Words: LPGA Media
Photo: Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR/IGF
| With her gold medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Lydia Ko has reached the 27 points necessary for induction into the LPGA Hall of Fame. The 27-year-old New Zealand native achieved this milestone through a stellar career that includes LPGA Hall of Fame points earned for 20 LPGA Tour victories, highlighted by two major championship titles, two Rolex LPGA Player of the Year awards, twice earning the Glenna Collett Vare Trophy for the season’s lowest scoring average and now the Olympic gold medal. Ko becomes the 35th individual enshrined in the LPGA Hall of Fame, joining the ranks of the most accomplished and influential athletes in the history of women’s golf. Ko is now a three-time Olympic medalist, taking silver at the 2016 Summer Games in Brazil and bronze at the 2020 Summer Games in Japan. On the LPGA Tour, Ko has amassed 20 LPGA Tour victories since 2012, including major titles at the 2015 Amundi Evian Championship and the 2016 Chevron Championship. She earned 18 of her titles since her rookie season in 2014, having won the 2012 and 2013 CPKC Women’s Open as an amateur prior to becoming an LPGA Tour Member. Ko was the 2015 and 2022 Rolex LPGA Player of the Year and won the Glenna Collett Vare Trophy, awarded to the player with the season’s lowest scoring average, in 2021 and 2022. Ko has seven wins on the Ladies European Tour, five wins on the WPGA Tour of Australasia and one win on the Korean LPGA Tour. She also partnered with Jason Day to win the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational, a mixed-team unofficial event featuring PGA Tour and LPGA Tour stars, in December 2023. Ko has set numerous Youngest Ever marks in her career. On Aug. 19, 2012, she became the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history when she won the CPKC Women’s Open at 15 years, 4 months and 2 days. She became the youngest player, male or female, to reach World No. 1 when she ascended to the top of the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings on Feb. 2, 2015, at 17 years, 9 months and 9 days. Later that year, Ko became the youngest female major winner when she captured the 2015 Amundi Evian Championship at 18 years, 4 months and 20 days. She then became the youngest female ever to win two major championships at 18 years, 11 months and 9 days following her win at the 2016 Chevron Championship. Now at 27 years, 3 months and 17 days, Ko becomes the youngest player to be inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame under its current criteria. Prior to March 2022, induction criteria included the requirement that a player be active on Tour for 10 years. Karrie Webb reached the 27-point threshold at age 25 with her victory at the 2000 U.S. Women’s Open but did not reach the 10-year requirement until age 30 in 2005. “Lydia’s qualification into the LPGA Hall of Fame isn’t just a milestone in her extraordinary career; it’s a testament to her generational talent, having built an unmatched resume of success at such a young age,” said LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan. “Beyond her unprecedented achievements on the golf course, Lydia has inspired so many through her perseverance, kindness, generosity, and commitment to leaving the game better than she found it. She is a role model to us all and particularly to young girls, to whom she has shown what a true champion is, in sport and in life.” “Cementing her place in the Hall of Fame by winning the gold medal here in Paris is iconic, and it is something we will all remember for a long time. We are immensely proud of Lydia’s achievements and the impact she’s made on the world of golf and in global sports.” |
