BANK OF HOPE LPGA MATCH-PLAY

May 25, 2022

Megan Khang

Shadow Creek

Quick Quotes

Q. All right, here with Megan Khang after her first round at the Bank of Hope LPGA Match-Play presented by MGM Rewards. Megan, tell me, that was a really hard-fought match. I feel like you were down a little bit there and then you fought your way back. Tell me what was the mentality that you needed to have to do that?

MEGAN KHANG: Honestly, I was 2-down pretty early. Didn't have my best game out there. You know, was really just trying to play consistent out there. Greens were firming up; I was trying to adjust for that.

Hit some good shots and then Andrea did also help a little, which is kind of what you need in match play sometimes.

So took advantage of those situations and then -- again, with the 2-down, I think going into the turn it was just kind of like, here we go again.

Jack was obviously there and he was like, Let's do it again. We can do this. Just kept an even keel mentality out there.

Q. Yeah. So I know the conditions are a little hot and you've had lunch and cooled down a little bit. Tell me, how is it feeling going all 18 holes?

MEGAN KHANG: I'm not going to lie, I hadn't seen 18 this whole week. I switched from 17 to straight back to 9 because I knew we were playing 9 -- you're guaranteed to play 9 all matches, so I got to 18 and I was like, Jack, I haven't played this hole yet.

We were kind of joking like we were hoping not to get to 18 in a match, but sometimes you got to do what you got to do. Fortunately enough, like we went to 18, hit some good shots, and then Andrea had a really good putt on the line and I loved my line, just happened to leave it a little short, so ended up with a tie. I'll take the tie after not having my best game out there.

Q. How do you feel about that switch, the course's 18 is now No. 9?

MEGAN KHANG: You know, I do like the fact that we play the course's 18. I thin it's a very good signature hole. It's nice that we do get to play it no matter what. Hopefully I don't have to see the course's 9 again, hopefully in my favor.

Other than that, I'm glad we get to play it no matter what.

Q. And knowing you had a long round today and you've got more golf, a lot more hopefully, what are you going to do today to decompress, relax, and get ready for tomorrow?

MEGAN KHANG: I mean, Jack and I talked about it earlier in the week. We don't want to overexhaust ourselves this early. We know we're guaranteed three rounds out here, and we never know how long the matches are going to go.

So I'm just going to go putt a little, have a little relaxation, and then I'm actually going to go watch a show tonight that MGM was nice enough to provide us.

So thank you to them. And just try to sleep in with a 2:55 tee time tomorrow. I got plenty of time to rest.

Q. Right. Hydrate too, hopefully. What show?

MEGAN KHANG: Jabbawockeez.

Q. Nice. Wanted to talk big picture with you. You played Solheim Cup. You obviously have a lot of talent but you don't have a win yet. How much frustration is there week to week, month to month, that you haven't got that win yet?

MEGAN KHANG: I don't know if I would say frustrated. I definitely, definitely see myself winning out here, and I see myself, given the last two weeks, giving myself the opportunity.

I know like as soon as I kind of get one foot into the door the hardest thing is getting that second foot. Giving myself these opportune these last few weeks and just coming out here with the best mentality of like this is could be my week; let's make it my week.

And just having my caddie kind of reiterate that to me and my team, my family at home kind of tell me the same thing. We try to come up with the most positive energy, and at the end of the day I'm going to always try to put my best foot out there, and hopefully gets me on top.

If not, we got the next week and hopefully it's going to come this year, maybe this week.

Q. When you have close calls and you don't close the deal, does the frustration carry over a week? Do you let it go Sunday night?

MEGAN KHANG: It definitely stays with me. I'm not going to lie. I'll be completely honest, PV, that week kind of -- I walked off 18 knowing -- I walked off 16 kind of knowing that that putt might have cost me getting into a playoff or potentially winning the event.

Fortunately enough I had Jack on the bag and he kind of told me on 17 -- he let me vent from 16 green to 17 tee, and he was like right before we talked about numbers and clubs he was like, all right, let it go. We're going to do what we can with these next two holes. He was right there to bring my back in and kind of tell me to get myself together, compose myself, and do my best.

You know, just knowing that like I didn't necessarily make the putts I wanted to and still finishing tied for third, it's definitely there and we definitely see the win in the future.

Q. I wanted to ask about this event. You played last year and this year, both the week before the U.S. Open.

MEGAN KHANG: Yeah.

Q. Is that an issue for you deciding to play here or...

MEGAN KHANG: I mean, it was definitely a big decision whether to come cross country to Vegas to go back over to Pine Needles. This tournament is a lot of fun. It's a great event.

I personally think it's really good prep for the Open because this golf course itself is a very nice golf course, very prestigious. It is hard to get some shots close and sometimes you are just going to have to take a par, which is the same mentality at the U.S. Open.

Especially when it's match play and you have that two-footer, two-, three-footer on the last hole to win or tie the match and stuff like that. So it definitely translates well to the U.S. Open.

Q. Stacy was talking yesterday about trying to get this moved to a better date. Would that be something you'd be in favor of?

MEGAN KHANG: I definitely think so. I think if it does move maybe not before the U.S. Open, a lot more girls would come.

I mean, I will probably almost come every time it's put on. That's me personally. They're missing out. We get to reap the rewards of coming out here.

Q. You just said this course is great and you strategized a little bit. Just tell me, did you learn anything today that you're going to carry on? You got two more rounds.

MEGAN KHANG: I definitely learned that course is firming up. I'm going to have to be a little more reserved. I tend to be a little more aggressive, especially in match play. Kind of I was joking with Jack where I -- in this format I feel like I can be a little more aggressive, try to do the harder shots, try to pull off shots that I normally wouldn't in a stroke play tournament.

And so I think I'm going to stick to kind of that same mentality, but at the same time, given how firm the course is getting, definitely going to try to use a lot more of the slopes that the course provides us.

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