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LPGA STATE FARM CLASSIC

July 18, 2008

Christina Kim

SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS

JASON TAYLOR: Christina, thanks for joining us once again. Nice round. In the lead all by yourself at this point. Talk about how today went.
CHRISTINA KIM: Today was just personally quite a struggle I thought actually. Yesterday's round just seemed to happened it seamlessly. I just kind of would just blink and the ball would fall in.
Today it seemed like the combination of slightly more difficult pins along with knowing that I shot 9-under, which is always hard to follow up on. Once you start shooting those 5, 6, 7, , 8, 9, so on and so forth, it's hard to back them up.
I just hung in there and only had one bogey in 36 holes. I'm quite pleased with that.
JASON TAYLOR: Let's go through your scorecard.
CHRISTINA KIM: Sure. I started on the 10th hole. First birdie came on No. 12. I had 121 yards. Hit a pitching wedge to about 20 feet and made the putt.
No. 13 I was 238 yards. Hit my 3-wood a little left and then got up and down from about 15 yards. I had a ten-foot putt to make on number 13.
No. 1, from 63 yards I hit a 60-degree wedge to about 7 inches or so, followed up about a bogey on 6. It was a long hole. It took forever. But from 112 yards I hit it into the bunker, and from the bunker I hit it out to about 25 feet. From there I missed the putt and had about three feet left for bogey.
No. 8 I had 88 yards to the pin. Hit my 56 degree to about two feet and made the putt.
And No. 9 from 151 yards I hit my 8-iron to about 15 feet or so.
JASON TAYLOR: Okay. Questions.

Q. You said yesterday was kind of seamless. I think you said after the third hole yesterday. Some days are like that and some days are like today where you feel like you've had to earn everything.
CHRISTINA KIM: Absolutely. Yeah, like I said, yesterday I just seemed like I farted and a birdie came, you know. No effort it seemed. It's been -- I mean, honestly, I haven't had a round that low. I've probably had a 64 once in the last three years.
It just seemed really hard to even get to one of those scores, let alone have a chance to back it up. I was watching the leaderboard and seeing Sherri Turner come in at 12-under first thing in the morning. You know that yesterday wasn't necessary just a fluke in terms of condition of golf course.
You knew people were going to be throwing darts and there were going to be some low numbers out there. That added probably a little bit of pressure. Just the fact that I'm in this position again after years and years and years it seems. It's just great to be back here.

Q. You mentioned Sherri. It's ironic, because yesterday when she th finished she talked about coming out in the afternoon and seeing your score and realized, Well, gee, this is the way it's going to be. Today you came out and saw what she had done.
CHRISTINA KIM: That's so funny. I saw her at Applebee's last night, too.

Q. She mentioned this is going to be her last year of full time being out here. I don't know if you know her or if you've played with her much, but she's one of those veterans who have been out here a long time. Have you played with her very much?
CHRISTINA KIM: Yeah. I've played with her several times. She is such a great lady. She's so gracious and that southern drawl that she's got makes her seem so welcoming. She is one of most gracious women that I've ever come across on the golf course.
You know, she still smacks it out there. I remember when I played with her. It wasn't anything like she's old and I expect her to hit it short. It's nothing like that. She's been out here a long time. She's got all that experience, but she's still got the swing to back it up. She knocks it out there.
She's just a fantastic woman. It's kind of sad -- I was talking this week with my caddie with that, you know, just the players from that era. Beth Daniel when she had her retirement, Rosie Jones had her sort of retirement tour. Meg Mallon is kind of tapering down her season. Sherri Turner kind of falls in that same sort of era.
I kind of feel like I'd be lost without them, because they were the ones that took me under their wing and have taken care of me since day one. Now it sounds like I have to go around and do that to someone else, and I'm not really in the mood.

Q. You don't want to be a mentor?
CHRISTINA KIM: It's not that, but I'm the youngest of three kids. I'm the baby. I don't really teach well. You know, I'm more just a young learner, I guess. It's just definitely sort of like a changing of the guards. It's just like in anything else, when it comes to evolution it's 100% instinct but it sucks.
You know, what are you going to do without the Meg Mallons, the Beth Daniels and Nancy Lopezes of the day? Just knowing that I'm friends with them still brings chills sometimes. The fact that they're world class women, not just fantastic golfers that have brought so many history into game.
They're fantastic people. And the fact that I'm not going to be able to hang out and chill with them as much is heart breaking.

Q. Is that part of why you interact with a fans as much as you do, you feel a responsibility to carry on that part of the game?
CHRISTINA KIM: No. It sounds pretty messed up, but I feel like I have no obligation towards anything. That's just the type of person I am. My theory is if you have to exert effort -- although it's better to exert effort in a positive way, as in interacting with the fans and being cordial and friendly.
I'd rather someone exert effort and do it as opposed to not. For me, that's just me. Everything that you see is just au natural. That's just who I am. I don't do trying very well, I guess is the best way to put it. Just go out there and do what you do. I guess I'm fortunate where I'm not necessarily one of the ones that focused strictly on golf.
As important as it is to me in my career and my life -- especially this year, everything's changed for me -- I still like to go out there and have fun and make sure that the people that go out to pay good money and sweat in the heat and stink at least have a little bit of enjoyment in their day.

Q. You being just me as you put it also talking to the ball every time you strike it?
CHRISTINA KIM: Pretty much, yeah. If you have the right inflection in your voice it works. You would be surprised. I mean, if you got your voice from the bottom depths of hell and yell at it, most of the time it scares it enough to work. Most of the time.

Q. Is that what you credit some of the shots that you're complaining about off the club and they wind up middle of the fairway or six inches from the hole?
CHRISTINA KIM: No. A lot of them -- I'd like to think that I'm at a certain point in my game where -- especially with my driver. I normally have -- I like to say I set myself up off the tee great 85%, 90% of the time. For me it's just a little bit in the toe, a little bit in the heel. I hit so many drives as a kid that I'd like to think that I've got enough sensitivity to know it's a crap shot.
But because of the technology these days people don't necessarily see that. Again, it helps me to relieve sort of I guess anxiety or pissed-off-ed-ness or whatever.

Q. Did you say anything to the ball on I think it was No. 10 when you drove off past the trees?
CHRISTINA KIM: Yeah. It was something like, Oh, heavens and WTF or something like that. The first tee shot yesterday went dead left, so I said I would rather not go in that bunker with where the pin was today. I said let's favor the right side.
Then yesterday off the 10th tee my tee shot veered off into the left-hand rough. I said let's try and hit it right center of the fairway. It went a little right, but I was fortunate where I had an open shot and a great shot. I had a couple of lucky, not necessarily bounces, but the ball ended up in fairly lucky positions I'd like to think.

Q. Did that give you some idea on that hole that it was going to be a tough day right out of the gate?
CHRISTINA KIM: No, I hit it great. It was very solid. It just went right. I hadn't been there the last two years, so I thought it might as well check it out right now and see what it's like. It's actually pretty good over on the right side. Not bad at all.

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