	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

MARATHON CLASSIC PRESENTED BY OWENS CORNING AND O-I

July 15, 2016

Lydia Ko

Toledo, Ohio

Q. So you had a few more birdies like you talked about wanting yesterday.
LYDIA KO: Yeah.

Q. You're now in the lead.
LYDIA KO: Yeah, I started off well with a birdie on my first hole, and then made a clumsy bogey on the next hole. I hit a few good shots in. I had a few birdies where it was three, four, five feet. When you got those birdie chances makes it a whole lot easier.

The wind was picking up the back nine. No. 9, I don't think I've ever come into that green with a 6-iron, and so it was playing much tougher coming home.

Q. Typically what do you have into that 9th green?
LYDIA KO: I've hit pitching wedges in there. I've hit 8-, 9-irons, 7-irons, but 6-iron is the max. I just got it on the green, so it could have almost been a 5-iron length. It just shows how windy it is.

I think this is the windiest I've ever played this course.

Q. I know yesterday you bogeyed No. 1. Did it feel good to get it back and birdie No. 1 today?
LYDIA KO: Yeah. I think the key on No. 1 is to hit the fairway; I did that. I almost hit it a little too far and I was hitting off the downslope.

You know, coming in with a shorter iron, I think it just compensated for that. It's definitely nice to come back to a hole where you didn't play so well and birdie it the next day.

Q. You established your consistency on the course, but what is the biggest difference between today's round and yesterday's round besides the wind?
LYDIA KO: I think I had few more looks for birdies and a few that decided to drop. Even today I had a few that were so close to going in and didn't drop. I felt like I did leave a few out there.

In this wind and in the conditions I feel like my score is a pretty solid one this morning.

Q. I know you're No. 1 and play well on a lot of different courses. Is there something about this course that sets up with your game?
LYDIA KO: It's not a long course out here. When the wind gets up a few holes can play long.

I think it's more about creativity. Sometimes you're not going to hit driver off the tee. It's going to be the 3-woods or hybrids. You just need to play smart. There are some steeper pin positions, so when there are those tougher pin positions you need to play a little safer.

When it's gettable, you need to be a bit more aggressive.

Q. When you do have success at a course like this one, do you go into it maybe mentally different than another course?
LYDIA KO: I don't think so. At the back of my mind just to know that I can play well at this course and I have played well, I think it gives me confidence. I don't think mentally or strategically I come in playing the course a little differently because I played well here before.

Q. After the way you finished last week, did you have to take a step back and retool mentally?
LYDIA KO: Yeah, obviously wasn't the fanciest final round at the Open, but still the best finish I've had at the US Open. Just to be even close to winning that championship was really cool.

Hopefully I get in that position again. I didn't feel that down or disappointed. Obviously disappointing at times, but I still felt like I played solid. There were just so many positives to take from it. It was a really fun week. Obviously every week is a new week.

I know this course is so different to CordeValle, but even though it wasn't the greatest Sunday, I still thought it was a great week.

Q. (Regarding young golfers.)
LYDIA KO: Yeah, I mean, golf, it's a sport where age is just a number. Experience is a totally different thing. It's great to see girls my age, like Brooke or Minjee. It's a mixed leaderboard. It's not just us teens here. There are veterans and girls that have been on tour for ten years or longer.

I think that's the great thing about our tour and the sport itself. Especially if you're injury-free, you can play for a really long time. We're so fortunate to be able to play this sport that we love for this long period of time.

Q. Is it reinvigorating for you after last week to many come here and all the fans are supportive? Does that wipe the memories away?
LYDIA KO: I mean, I don't really have that much negative memory from next week -- next week? Last week. It's always good to many come back to fans who are really supportive.

Last week was probably one of the coolest fans I've ever had. The whole last round there were a lot of, Hey, Go Kiwi, Go New Zealand, Go Lydia. That's so cool to hear, especially here in the States where even though it's not my national Open, they were treating me as if I was their own.

That was really cool. We all love seeing the crowds out here. The numbers are bigger today than yesterday. I'm sure it will progressively grow the next few days.

Q. As long as you continue growing your success, do you put pressure on yourself?
LYDIA KO: You know, sometimes there is self- pressure if you keep continuing to put yourself in good positions. I feel like, yeah, I probably did put some self- pressure, but it's part of the learning process. I needed to know that, Hey, even though you might be in the opportunities, sometimes you're going to be holding the trophy at the end of the week and sometimes you're not.

You just need to have the balance. It's not all about me. I could play great golf and someone could play better than me. I could play average and someone could play less than me. You just never know what's going to happen. At the end of the day, all I got to do is try my best and have a lot of fun out there.

Those are the big keys for me.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297