BLACK DESERT CHAMPIONSHIP

May 2, 2025

Grace Kim

Black Desert Resort

Quick Quotes

Q. Okay, here with Grace Kim after her second round at the Black Desert Championship.

A little different scorecard today. Take us through the round today.

GRACE KIM: I mean, I didn't quite have a good break out there. I hit a lot of greens. I think I hit 17 out of 18 greens.

Q. All fairways, too.

GRACE KIM: Yeah, all fairways. Again, I don't have an issue with fairways, but when it comes to hitting it close and making putts, yeah, just shaved a lot of edges and didn't quite get it done.

Unlike the last few holes coming in, couple putts dropped. I guess stiffed a couple as well. That helped.

Q. You had the double on 6. To bounce back and finish with birdies on three of your last six, especially on such a daunting course, what does that do for your confidence going forward?

GRACE KIM: Yeah, knowing anything could happen on this course, all the rocks are really scary out here. You just never know. I think patience was obviously a massive key factor.

Yeah, made the double and I just wanted to just get it back. Just had that aggressive mindset of yeah trying to get it back down. Get rid of the double on the scorecard. Tried to stay patient as long as possible.

Q. Played in the afternoon yesterday; morning today. How different were the conditions?

GRACE KIM: Yeah, obviously quite windy yesterday afternoon, so some of the par-5s were easily reachable. I guess some of the par-4s also had shorter wedges in today.

Almost switched a couple times today, so opposite wind as well, so a little bit different. Again, still got the altitude so hitting it long enough. It was still nice.

Q. We talked a lot about the tee shots and having to put the ball in play here. The greens are really undulating. Can you speak to how challenging the greens are?

GRACE KIM: Yeah, you got to make sure you have the right numbers. If you do hit 3-wood off the tee, make sure you're calculating the altitude for the run-out and also hoping to have a nice number in.

Yeah, you've got some slopes and elephants I guess under the greens. It's just managing to get yourself on the right level, on the right tiers, and try and two putt.

Some pins were tucked today as well, so not going for them knowing how firm they were, yeah, just playing smart.

Q. How much are you relying on lag putting when you're not going for the pins and you have 20, 30-footers for birdie?

GRACE KIM: Yeah, I mean, I think the longest one I had was about a 30-, 40-footer. Oh, that's a big difference. A 30-, 35-footer. But I guess just knowing that the speeds on the greens are quite consistent out here, it's nice to know that.

Trying to two putt here is also good. Pars are good so no damage done there.

Q. Probably have an afternoon tee time tomorrow. As an Aussie, ya'll play in the wind a lot. Do you think having that background helps you?

GRACE KIM: Yeah, I think knowing that -- well, I guess probably biased, but we're all-rounders. We're used to the links golf courses. We're used to wind, heat. So, yeah, just trusting your abilities to be able to hit those lower shots if needed or whatever wedge numbers we need is, yeah, I guess an advantage for us.

Q. What's your mindset heading into the weekend?

GRACE KIM: It's been a while since I've been happy with rounds, so just trying to enjoy it in the moment. Yeah, not too stressed in the head. I think I'm just trying to overcome demons in here, so that's always tough.

Trying to play hole by hole. Aggressive but appropriately.

Q. In a place as beautiful as this, does it make it any easier to quiet the demons down?

GRACE KIM: Yeah, absolutely. If you hit a bad shot you just look up. Look up, red dirt, rocks, and massive great views out here, so it is really nice.

Q. You were talking about struggling in the first round. How proud are you to back up another solid round today?

GRACE KIM: Yeah, I knew it was out there. I think that definitely gave me a good confidence boost going into today. Even with the double, I was a bit down right then and there, but I tried to get over it as quickly as I could.

Even my caddie was like, yep, that's over, next hole. That's always quite nice.