SHOPRITE LPGA POWERED BY WAKEFERN

May 28, 2026

Melanie Green

Seaview Hotel & Golf Club, Bay Course

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: All right, joining us ahead of the ShopRite LPGA powered by Wakefern is Melanie Green. Melanie, you are one of our rookies this season. Can you just talk about making the transition to the LPGA Tour and reflecting a bit on your rookie year so far?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, getting out here I think has been everybody's dream since they were a kid and could swing a golf club. Was it something like if I didn't accomplish I would lose sleep every night? No. But I'm really grateful for the journey. And really I give all glory to God for being out here and being able to compete against the best in the world.

Yeah, I mean, obviously went to college, took a year on Epson, and now I'm out here. Yeah, no, it's been a blast. I'm super grateful for this opportunity. Honestly, just trying to do my job day in and day out and see what happens.

But, yeah, no, it's been awesome.

Q. You seem to have a really great perspective and a lot of confidence. How do you think that's helped you make the transition? The LPGA can be pretty intimidating and you don't seem to be intimidated.

MELANIE GREEN: I wear my faith on my sleeve, and, you know, I can't worry about tomorrow. Tomorrow will worry about it self. I can't control how other people play. I can't control much of anything but how I handle my own emotions and what I do on and off the golf course to help me be successful.

Luckily I have a lot of good people around me that kind of push me in the right ways and encourage me in times of need and stuff like that.

So, yeah, no, I definitely don't take any glory or honor for that. Give it all to God. Yeah, no, I'm super grateful. I think that definitely keeps my heart in the right place.

Q. And then on the golf course, you've had two Top 10s this season. Can you talk about what's going really well with your game specifically?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, I think -- I mean, when you're playing well it's hard to be like, well, I think I need to get better in this or whatever. I mean, everything is kind of doing more or less what it needs to be doing. Obviously I can get better in just about every area.

But, yeah, no, I'm super excited and feeling good about where my game is at. Would like to get better in certain areas, but overall I feel like I've handled myself golf management-wise around the golf course well, so I'm happy with how I'm kind of strategizing. I feel like the mistakes decision-wise are getting lower and lower.

So, yeah, no, I'm very grateful for my caddie out there and keeping me calm and having good energy out there all the time. So super grateful for him as well.

Q. So I asked Brooke this question. She was in the last press conference. A couple of the veteran golfers have said they heard a lot of names but haven't been able to put faces to names. You're part of the next generation. What does it mean to be a flag bearer and a noise maker in this year's event?

MELANIE GREEN: I don't know if I've ever been called a noise maker, but yeah, it's not something that was like a goal of mine I guess, to make sure that everybody knew who I was.

That's never been something I've prioritized I guess. But I guess cool. I'm not like, oh, I really want Nelly to know my name. It doesn't really -- whatever. If they find out, great. If they don't, great. Doesn't bother me.

Q. What's the mindset for approaching this tournament then?

MELANIE GREEN: Do my job. If I do my job, then I'll look at the leaderboard at the end. But I got to do my job first.

Q. And is there any way you approach an unfamiliar course?

MELANIE GREEN: Well, all of them have been unfamiliar up to this point, but I think college taught me a lot in that. We only get one practice round and off to 36 the next day and 18 to finish the golf tournament. We really only saw it once and it was all -- a lot of people say they get like not bored, but after about 13 holes it's like, okay, I'm ready to go.

We don't have the scorecard. We don't have the adrenaline. You know what I mean? So if I play 27 holes before the golf tournament starts I'll feel good about myself. I'll feel like I've seen enough.

Honestly as long as I have a pretty good feeling about how the greens are rolling and how to chip out of certain roughs, I'll feel pretty good. As long an I got lines off the tee.

So just basic stuff, but it's golf at the end of the day.

Q. What's your expectation for the weekend?

MELANIE GREEN: Do my job. (Smiling.)

Q. I just wanted to ask as somebody who is coming into an event like this, I feel like there is a lot of buzz. Jeremy and those here who have been talking about the buzz around this event, being in the Philadelphia area and the New Jersey area. Do you feel that? Do you feel like the golf scene here is buzzing and can you tell me why?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, I mean, even just kind of like the volunteers around here. I feel like they're different, right? They're not like -- usually the volunteers are coming from everywhere. I feel like a lot of them are New Jerseyans -- is that a word? Born and raised; a little bit of the accent. They're here to help.

And there is definitely like a vibe assured this golf tournament of like, okay, this is what we've been doing for 40 years now. So yeah, no, I would say the volunteers are different. They definitely have this down pat. Like the golf tournament or the golf course is right here. Hotel is right here. Like everything is kind of more central, so I feel like that's definitely more of like community based. It's not like the players are every which way. They're all kind of here.

Yeah, so I would definitely say there is more like of a closeness.

Q. Some of the most passionate sports fans in the world exist in New Jersey, Philadelphia, even Delaware.

MELANIE GREEN: Uh-huh.

Q. Just because they're the Tri-State area, I had to throw them out there. But are you excited to play in front of a crowd like that, or is it a little nerve-wracking for you?

MELANIE GREEN: No, I think it's fun. You know, golf is -- we have this stereotype of golfers, don't make any noise. I don't really think that's the case. Being fortunate enough to play in a Curtis Cup where there was a lot of fans and it was really cool, even though I was on foreign soil.

Having the crowd get engaged is the funniest thing. Whether they're rooting for you or against you, I think it's hilarious because they're involved.

So I think it's really fun when the crowd gets rowdy, or when they're quiet it's like, okay, are you even enjoying yourself? I want everybody to be happy out here.

Yeah, no, I wouldn't say it's nerve-wracking. I like when there is a lot of people out here.

Q. Are you expecting a bit of that fanfare for this event?

MELANIE GREEN: To be honest my expectations just in general, it's not like have these huge mountain list of things that I want to see at a golf tournament. Yeah, no, I would love to see fans out here. Hoping from how you're talking about it that maybe the expectation does go up a little bit more just on fan population. It would be fun for sure.

Q. One last thing. To pivot to your time at the Epson Tour, any lessons that you took from your time playing on the Epson Tour to here? What do you think were the most valuable ones that you brought to the LPGA?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, I think it was -- for the development tour it does exactly what it's supposed to. I think being out there for a year, like it takes you from college and takes you from everybody doing everything for you and then it takes you to, okay, I have to book my own flights, I have to register my own golf tournaments, I have to seek out the golf tournaments, even though it's obviously right there in front of you.

But these are all things that you have to do. You have to check into the hotel. Your coaches aren't going to do it for you. That's the biggest thing. I'm asked a lot, like what's the difference between Epson and LPGA? I said honestly nothing. It's just everything is much big he were. Stadiums, fans, staff, media, everything, depth of field, one more round of competition.

Everything is bigger, but in a sense it's kind of the same. So I appreciate my time on Epson, but definitely happy to be out here too.

Q. Being from New York, going off that question a little bit, do you carry yourself with a chip on your shoulder coming to the Philly area?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, I definitely -- I have always loved the underdog story. So, yeah, no, being from a very small town near Buffalo, New York and going to Florida, I definitely have, not prided myself by any stretch of the imagination, but I definitely like to always feel like I'm proving something. So the answer to your question, yes.

Q. You kept on talking about do your job, do your job. What is your job this weekend?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, things that I can't control I can't worry about. It's my job to go through the process of getting a number and executing, picking a line and hitting it there.

So just the basic foundational things of golf. That's my job. If I'm worrying about everybody else or where I am on the leaderboard, what that girl said to me on the putting green, that's not my job. I can't control any of that.

So things that I can control, that's my job.

Q. Lastly, have you leaned on any mentors the past week? If so, who?

MELANIE GREEN: Not necessarily leaned on people but I've had some really cool interactions with some veterans. I know that I played a nine-hole practice round with Ryann O'Toole at Chevron. I basically just thanked her at the end for being nice to me. I'm a rookie. She's been out here for a while, been successful. So I was like, hey, thanks for you and your team being nice to Shane and I.

She was like, oh, yeah, of course. She definitely gave me like a, if anybody has been mean to you let me know who it was kind of deal.

Yeah, no, there has been some other people obviously with the Ford thing I got Michelle Wie that's willing to answer any questions that I have.

So I've definitely got a good group. I think really everybody out here is nice enough that if I needed some help they would offer it.

Yeah, no, nobody I guess in particular. I've definitely got a good group of rookies that keep me a little centered as well.

Q. You have this efficacious personality. You're very bubbly, very open. Where does your joy come from?

MELANIE GREEN: The Lord, quite frankly. I've always said that life is way too serious for some people and that's just not -- like I'm -- you know, 100 years in the grand scheme of things isn't a long time for us to be down here. Why are we living it so depressingly? Find ways to be joyful.

I like to make people laugh, too. I'm not necessarily a class clown per se, but I'll make myself look like a fool so I get a laugh out of it. It's happened many times. I'm like, oh, you guys didn't laugh, but that person did, so jokes on you.

Q. This tournament does a really good job of giving a platform to young up-and-comers. For those that don't know Melanie Green on or off the golf course, what would you want people to know about you this week and otherwise?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, that I'm approachable. Sometimes I don't look like that in my face. I don't know. Yeah, no, if somebody wants something from me, ask. But, yeah, no I wear my faith on my sleeve and I love the Lord. Try to make him center in my life.

Yeah, just lots have fun.

Q. I would be remiss to not ask you. You triumphed pretty hot and heavy in a U.S. Women's Open qualifier recently. Going to be a Riv next week. Can you just talk about that experience playing in the qualifier and medalling by much of a that margin and how excited are you to be at Riv?

MELANIE GREEN: So I texted -- no, I didn't text but I was chatting I guess back and forth with Rachel Kuehn. Great buddy of mine. Love that girl. She had texted me asking where my open qualifier was. I told her Shannopin. She was like, oh, you're going to eat that place up. I'm like, dude, have you even played the golf course? Like come on. She was like, yeah I have, and like it's made for you.

I'm like, okay, whatever. Just took it with a grain of salt and went and played. And I don't know how, but she texted me and she goes, I told you. I'm like, whatever. I guess she called it. She was talking about when she played, do you know how hard a draw ball flight is on that golf course? Every hole is slanted like this. Like, you need to play a cut, and that was designed for you, blah, blah, blah.

But, yeah, no, honestly I was feeling a little under the weather, so the saying beware of the sick golfer, right, I guess came into play.

But, yeah, no, I was excited to carry my own bag for Thursday's holes. Hadn't done that in a while. Not that I love having Shane out here. Yeah, no, I had to send him over to Mizuho. I'm not going to see the golf course. I need you to study it for me.

Yeah, no, it was a great time. My dad was basically my driver from, what was it, Pittsburgh, came and picked me up, and then drove me down to Mizuho and I slept basically the whole way. Kudos to my dad. Yeah, no, it was a great time.

Q. You mentioned a little bit ago about having fun making everybody laugh. On Tuesday you were -- you made a whole bunch of kids laugh at the school.

MELANIE GREEN: Oh.

Q. I wasn't going anywhere bad. Talk about the clinic and talk about just interacting with the kids and introducing golf to that next generation.

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, you know, I have three nieces so I feel like that has definitely helped. I've been an aunt since I was 11, so always been around smaller kids.

But, yeah, you kind of just -- I mean, the teachers were kind of apologizing for the ruckus and all that. I'm like, they're kids. It's fine. Get them involved.

I did the whole you stack two balls and try to hit one and I got a volunteer come and try to catch it.

They did great. It was funny just getting the crowd and kids involved. They all had a blast, so.

Q. With that, on the LPGA Tour there is a lot of that off the golf course week in and week out. As a rookie and as starting the LPGA Tour, how important is that to you not only to do your job inside the ropes like you were talking about, but also help mentor and outside the ropes as well?

MELANIE GREEN: Yeah, I think everybody always says growing the game, right? I think it starts in that generation, starts at that age. Not that it's -- no, I shouldn't say that.

But it is about growing the game. It is about getting the kids involved. We want to see the next generation come out. We want to see them working hard. We see it in NCAA championships that just happened. A lot of those girls will be out here.

So, yeah, no, I think it's very important and I think feel like each year we've gotten even better at getting our players outside the ropes and letting the fans kind of see a little bit more of us.

And I think that the more we kind of put ourselves out there and make ourselves vulnerable, it also draws in a bigger crowd and some more fans.

So it's all good I think. Yeah, no, definitely important. If you want to see any change, right, you got to go out of you comfort zone. Can't stay in our same bubble.

THE MODERATOR: Perfect. Thank you, Melanie.

MELANIE GREEN: Thank you guys.