DIO IMPLANT LA OPEN

March 30, 2023

Hyo Joo Kim

Palos Verdes Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Here with Hyo Joo Kim. Hyo Joo, take my through this first day here, this impressive first day here at Palos Verdes?

HYO JOO KIM: It was my first U.S. tournament of the seen and I'm really satisfied that I put up a good score on the first day. The golf course here, the green is actually pretty small and I was really happy with how much I didn't miss the green today.

Q. You had a great first couple of holes. Those four birdies. Walk me through what was going so right in those first couple of holes.

HYO JOO KIM: I can't remember that well, but I remember my putter being really well. The birdie on the first hole put me into a good rhythm and then hitting really good shots after led to the birdies.

Q. What was it like going through the up and down weather conditions today? How did you stay focused?

HYO JOO KIM: So I actually played all day yesterday in the rain, so compared to yesterday, today I only got a little bit of rain, so wasn't that bad. Also the temperature was warmer today, so that helped as well.

Q. What does it mean for to you already see yourself at the top of the leaderboard in your first tournament in the U.S. this season?

HYO JOO KIM: It was good. It's been a while since I've seen my name on the top of the leaderboard so definitely extra motivation to do well in the remaining days as well.

Q. Another person towards the top of the leaderboard with you is I think a good friend, Mi Hyang Lee, who Monday qualified for this event. What does it mean to see a friend like her doing well as well?

HYO JOO KIM: Feels really good. I actually waited for her on 18 green when she was finishing up her Monday qualifying, and so happy to see her play well and hopefully this continues.

Q. (Regarding changes if any to her game this week.)

HYO JOO KIM: Not much. Not much change on the swing. Just worked out a lot and worked on some mistakes that I made earlier in the year. Just trying to correct that.

Q. How will you hit tomorrow?

HYO JOO KIM: I will hit well. Like today, I hope to not misses much greens. I hope the putter continues to do well. The grass here is a slightly different from a that in Korea, so had to adjust a little bit but didn't take that long.