COGNIZANT FOUNDERS CUP

May 14, 2023

Minjee Lee

Upper Montclair Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Here with Minjee Lee. First off, we just wrapped up. What did it feel like to see the support when you got done today?

MINJEE LEE: I mean, it was nice. The girls always have a smile on their faces, so made me feel good to see them.

Q. Yeah. And let's just walk me through your round today. Talk about some of the highlights today. Several birdies out there.

MINJEE LEE: Yeah, I mean, I birdied two holes in a row on the back nine and they were both really good holes for me.

So, yeah, I think I kind of just got a little bit more momentum on those holes and tried to, you know, play solid to finish the round.

I think I did pretty well, despite the last hole. Yeah.

Q. Absolutely. What was going through your head through the last few holes?

MINJEE LEE: Not too much. I heard the roar when Jin Young birdied 18 so I knew I was probably going to be tied if I didn't birdie the last hole.

Yeah, no, I chipped it really well and it just missed.

But, yeah, I still think I played really solid today and throughout the whole week really.

Q. Starting the round with the lead today, how do you maintain your composure in those high-pressure situations, especially in a playoff?

MINJEE LEE: I think you just have to stay calm, and, you know, do all the things that you can control. That is probably the only thing that you can do. Just try and be patient and just take one step at a time. Hit the shot as it comes and assess it as it is.

Yeah, I think that is probably the best way to keep your composure.

Q. What can you take away from the finish? Obviously not the result you wanted. Heading into further tournaments and the rest of the majors down the stretch.

MINJEE LEE: Yeah, I mean, apparently this is only my fifth start on tour this year, so it actually doesn't feel like I've only played five events.

I have, so I mean, it's still pretty early I guess in my season and I have a lot more events coming up. So I feel like I could take a lot of positives into, you know, the next couple majors coming up and obviously Mizuho is my next event.

Yeah, I think I'm going to train hard the next two weeks and be ready for Mizuho.

Q. Is this one that you might be kicking yourself about in the sense that you had the two-shot lead with three to go and you kind of struggled early?

MINJEE LEE: Not really, because, I mean, yes obviously I would've liked to have won, but looking back at my whole year and just kind of assessing where I am -- how I did this week, I think a lot more positives than negatives.

Obviously I'm a little bit disappointed, but I think I can take more of the happy moments into my next -- into the next stretch of events and the rest of the year.

So I'm not totally unhappy but obviously I would've liked a better result. Yeah.

Q. The other question was on 6, was that just a miss-hit or...

Went into the water.

MINJEE LEE: Well, I totally hit it fat, so obviously it was never going to get there. But, yeah, miss-hit. I mean, just didn't put a good swing on it.