France’s Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Lydia Ko became instantly aware of it. Past. Real-time history.
More than just a gold medal was at stake in the Le Golf National win. True, however absurd. This was the 27-year-old former world No. 1’s opportunity to earn her spot in the LPGA Hall of Fame in addition to finishing her Olympic medal collection (silver in 2016, bronze in 2020, and gold in 2024).
How’s that for pressure?
Halfway through Saturday’s final round of the Olympic women’s golf competition, the magnitude of it all appeared to sink in. With a five-shot advantage, Ko looked uneasy as he rinsed an approach on the thirteenth, ruining an otherwise perfect day. With a frown, she glanced to the standings.
The longest game in golf is usually the one where you have to ponder the longest. The interval between shots was quite long. Waiting for other people to play for so long. It is time to ponder deeply. One can only speculate as to what Ko was thinking and attempting to hide.
Jon Rahm was leading the men’s golf championship just a week ago after leading by four shots on the back nine. The Spanish athlete did not even place first. He unraveled. In the end, Scottie Scheffler won the gold.
Ko at least flirted with, but rejected, such a fate. Early in the back nine, she took a five-shot lead, let it drop to one, but held on.
When Ko arrived at the eighteenth hole, she hid her face, dropped her putter, and rolled in a final birdie. A final round 1-under 71 was sufficient to win gold. At Le Golf National, the New Zealander concluded the week at 10-under, two shots ahead of the field.
The moment Lydia Ko became a GOLD MEDALIST AND LPGA HALL OF FAMER!
Golf Channel and Peacock | #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/CUg7j4VaoR
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 10, 2024
German 25-year-old Esther Henseleit, who is ranked 54th in the world, won the silver. Meanwhile, Xiyu Lin of China fought to win bronze by closing with three birdies and a bogey in the last four holes, ahead of a three-way pack that was tied at six under.
Saturday seemed to be setting up for a crazy final round early on, with American talents Nelly Korda and Rose Zhang perhaps taking the stage. Rather, Le Golf National bared its fangs, and errors multiplied in all directions.
Ko, on the other hand, shot her shots and played her game. When converted a potential two-putt from 45 feet on the seventh hole into a birdie to take a two-shot lead.Three holes later, after another birdie on nine, suddenly it was a five-shot lead.
Ko was demonstrating the value of experience and demonstrating her abundance of it. Even though she is only 27, she has already won her maiden LPGA Tour event, the 2012 Canadian Women’s Open, twelve years ago. She has won 20 professional events and two majors in that period.
Navigating Le Golf National paid pay in spades. On the par-4 fifth, Ko examined her choices after spotting a rough area between fairway bunkers. She pulled a club, thought about taking a shot into a protected green, and hammered down to hit a 70-yard pitch short of the green. A four-foot approach left a simple par.
Ko had this week off. spotting avian opportunities and spotting danger before it materialized. steady. dependable. 72-67-68-71.
This, though, is the Olympics and wasn’t going to go by without at least a dash of drama.
With a five-shot advantage, Ko struck the 13th green with water to the right, but he missed the green by a considerable distance of 25 feet. It was impossible to determine whether the shot was a complete mishit or if she was foolishly attempting a tucked right pin placement because it was so confusingly terrible.
After a drop, a shot, and two putts, Ko’s advantage had shrunk to three strokes, and eight players were positioned three to four shots behind.
In just two shots, Henseleit reached 7-under thanks to a birdie. Ko kept her feet beneath her despite the uneasy feeling. She finished with a run of pars and, once again demonstrating her cunning, she took three wood off the tee on the par-5 18th, laid up, and made a one-putt birdie.
With 19 birdies at the end of the week, Ko managed to save 12 of his 19 pars and was the leader of the field in putting (7.682 strokes gained).
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Her collection is finished with it. Bronze, silver, and gold. They complement the Olympic rings that are permanently inked on her right arm.
Rio provided the silver. At the time, Ko was considered the world’s greatest player and a true phenomenon. At just 19, she had already won five times the year before, adding the title of Rolex Player of the Year in 2015 to her 2014 LPGA Rookie of the Year award. Despite being the Olympic favorite, Ko had trouble all week with her putter. She pumped her fist after making a 7-foot birdie to win the silver medal on the last hole and remarked that it felt like she had won the gold.
The next day, she discovered a valuable lesson that only Olympians could know. Ko’s carry-on bag caused an X-ray to be performed as she was traveling to the Canadian Open. She expressed regret and clarified that it was the silver medal.
Ko shot 66-65 over the weekend in Tokyo to move into a final-round tie for second and secure a podium position. In a sudden-death playoff, she was defeated by Mone Inami and took home the bronze.
Ko needed just one more point to become eligible for the LPGA Hall of Fame when she arrived in Paris. In order to be considered for induction into the Hall of Fame, players must have won or been awarded at least one of the following: an Olympic gold medal (1 point), an LPGA major (2 points), the Vare Trophy for lowest scoring average or Rolex Player of the Year (one point each), and 27 points for winning official LPGA tournaments.
Before this week, there were 34 members of the hall.
Now there are 35.
(Photo: Andrew Redington / Getty Images)
