NW ARKANSAS CHAMPIONSHIP

September 27, 2024

Yu Liu

Pinnacle Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. All right, welcome back to the LPGA Tour. We haven't seen you out here I feel like since the Dow Championship.

YU LIU: Yes.

Q. What was it like preparing for this week at Walmart?

YU LIU: Yeah, this is my first day out after two and a half months. Probably I took the longest break I've ever had in my career. I had to do an eye surgery which kept me away for that long.

And thankfully, I'm here. I'm really happy to be competing again.

Q. For you, what did the recovery process look like and when did you pick up a club again?

YU LIU: Around two weeks ago. I actually felt really fresh at first, but then everything went downwards after that. I felt like I took a little -- I tried to force things a little too much, so my body wasn't really taking it as well, so I was feeling some stiffness here and there.

I was not striking the ball as well as I would've liked. I felt like today I just managed my game really well and I'm really happy to be able to turn in a score like this today.

Q. I feel like if people were watching today they would've never known that was the case when you were recovering.

YU LIU: I bet.

Q. What's it like being back here and taking advantage of a day like today?

YU LIU: I just realized I had the lowest round of the year. (Laughter.) I mean, after two and a half month break; maybe that's what I needed I guess.

Q. What was working so well out there for you today? What were some of the highlights?

YU LIU: I felt like I just had really good perspectives on my game. I wasn't really trying too hard to do anything. Just take it one day at a time. Today I had a new caddie -- not new; we worked together before. Mercer. He was 11 years caddieing for Shanshan and I feel like we get along really well.

If anything I did really well on the greens today. I mean, the wind kind of picked up towards the end which made it tough to be accurate with putting and approach, but I felt like I managed the whole thing really well.

Q. If you don't mind me asking, what was it about the surgery? Was it like Lasik or something else?

YU LIU: No, it was to repair my retina.

Q. And for you, was that one of the biggest breaks you have taken from golf in a bit?

YU LIU: Yes, 100%. I've never taken that much. If anything, for the people that know me, I like to play. I practice a lot. But I felt like those little hiccups really changed a lot of things on me. I feel really lucky to be able to see results.

Q. What is it about returning to this event, community-wide event with Mercer on the bag who you have familiarity with in the past? What's it like being back here in Arkansas?

YU LIU: Oh, it's always really nice to be back in this little town. I feel like Walmart has done so much to elevate the women's game which we're really grateful for. When I come here the hospitality is always top notch. The course condition is always nice. Greens were rolling so pure in morning. It's just hard not to enjoy yourself when you're out here.

Q. I don't know because I haven't seen you, haven't been able to ask, have you talked to Janet since she brought home her bronze medal?

YU LIU: Yeah, we sort of missed out on every week because I haven't been playing and this week I'm back and she's not playing.

So yeah, definitely condition congratulated her for her epic performance at the Olympics. I felt like, yeah, it's definitely a lot to be learned from and hopefully I'll be able to do something like for our country one day.

Q. In general what will you take away from a day like today, the score you saw and the way you played out there. Going into tomorrow, this is a course you only get three days to get it done?

YU LIU: Yeah, it's still too early to try to like foresee anything. I just feel like a start like this never hurts, and I'm really -- felt really lucky that I was able to shoot a score like this. Definitely a lot to be learned from so I'm just going to think through what I've done well today, which I haven't really got a chance. I will towards the end of the day.