FM CHAMPIONSHIP

August 29, 2024

Megan Khang

TPC Boston

Quick Quotes

Q. Here with Megan Khang, our resident favorite at the FM Championship. Great day today; 2-under, which is solid given the course conditions. How do you feel the day went today?

MEGAN KHANG: You know starting out it's always a little nerve-wracking playing in front of a home crowd, but trying to take that nervous energy to excited to hopefully give the home crowd something to root for.

A little shaky off the first few holes. A little frustrated not getting the ball super close and having to scramble, but getting those up and downs really helps the confidence.

And then the back nine kind of turned it around. Was pretty steady throughout the entire day. Hit some really great shots. Couldn't quite hold them and really tried to stay patient out there. Really happy with the finish of a birdie, par, birdie out there given the conditions.

Q. Yeah. You started on the front so ended on 18.

MEGAN KHANG: Yes.

Q. 18 seems like a really tough hole for a lot of people today, but you put a birdie together out there. How did that feel? Take us through that birdie.

MEGAN KHANG: It's great because 16 and 18 obviously have a huge stands behind, and you want give the people something to clap for. There is something about being able to put something together. It's a great feeling of just confidence in myself.

It felt a very comfortable number. Funny enough, they were both the same number for both holes. Having the result on 16 definitely gave my a lot more confidence to know I can execute the same shot on 18.

You know, put a good stroke on it and said if it goes in, it goes in, great. If it doesn't, we still have hopefully three more days to get after it. Being currently one behind the lead isn't such a bad spot to be in.

Q. No. You mentioned that things kind of turned around for you on the back nine. What changed from the front nine to the back nine throughout the day?

MEGAN KHANG: I think I just kind of settled down. I was drinking a lot of water out there trying to calm the nerves. It's very exciting to be at home; trying not to disappoint.

But at the same time, I got to go out there, and my caddie kept reminding me to play my own game. People are going to love me whether or not I play well or not.

So just kind of settling the nerves and making those up and downs to make sure I stayed in the moment. You know, just really like relied on my ball striking and my ability to play this game, and I'm very fortunate to be able to.

Q. What was it like hearing the cheers for you, especially on 16 and 18?

MEGAN KHANG: It was awesome. I was kind of frustrated missing the birdie putts on 11 and 12 from relatively close distances; probably the same distance, if not a little closer.

You know, there was a family out there with two young girls and they made my day so much better. Even though I missed some putts they were still cheering for me. It was super cute. Every hole I would be walking off and she gave my two thumbs up.

Little stuff like that helps me stay in a positive mindset. That's just a huge part of being at home.

Q. And you're one back from the lead now. How do you go into tomorrow? What do you do tonight, bringing that confidence to tomorrow morning now?

MEGAN KHANG: FM is being super generous again. Tonight they're putting on a players' dinner at the hotel. I'm going to go there, shower, get a great meal to eat from FM, and just come out here and hopefully do the same thing. Hopefully settle a little sooner than maybe nine holes.

But just kind of stay patient out there and trust myself again and the course is in great condition. Just got to trust myself out there. I guess play with some conviction out there.

Q. 3-under, maybe 4-under will be one of our highest first-round scores. Did you expect TPC Boston to play so tough today? Were you shocked at the toughness of it, or no?

MEGAN KHANG: For me, funny enough, this is my first afternoon practice round, or round I should say. I played in the morning both days in the practice round and pro-am.

So I knew that TPC has some - I know TPC has some teeth to it. I'm not entirely surprised. These greens are slick. Sometimes you're going to have to hit a lot of die-in putts. Hannah unfortunately had one of the nastiest lip-outs I think I saw today. I swear she didn't even hit it hard.

Just kind of shows you how smooth and tight cut the cups are. So if you're rolling the rock great, this could be a course for you. This course does have some demanding tee shots and second shots and you're going to have to accept your medicine.

I'm not entirely shocked because I know, again, TPC can be a challenge and it is a challenge.