Q. Okay, here with Lydia Ko after her second round victory at T-Mobile Match Play. Looked like a pretty dominant match from you. Talk about how it went out there.
LYDIA KO: Yeah, I had a pretty shaky start bogeying my first two holes. Even yesterday I didn't feel like I hit the ball that bad or putted necessarily bad; I just put myself in some awkward positions.
I think this golf course you just have to be smart and some -- as silly as it sounds, sometimes you're hitting short irons and you're not going to hit it on the green because it's so firm.
So just trying to know where the best spots to miss it is really important. I think I was a little bit smarter in that sense today. Just if I am going to miss or can't hold the green, where is the best place to chip from. I did that really well.
I think that was probably the biggest difference between yesterday and today, even though how I performed was not necessarily that different.
Q. And how would you just say how easy is it to get into some tricky spots on this golf course?
LYDIA KO: I think it's easier to get in really awkward positions and hit it to three feet. You know, like even the 9th hole yesterday I hit a great drive and I hit a -- I was in between clubs and decided to go 9-iron instead of pitching wedge for my second shot.
You know, I hit it in line with the pin but long, but I knew from that position there of no chance of me getting even within ten feet for my birdie putt.
So it's hard, but I think that's the great thing about this format. It's the same for everyone. If it's difficult for me it's going to be difficult for my opponent. Sometimes being smart then being aggressive is probably going to be more crucial at this event.
But, yeah, I love this format and it's been a lot of fun. Yesterday I came off the day not feeling like defeated. I still had a great time and Hira played really well. Even if I had hit it closer I don't think I would've putted as well as her.
You just have to walk away with that. You still get two more chances, so I'm excited for tomorrow.
Q. That was going to be my last question before I turn it over. What do you think this format brings out in you specifically? What do you most enjoy about playing match play?
LYDIA KO: Yeah, this is my first time where I think it's called round robin where you have three rounds banked. Obviously if you lose the first two you know you're not going to extend to round of 16, but you still get to have some rounds in the under your belt. With me winning today I may have a chance at it tomorrow.
No, I like both sides of how we used to play at Lorena's event. 64 gets in. You lose, you go home the next day. It's cutthroat. I think that's how match play really is.
Dictates to the person that's really on and feeling good and hitting good quality golf shots that day, that person is probably going to have the advantage over the other.
Q. You kind of touched on it. If you want to play the weekend you need to win tomorrow most likely. You have to face Carlota. She is just a match play titan. Does that change your strategy or do you just play your own game and what happens, happens?
LYDIA KO: Carlota and I have very different games. She hits it a lot further than me, and so I'm sure she's going to hit much shorter clubs into the greens than me which could be an advantage.
But I just got to focus on my golf, and that's what I did really well today. I feel like as long as I'm playing good I'm going to have a good shot at it. If somebody outplays me, then you can't really do anything about it.
It's just me and I'm going to focus on the course management that I've set up, and the rest you just have to play with. Match play, every hole is like a different round, so in ways if you do have a bad hole you can walk away from it just losing only one.
So it's a different mindset. But I'm proud to be a U.S. Women's Am champion, so I don't feel like I'm too shabby as match play either. But it's going to be a fun game. I think Carlota is an amazing player and great friend, so it should be fun regardless.
Q. Between last year and this year, do you think you know enough about Shadow Creek to know what spots to try to avoid?
LYDIA KO: I mean, I think the more you play this golf course, yeah, you're going to be able to use some of the slopes to your advantage.
Last year honestly is not the best gauge because it was so windy. I think we were put in some situations where it was near impossible to hold the green, so in that sense it's much easier this year.
I think taking that stroke play format out of it is smart because it's literally between you and the golf course and your opponent, and not trying to scramble to make up and downs and get in the top eight.
So I think this is a much better format for this golf course. Yeah, I'm sure I'm going to still be put in some positions and be scratching my head. Yeah, the more times you play this golf course you're probably just going to get a little bit more familiar with it.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports