THE LPGA DRIVE ON CHAMPIONSHIP

January 28, 2024

Auston Kim

Bradenton Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. All right, I'm here with Auston Kim after her final round at the LPGA Drive On Championship. Just talk about what it was like today to play with Lydia and also just your first full-field event here being a rookie. What's the week been like for you?

AUSTON KIM: I feel a lot of emotions right now. It was so amazing to watch Lydia play today. I don't know what the result is right now. Is she --

Q. She's leading; Nelly needs to make birdie to force a playoff.

AUSTON KIM: Well, she played so well today. Hats off to her. It was really cool to watch how calm she was especially after she made a big number so early in the round.

Yeah, it was a very stressful week. I'm not going to lie. But I felt a lot of emotions coming down the last six holes. I'm so grateful to be able to do this for a living.

Yeah, I'm just so grateful right now. I didn't think I was going to get this emotional, but I'm so grateful for what I do. I'm so very grateful that this is my job and I have the privilege to be here. I just really enjoyed playing golf this week. I had so much fun.

I can't wait to see where this takes me.

Q. This is going to be a where-were-you-when moment. What an honor is it to be in the same group as Lydia as she potentially reaches the Hall of Fame?

AUSTON KIM: I agree. It's so inspiring to watch her progress over the last few years. If she manages to win this tournament, understand all that pressure and all the people saying Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame, that is just an incredible athlete right there.

Hats off to her.

Q. What do you go from here? Hell of a way to start the rookie season. What's next?

AUSTON KIM: The emotions is that I'm pretty disappointed. I made three bogeys in a row on the back. I really felt like I could win this tournament. I know that's a lot coming out of a rookie's mouth, but I made a lot of mistakes this week. I made a lot of mistakes this week.

Q. Do you want to go watch that?

AUSTON KIM: You guys can go watch. What was the question again?

Q. What are do you go from here?

AUSTON KIM: Yeah, yeah, there is a lot of disappointment for me personally. I know there is a lot of room for improvement, room for my game to improve and for my mental acuity to get sharper. Very proud of my first showing this year.