LPGA MEDIHEAL CHAMPIONSHIP

October 8, 2022

Danielle Kang

The Saticoy Club

Quick Quotes

Q. All right here about Danielle Kang. Danielle, bogey-free round out here at Saticoy. Take me through what was working well for you?

DANIELLE KANG: My ball striking worked really well today. I was getting very frustrated on the greens. So was my playing partner, Hye-Jin. We were making nothing out there.

I think the greens are just so slow and I think they need to cut them. I think it's enough of just letting them grow out. I think members are pretty upset. They're coming up to me for the last four days infuriated that the greens are playing this slow. We both couldn't get it to the hole. Eventually we started playing money game and start smashing putts. That's how we started making birdies on the back three holes.

Q. This is two days in a row your last couple of holes you really have been able to put up some great birdie looks. What is it about those last couple holes that you like the most, 16 and 17?

DANIELLE KANG: I'm getting to a point where I just don't give a shit at that point. I just missed every single putt coming in. At one point you just get to a point where you have to hit it as hard as you can; that's what I did.

Ended up making couple putts, which was good. I love that Hye-Jin threw a fist pump on the last hole, because that was to take money from me. So, I mean, we had to somehow play our own game, and I really enjoyed playing with her today, because at the end of the day I know it's a tournament, but it's fun to have a partner that you can banter with and egg each other on to play better. So that's what happened.

Q. Have you played with her before?

DANIELLE KANG: Long time ago. But she's a player that I don't get paired very often. There are some draws that you get paired, and, yeah, but I really enjoyed playing with her today.

Q. Any surprise you and Andrea, two SoCal gals, are up near the top of the leaderboard at Southern California golf course?

DANIELLE KANG: Yeah, I guess Andrea has been playing really well. I'm really impressed by her game. She's a recent champ. I think she's on a good momentum, good mojo, feeling good about her game. That's how golfers work, right? When you're playing good you just kind of ride that wave.

We kind of freak out when we lose the wave as well. So that's kind of the journey of a golfer.

Q. I followed you for the front nine. You could have been 6-under through six the way you were hitting the ball. How frustrating was it to not see some of those putts drop?

DANIELLE KANG: Yeah, I have a rule where -- I don't even know where that came from -- I have a rule where I say -- I don't tell myself I should've, could've, would've. That's the worst thing you could have done.

I three-putted five times yesterday, so I could have been five shots less, right? And they were not three-puttable putts. I was 20 feet three-putting. It is what it is, right?

I finished birdie, birdie, birdie, last three holes yesterday. Finished 5-under in the last three holes last two days. So I could have been less as well.

I am meant to be where I'm meant to be right now. Hopefully I get some speed dialed in. I'm really hoping my putter gets hot, because I feel really good. So my ball striking is great and I'm flagging a lot of shots.

I know I'm going to get a call from Butch later saying, why is your score so high, looking at the stats. But he's going to have to understand that, hey, it's Saticoy Country Club. Nothing breaks less than a cup. Just give me a little bit of a break.

Hopefully tomorrow my putter gets hot like it normally does sometimes, and just give it a really good run.

Q. Do you expect them to speed the greens up?

DANIELLE KANG: It doesn't matter to me. I'm kind of in a mindset where always on the last day I've got nothing to lose. I've played out here long enough where I'm not looking for seconds or Top 5s or Top 10s.

It doesn't matter if I three-putt. Probably just going to smash putts all day tomorrow.

Q. I was just going to say, one more from me. We were talking yesterday how much you want to play well here, on the Golf Channel, about how much you want to play well at Saticoy.

DANIELLE KANG: Yeah.

Q. What's the mindset as you head into the final day of competition?

DANIELLE KANG: I had so many friends come out today. They were here in the front nine and the back nine they were getting ready for the barbecue. Yeah, we're having a barbecue today. I got emotional because these are the kids I grew up with. I've known them since I was 12, 13. My best friend's out here. One of my friends has a baby now, who I never thought would have a baby. All of a sudden Glen is here, Eli is here, Hillary is here, Nicole.

I love seeing that. My college golf coach was out here. High school golf coach was out here. It's fun, and I just hope that -- it's been kind of on my Bucket List to come back home, and Saticoy is as close as I've got so far. Everyone thought Wilshire was close, but it wasn't, right?

So my next goal is Sherwood I guess. I'm hoping that somehow I make a really good entertaining round tomorrow and give it a good run for the Southern California people and see what happens.