KPMG WOMEN'S PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

October 9, 2020

Kelly Tan

Aronimink Golf Club

Quick Quotes

THE MODERATOR: Back here with Kelly Tan, who just shot a 1-over 70 today. A little different from yesterday, but still you're well in contention, right up at the top of the leaderboard. What are your thoughts as you finish up your round today?

KELLY TAN: Yeah, you know, today I was just trying to get out there, again, hitting fairways and greens, keep giving myself those uphill putts, and I hit a couple of loose iron shots, but I managed to make some up-and-downs and make some birdies.

THE MODERATOR: You had a good round today, some up-and-downs both on the course and literally on the card. Any one of your birdies that really stood out to you as a good moment, maybe one that saved a bit of a struggle there?

KELLY TAN: Yeah, I believe 14. I started on 10 today. 14 -- I made a bogey on --

THE MODERATOR: You had a bogey on 10 and had a double bogey on 12.

KELLY TAN: Yeah, so that was a good bounce back for me.

THE MODERATOR: Going into the weekend you're going to be toward the top of the leaderboard. Where are you mentally with the success that's been coming for you the last couple weeks and now here at Aronimink?

KELLY TAN: Yeah, I'm happy to be where I'm at, first of all, and again, we have 36 more holes to go, and there's a lot more golf left, and I just want to keep hitting fairways and hitting greens and just play my own game one shot at a time.

Q. As you look at the weekend ahead and being in the mix, what do you think is the most important thing on the weekend to stay right there?

KELLY TAN: I think you have to just keep giving yourself those uphill looks. Not necessarily hitting the greens are good, sometimes you have to -- for instance, if the pin is short you want to stay short just to give yourself the uphill chips just so you can be aggressive on those. And yeah, I think that's the one thing that I will pay more attention on just to make sure that even though if I'm pin high, and as long as I'm uphill putting, that would be great.

Q. What was the hiccup on 12?

KELLY TAN: You know, it wasn't a great second shot for me, just a little loose to the right. It was in the rough, and I think I -- I got a bad bounce. The rough where I was, my lie wasn't great, and I just couldn't -- short-sided myself and hit my chip a little too hard and it just went over and rolled down the other side of the green, and it was just another tough up-and-down from there.

Q. What were the differences in the course conditions and the weather from yesterday to today?

KELLY TAN: Well, first of all, we teed off at 7:43 this morning and it was really cold, so the ball really wasn't flying. When we crossed to our back nine, the greens are really starting to firm up, so that's probably the biggest thing. You have to allow for me -- I don't spin the ball as much as the other players, and I have to allow 15 to 18 steps short of the green where I need to land, from where the flag is. It's just something that me and my caddie have to adapt.

Q. The play on the weekend will be early. It's cold, but is it worth the trade-off to get greens that are probably running better than in the afternoon?

KELLY TAN: Absolutely. I think putting on nice fresh greens in the morning, it's definitely nice.

Q. You're in the midst of a great stretch here, but just looking back at sort of the trajectory of your career, did you have an injury or something in 2017 or was there just a --

KELLY TAN: No, it wasn't an injury. It was just something that I guess professional golfers go through, you know, the ups and the downs. You know what, I'm so happy that I went through those down times because it taught me so much about myself. I'm just so proud that I fought through that, and I'm just happy to be where I'm at.

Q. Was it a mechanic thing, a swing mechanic thing?

KELLY TAN: I think, yeah, a little bit of both, mechanics and then it kind of ruins your confidence a little bit that way, and yeah, it's just a little bit of both mentally and technically. But again, I didn't regret where I put myself back then because I sure learned a lot about myself.

Q. What kind of turned it around for you?

KELLY TAN: You know, I just feel like I have a really great team of people around me, my coach, my trainer. They've never stopped believing in me from day one, even though I doubted myself back then. So I thought that's something that money probably couldn't buy. I'm so grateful for them and my family. Just the support that I have is amazing.