THE MODERATOR: All right, pleased to be joined today at the 2025 LOTTE Championship by Brooke Henderson and Nelly Korda. Brooke, you are a two-time winner of this event. Seems to be a stop on your schedule every year. Can you talk about what this event means to you and why you play every year?
BROOKE HENDERSON: For sure. I love coming to Hawai'i. It's so beautiful. I find it very relaxing and very peaceful here and all the people are so nice. Beautiful flowers, beautiful views of the ocean. Brit and I, we always enjoy coming back here every year.
Being a two-time winner definitely is an extra bonus, and really excited to tee it up this week on Wednesday and hopefully have a good finish.
Q. Nelly, this is your first time playing since 2021 I believe. You finished second that year. Can you share a bit about what this tournament means to you and coming back here a few years later?
NELLY KORDA: Yeah, this is my third time playing in Hawai'i and third different golf course, so as Brooke said, everyone is so nice in Hawai'i. The weather is beautiful. Views are beautiful. So it's also bermudagrass and that's something that I grew up on, so I'm a little bit more comfortable on it.
The thing about Hawai'i is you never know what kind of weather you're going to get with the wind. It's always fun to play in that to kind of test out your imagination, your skills, different kinds of shots.
I think it'll be a fun week.
Q. You touched on it a little bit, but what is it about Hawai'i that's so different from other places that you play? Obviously there is the grass; the culture is very different. This stop, how is it different from other stops on Tour?
BROOKE HENDERSON: Yeah, from a golf course standpoint, Nelly touched on it, the grass. I was just home in Canada for about a month, so very different grass. I was really practicing my chipping the last couple days to get a feel for it again.
The wind is probably the biggest challenge out here. Nelly again touched on it. You have to hit different shots and you have to be a little bit creative and really trust yourself when the wind speeds kick up. And they do around here, especially on some of the holes near the finishing holes. They always play a little bit tougher when it gets windy.
Yeah, just being prepared for everything. Mentally, physically you want to be prepared for the challenges that lie ahead. At the same time, there are birdie opportunities out there, so on the holes where you can make birdie you want to capitalize on those, but knowing some of the other holes are par holes and be happy to walk away.
NELLY KORDA: Yeah, for the non-golf side, I would say with the amount of travel that we get to do, we're so lucky to get to experience so many different cultures and cuisines. It's fun to go to these places and indulge in their culture, cuisines, which I'm a big foodie so I love doing that.
Q. Heading into kind of the home stretch of the season, looking ahead to the rest of the year, you both have been very busy on and off the course this year. Can you share a little bit about how you're focusing in as we head towards the end of 2025?
BROOKE HENDERSON: Yeah, for me, I'm really excited to be heading over a Asia soon after this for three weeks over there. Really proud and happy to be a part of International Crown. I've been looking forward to it all year. It's been a super exciting thing to have on my schedule since there has never been a World Team before. To have the opportunity, I'm pretty pumped about it. I have a great team so it'll be a lot of fun.
I think took a little bit time off before this after CPKC Women's Open and after Boston to have some down time, try to refresh and get prepared for the rest of the year. So have seven events left and looking forward to them.
NELLY KORDA: Yeah, definitely I would say since kind of the summer it's been go, go, go, go, go, so, yeah, having the two in Florida, International Crown in Asia, definitely if I have two weeks, prioritizing rest and recovery for my body.
The more I play the more my body gets beaten up, especially with how condensed our schedule has been from kind of the beginning of the summer to right now with all the travel.
But it's -- this is the most exciting time of the year. It's the home stretch, the busy part where you do get to represent your country overseas in Asia. There is nothing better than that.
But at the end of the day I think for me always prioritizing my body is the most important thing. So I'll be doing that when I'm home. Yeah, I mean, it's crazy how fast this year has flown by.
Q. LOTTE has been a long-time supporter of women's golf, and with them being a Korean company in sponsoring an event in Hawai'i, talk about how you view the LPGA as a global business. It's definitely something that a lot of sports try to be and the LPGA really excels at.
NELLY KORDA: Yeah, we get some amazing support from companies across the world. Our Tour is so diverse and global that it's amazing to see LOTTE step up and support our Tour for so many years.
And not only just the Tour. You see a bunch of Korean girls supported by LOTTE. So that's the most amazing thing about this game, is how diverse and global we are and how many different markets we hit. Always have to thank the sponsors, have to thank LOTTE for coming in and stepping up and sporting women's golf.
BROOKE HENDERSON: Yeah, I think Nelly said that perfectly. Very grateful to LOTTE for all the support of this event and helping to elevate the women's game. And not only this event, but other players on Tour as well. They wear the logo. It's great to see their support and we are very grateful for this.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you both so much.
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