MIZUHO AMERICAS OPEN

May 8, 2026

Lydia Ko

Mountain Ridge Country Club

TV Quick Quotes

Q. Here with Lydia, +3 today in really difficult conditions. How would you assess your round?

LYDIA KO: Honestly probably one of the rare occasions where you shoot 75 and you're not like stressing out too much about it.

The greens are pretty undulating and you leave yourself in some positions above the hole and you don't even know if you can hold it on the green at that point.

So, yeah, I think you kind of play and move on. There were some questionable pin positions I think, but it's the same for everyone so you're just trying to be smart.

Yeah, it's nice to be around for the weekend and I think this is kind of going to be a golf course where it's not very rewarding. I just have to stay patient and, yeah, feel like there is a lot of good so kind of go from there?

Q. It seemed to get increasingly difficult throughout your round. What adjustments do you have to make as a player when that happens?

LYDIA KO: Yeah, you know, the wind was picking up but I did think we got pretty lucky in the first half of our round. It was meant to be a little bit breezier today than yesterday. For at least the front nine it was pretty calm.

So I think you get some and you lose some, but it's a course where the holes can play completely different. I hit 5-wood into the green on 11 in my practice round and gap wedge yesterday.

I think the wind plays a huge factor. But when it does pick up like this, I think putting actually becomes one of the hardest parts because the ball is oscillating and you're trying to stay calm and not move all around the place.

You just have to be patient. It's almost like a British Open, but at a U.S. Open setup.

Q. I have to ask about your claw clips. They're the talk of the town. Claw clip queen. Tell me about those. You have so many. How many do you have and when did this start? I love it.

LYDIA KO: I have too many. I bought my first one at SFO on my way to Phoenix. I had a taco clip and everybody was like, oh, my God I love it. I asked my husband to buy me a couple more. He got me like a kale one, a corn on the cob. I love food clearly so that's why I've been trending more that way.

Then because I've been wearing it, In Gee got this for my as my birthday present.

Q. What is that one?

LYDIA KO: It's a coffee, like a latte with NYC on it. She's been continuing the trend. Definitely got my life's worth of hair clips, and the LPGA was nice enough to get me a crab claw clip for just as a gift. So I think that's a next week thing.