MIZUHO AMERICAS OPEN

June 2, 2023

Rose Zhang

Liberty National Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Okay, here with Rose Zhang after her second round at the Mizuho Americas Open. What was different about the round today compared to yesterday? Any thoughts on that?

ROSE ZHANG: Yeah, well, first and foremost, I mean, I was playing in the afternoon. I had a tee time of 1:47 and I knew there was a lot of waiting before then, so I had to go out there and really keep the mindset of there's different holes out there that are going to be rolling out; going to be wind in the afternoon; heard the weather was coming in quick.

So I prepared myself there, and that was it. I just tried to play as best as I could throughout that round.

Q. Speaking of weather, I know weather delay is never easy. What do you do during the delay to stay focused?

ROSE ZHANG: It was actually one of my most favorite memories, just even now. I think that weather delays can be very long and weather delays are honestly not ideal, but I had a great time with the rest of the AJGA juniors out there.

A lot of them that I played golf within junior golf. Oops I was with Katie, Jaclyn, and Jasmine, et cetera, et cetera. We were all just having a good time. There was a lot of common ground, especially with my teammates being freshmen and being close friends with them.

So we all just had a really good time sitting around a table and talking about random things.

Q. Awesome. Let's talk a little bit about the round today. Another chip-in eagle for you. I think the same hole you chipped in yesterday.

ROSE ZHANG: Yes.

Q. But it was birdie. What is it about 13 that you like?

ROSE ZHANG: It was incredible. Today's chip-in was not anticipated, much like yesterday, but it was definitely going past 20 feet. I was just trying to get it close to the hole and I'm glad it hit the pin otherwise it would've been smooth sailing over.

But I've been really fortunate on that hole, been really lucky. I'm super grateful that it just dropped for me.

Q. Yeah, what are you most looking forward to tomorrow, your first cut made as a professional? What are the nerves like? What are you looking forward to playing in one of the leading groups?

ROSE ZHANG: Yeah, I'm super excited to be playing in one of the leading groups. Going into this week I definitely did not anticipate that. If anything, I was thinking about just struggling to make the cut.

I think tomorrow and the day after will be also no expectations on me; more so learning what it means to be playing in a lead group as a professional and going from there.

I'm sure Gilly has plenty of experience, especially with his former players being such amazing players, so I will be definitely leaning on him and I'll just be enjoying it every single step.

Q. You talked about how you had a lot of time before today's round, and knowing that you're going to be in one of the final groups tomorrow, what do you do to prepare for your round? What's your progression through the time leading up to your team time look like?

ROSE ZHANG: Well, always food. Food is fuel to the body, so I'll be getting some breakfast depending on when my tee time is, right before then.

And then I usually start my practice, warmup an hour and ten minutes prior. The ten minutes being sort of stretching and I always jump rope 200 jumps.

So it's always something that I do right before a round and I go from there. I feel like everything is very routine, especially things have been working for me in the past in other tournaments, so I tried not to think about trying to change my warmup or routine session.

Q. Has this week been hard on you at all to try to not treat it like it is any different?

ROSE ZHANG: Yeah, it's been a little bit difficult because I've been pulled in every single direction. I've been trying to maintain what I know, and I think that's been a great help for me as a player and as a competitor, because I'm going out here and doing the same thing as I always do and playing the game of golf that I love.

So I don't really think too much of what's happening around me, but it certainly has tested my waters a little bit more.

Q. And what about this course do you find to be attackable for your game the most?

ROSE ZHANG: This course is very difficult, but I think this golf course also brings out the test for every single golfer.

You've got tight fairways. You've got bunkers that are steep. The greens are very difficult to read. You have a lot of double breakers.

So I think that just being able to place your golf ball where you need to, having a good game plan, a good strategy, and also accommodating to the wind and adjusting whatever you need to is very crucial for this golf course in particular.

So I kind of love these golf courses. I love how the they make you think. I would just say that it suits me in that aspect. Mental game is very important and that's one of my assets.

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