Written By: World Golf Hall of Fame Staff
After earning the $1 million Race to the CME Globe bonus for the second consecutive year, Lydia Ko left media, fans and fellow colleagues in utter bewilderment as the 18-year old phenom continues to make courses on the LPGA Tour her personal playground.
Consider this: Even if the teenager decided to never pick up another golf club, many would contend that she has already banked a Hall of Fame career, having checked boxes still being chased by veterans nearly three times her age. Already to her credit, Ko has 12 combined wins on the LPGA and LET Tours. She captured her first Major Championship this year when she won the Evian Championship, making her the youngest Major Champion in the history of the LPGA and LET. Ko, at age 18 years, four months and 20 days, pipped the previous record holder, Morgan Pressel, who at 18 years, 10 months and nine days won the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 2007.
She recently became the youngest golfer in history to earn Player of thee Year honors.
Did we mention that she is also the No. 1 ranked player in the world? Less than three years ago, she still needed a ride to the golf course. Now, Ko is on the fast track to becoming one of the all-time greats.
When comparing the careers of the female World Golf Hall of Fame members, it is interesting to note that Amy Alcott, Patty Berg, Hollis Stacy, Juli Inkster, Carol Mann, Betsy Rawls, Louise Suggs and Mickey Wright were all 23 years old when they won their first Major Championship. Two others, Marlene Bauer Hagge and Sandra Haynie, claimed their first Majors at age 22. If these achievements are any indication of Lydia Ko’s future, she will certainly find her place among the greats of the game enshrined in the World Golf Hall of Fame.
We asked a few Hall of Fame members to put Lydia’s current run into perspective. When asked who Ko reminds her of, LPGA legend Annika Sorenstam didn’t reference Nancy Lopez, Kathy Whitworth or any of the other usual suspects.
“(She reminds me) of Jordan Spieth,” said Sorenstam. “They do not have any weaknesses that hold them back. Both are consistent, solid short games and possess self-confidence in an appealing way.”
Carol Mann provided a more familiar name when comparing Ko: “In my decades of playing and observing professional golf, I’ve only seen one other like her. That golfer was Nancy Lopez.”
“The world is her oyster,” offered Amy Alcott. “…My hat is off to her, most importantly for the tremendous focus it has taken to achieve all that she has in such a short period of time.”
As quickly as these three Hall of Fame members were to offer praise of her game, each followed up with positive feedback about her demeanor and attitude on the golf course.
“Lydia is the ‘joyful phenom,’” added Mann. “She loves the Tour, the players and the fans. And the Tour, fans, players and sponsors love her. She has really stepped up to the plate and is taking women’s golf to a new level with her moxie and talent.”
“She is extremely mature and ready for her age,” Sorenstam said. “She displays a calmness and poise that take years to learn and develop.
“Lydia has an understated poise that’s all her own,” Alcott added. “I used to use the expression even at the height of my career that ‘I have everything to gain and nothing to lose.’ She sure has that same attitude.”
From World Golf Hall of Fame members’ praise to awards (2015 Best Female Golfer ESPY Award) and accolades (2014 Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People), Ko continues to be one of the hottest stories in professional golf.
Now that the season is over, maybe she can go back to being a “normal” teenager. Then again, greatness never takes a break.
