Fairytale Comes True for New Hall of Famer Lydia Ko
Lydia Ko recently accomplished something that many aspire to, but few accomplish.
There aren’t enough words to describe the sense of fulfillment that is felt when dreams finally become a reality, and for Olympic Gold Medalist and most recent Hall of Fame (HOF) member, Lydia Ko, the fairytale really did come true.
Ko has spent countless hours working on her technique on the playing field to achieve her goal of being accounted for in the Hall of Fame. In fact, at the LPGA openings earlier this year, she won her 26th point, needing only one more to become a member of the HOF. Ko was devastated when the next week, her approach shot missed the green and her 27th point was lost to Nelly Korda.
With her goal of retiring at the age of thirty quickly approaching, Ko knew that the time frame in which to make her dream a reality was coming to a close. It was now or never. “If I do win gold at Paris, I feel like somebody needs to get me a Cinderella slipper because it’s just a story that even I couldn’t have drawn up.” Ko says a few days before heading to France to compete.
The first few rounds of the tournament bode well for Ko and by the final round she was tied for first and was guaranteed a spot on the podium. As she putted her last birdie, the outcome was finalized. As the put perfectly rolled in, she achieved the last point she needed to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, and achieved Olympic victory. The emotions on the podium were a testament to all the hard work finally coming to fruition.
With three olympic medals and new HOF recognition under her belt, Ko already has her sights set on a new dream before she retires. When asked “What’s next?” she responded with, “It would be really, really cool to win a major championship before I’m done competitively playing…I kind of want to get through this year first and then assess. But this year will probably not be, like, my last competitive year.”
Lydia Ko is now on her way to Scotland to compete in the AIG Women’s Open to start working on her new goals. Her ambition is admirable and with her track record, the next chapter in Ko’s storybook is likely to have another happy ending.
