of the green and some when you have the chance, you need to just go for it.

Q. (Inaudible.)
LYDIA KO: Yeah, I mean, just apart from the fact that it was a long run, we started late today at 2:00 or 3:00. That's late for the middle of the pack. Normally we're at 1:30, around that time. Even though we're at the range at like 12:30, 1:00, we're still saying good morning, because naturally you wake up later and all that. But it's obviously harder because the sun's going down. You feel like it's dinnertime, not lunchtime.

But those are the things, and these U.S. Opens the tee time spans are much bigger. You could be much earlier or much later than usual. But it's part of it. And everybody pretty much has fair tee times. It's not like we have a disadvantage going a little later.

Q. Did it feel like more of a grind out there?
LYDIA KO: I don't think so. I mean, obviously because I was trying to -- when I did need to make the up-and-downs, you need to work hard for that. But it wasn't necessarily a grind because we were out there for a long time. But when the course gets tougher, naturally we tend to be on the course for a little longer than usual.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297