STATE FARM CLASSIC

September 1, 2002

Mi Hyun Kim

LAURA NEAL: Good finish. I know second isn't first, but you still made lot of money today. Maybe just talk about how happy you are about that.

MI HYUN KIM: I was angered at the course. Patricia played pretty good. She shoot pretty good. And I just, I was playing pretty good too. But we just enjoyed each other at the course.

Q. Did you think your experience, and her lack of experience, in this situation would help you today?

MI HYUN KIM: I looked at the leaderboards, scoreboards a couple times. Beth played pretty good today. But I didn't think about that. I thought about Patricia a little bit. Because she was playing so good today. She made a couple long putts. She made some pretty difficult putts. Number 7. That was downhill and maybe 50 feet. So she made a putt there. And she made a lot of good putts today. So I needed a little bit of luck today. And I did get second, but I'm happy, you know.

Q. Do you have a reaction to waiting for so long on all of the holes?

MI HYUN KIM: No, we wait a couple par-5 holes on the tee shot. But no, that is not a big deal. It's not a big deal. We just wait there. And a couple bugs bit me, but maybe that was a problem a little bit there. But nothing, we didn't worry about that.

Q. On 18, it didn¹t look like you had a very good lie in the rough?

MI HYUN KIM: No, I had a couple holes like that. I hit pretty good shot, but the fairways were a little hard sometimes. It would, you know, kick left and go into the bad lie too. So it was a little bad luck for me.

I hit it good, but I just didn't hit it good, I didn't feel good. My shot was not that good. But then the lie was terrible. So I saw it go into the bunker. By my feeling before I hit, it would go in the bunker. I knew that.

Q. You knew it would go in the bunker because of the lie?

MI HYUN KIM: Yeah, the lie was real bad.

Q. And that bunker shot on 16?

MI HYUN KIM: I almost made it.

Q. Were you under the lip there?

MI HYUN KIM: 18? 16? No, just it was bad luck.

Q. Were you frustrated, being in the bunker on 16, 17 and 18?

MI HYUN KIM: No, number 18 bunker shot? I wasn't very confident because I made 16, 17 in the bunker. It's very big there. And so when I'm in the bunker, I just said, you know, I wanted to have a stance like this (Indicating). Some bunkers some sand is a lot and some bunkers the sand is thin. But I just wanted to get into the 18 bunker and it looks like pretty good lie. And, yeah, bunker is good. I think the sand is a lot. But when I stand like this, and feel, it feels thin. And I played with Akiko yesterday, she hit it in the 18 bunker and the sand was very thin and she hit it up and over the green. So I got to worry about that too.

Q. (Inaudible.)

MI HYUN KIM: I just think too much.

Q. You made a few putts on the front. What happened on the back?

MI HYUN KIM: Yeah, I had a good front. It was a good back nine too, but some tee shot was just bad luck. Go to the, through the fairway, go to the rough. And sometimes just one yard from fairway, but go into bad lie.

Q. Like 16, you were just a couple yards short of the green there?

MI HYUN KIM: I had 111 to the pin and, you know, yesterday wind is into the wind and today is wind downwind. We need a 9-iron. Definitely, you know, smooth 9-iron. But we tried to hit a smooth 8-iron and it went far.

Q. You still have to hit it there?

MI HYUN KIM: Because of the water. It was just a little over the water.

Q. Were you surprised at how well Patricia played?

MI HYUN KIM: Patricia? Well before now, before start I didn't think about that. I think I can make 4-under and I can definitely win. But she made a lot of little putts and she was a little bit different than yesterday. She was more nervous yesterday. Today, she just confident. She hit it good and putt good.

Q. Did you know that just by looking at her?

MI HYUN KIM: Yeah. Um-hum.

Q. What was the biggest putt she made? 13?

MI HYUN KIM: Number 7. Downhill, you know, I almost made it in a hole in one. I did. And I just think about that, oh, yeah, I can take the lead. But she made a 50 foot putt, downhill putt. That's unbelievable.

Q. And you had a tap in birdie?

MI HYUN KIM: Um-hum.

Q. And you almost made a hole-in-one on 11, didn¹t you?

MI HYUN KIM: Yeah. But I missed that putt. I missed that. Patricia is almost same line. She missed to the left. So I just, I said this is almost straight line. And it was just a little push.

Q. Have you ever played for the lead in a tournament before in a tournament in the USA, like all day you're tied with the lead with her or one back?

MI HYUN KIM: Yeah. Yeah.

Q. Have you ever done that?

MI HYUN KIM: Yes.

Q. Your probably the hottest player on the LPGA tour for the last couple months. What's been the difference? Why are you playing so good right now?

MI HYUN KIM: I don't know. I don't know why.

Q. Just a wide variety of things or what?

MI HYUN KIM: Just try hard, I don't know. New club, new ball, new caddy.

Q. When did all of those changes happen?

MI HYUN KIM: Clubs, before Columbus. Before Youngstown. Youngstown clubs, ball was Youngstown and the caddy was here.

Q. How much do you weigh?

MI HYUN KIM: Weight? A person's weight is a secret.

(Laughter.) Not much.

Q. (Inaudible.)

MI HYUN KIM: Scorecard? No. 2, 129, 7-iron. 10 feet.

Number 3, 149, 6-iron. 20 feet.

Number four, bunker shot to six feet.

Number 7, 175, 7-wood. Tap in. 6 inch.

25 feet. Okay.

18, 138, 6-iron from the rough.

14, 186, 7-wood. No, I missed that. Three feet.

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