BANK OF HOPE LPGA MATCH-PLAY

May 27, 2021

Minjee Lee

Shadow Creek

Quick Quotes

Q. Minjee Lee, a 4&3 winner over Cheyenne Knight on day two of the Bank of Hope LPGA Match Play. Minjee, Cheyenne took an early lead and you bounced back and really never looked back after that. After the quick deficit, how did you bounce back so efficiently on No. 3?

MINJEE LEE: I feel like this golf course is really tricky, so any -- I mean, each hole just to make par I think is a good score, and obviously if it's a reachable par-5 obviously going to go for it.

But I just feel like par is a good score around here, and just the greens were really bouncing this afternoon. It was just quite tricky on the putting greens. They were quick, too. So I just felt like I was keeping to my game, play I guess to my strengths, and just played smart.

So I just tried to make the least amount of mistakes as possible.

Q. Under par is a good score. You had four pars that won holes today.

MINJEE LEE: I did.

Q. We've seen pars and bogeys win holes.

MINJEE LEE: Yeah, for sure.

Q. As the course gets drier and it gets warmer over the next few days --

MINJEE LEE: Yep.

Q. -- do you anticipate that being more the case?

MINJEE LEE: Oh, yeah, definitely. It's really, really warm out here and it's just getting drier and drier. I feel like the greens are just getting harder and faster, so I do think that by the end of the week par is going to be a good score.

Obviously par-5s they're reachable or you can be a bit more aggressive, but, yeah, I think you just got to play smart around here. Yeah, and the rough is really sticky, so...

Q. You tied with Jaye Marie yesterday, and then obviously the win today. That sets up a win-in-advance showdown with Moriya tomorrow who beat Jaye today.

MINJEE LEE: Uh-huh.

Q. When you have that, it prepares you for what's going to come over the weekend with the knock-out stage, but is there a little pressure or is it a little more freeing to have that opportunity ahead tomorrow?

MINJEE LEE: Yeah, definitely, I just think it's going to be really fun to go out there and that will be the deciding match. So, yeah, I just think I'm going to go out there and have as much fun as I did today.

Today is my birthday so I was never not going to have fun. Yeah, no, I just think it's just going to be exciting to go up against Mo, so we'll see.

Q. Birthday week in Vegas can't be too bad.

MINJEE LEE: I know, but we can't go to the casino. I don't know how to gamble anyway, but just, I don't know, the atmosphere.

Q. Have you been able to find a nice restaurant for dinner?

MINJEE LEE: I had Din Tai Fung a couple times, you know, can just walk to the Aria Resort, so, yeah, no, it's been good. Good food around here.

Q. How good is Din Tai Fung?

MINJEE LEE: Oh, I don't think you can go wrong. The dumplings, fried rice.

Q. Going Sunday.

MINJEE LEE: All the Korean food I've had this week has been really good as well.

Q. Nice. What in particular do you celebrate a birthday with for dinner?

MINJEE LEE: I'm not sure yet. I don't know what I feel like. Yeah, I don't know. We'll see.

Q. Cake?

MINJEE LEE: Oh, I got myself this little slice of came this morning. I haven't eaten it yet. It's waiting for me.

Q. I was going to say, that should've been breakfast.

MINJEE LEE: No, I had a really good breakfast. I went to this nice little cafe. Yeah, no, the cake a waiting for me.

Q. Awesome. Well go enjoy it. Happy birthday.

MINJEE LEE: Thank you.