Paris 2024: New Zealand’s Lydia Ko completes Olympic medal collection with gold in women’s golf

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Lydia Ko has played in all three Olympic Games since golf resumed competitive play and has left each one with a medal. The New Zealand-born woman added a gold medal to her collection on Saturday at Le Golf National in Paris after shooting a final round of 71 to finish 10-under par, two strokes ahead of silver medalist Esther Henseleit of Germany.

China’s Xiyu Lin won bronze with a final score of 7 under par.

American reigning gold medalist Nelly Korda finished on 1-under par. Rose Zhang finished on 5-under, while Lilia Vu finished on 5-over par.

The 27-year-old Ko has now won all three Olympic medals, after winning silver at Rio 2016 and taking home bronze at Tokyo 2020.

Ko maintains control

Ko said earlier this week that she had deleted her Instagram to focus on the Olympic tournament. She spent her free time binge-watching Netflix and binge-watching the Simone Biles documentary, “Rising.” One quote from the seven-time Olympic gold medalist stuck with the 20-time LPGA champion:

“I get to write my own ending.”

Ko finished the 2016 Olympics five strokes behind winner Inbee Park of South Korea, taking silver. In Tokyo, she had to settle for bronze after losing a play-off to Japan’s Mone Inami.

This time Ko took the lead in Paris and took the lead after a slow start to the tournament.

Ko’s first round saw her on even par, seven strokes behind leader Céline Boutier of France. But when some players went the wrong way in the second round, such as Boutier, Ko began her ascent.

On Thursday she scored 5 (under par 67) and on Friday she scored 4 (under par 68), which puts her equal for the lead with Switzerland’s Morgane Metraux after three rounds.

“If it’s meant to be, it will happen,” Ko said afterwards about his dream of winning a gold medal.

On Saturday, Ko made a bogey on the first hole and closed the first nine holes with three birdies, including a long birdie on hole 7. With that he took the lead for good.

Ko’s control of the lead loosened toward the end of the fourth round with a double bogey at No. 13 and Henseleit shooting 6-under on the day to put herself in medal contention. But Ko didn’t let that hiccup affect her finish. She followed that 6 with four pars and then held a birdie at the 18th to clinch gold.

The victory in Paris not only gives Ko a gold medal, she is now also officially a Hall of Famer.

Ko entered the Olympics one point — or one win — away from being inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame. Now she can add Olympic champion and Hall of Famer to an impressive resume that includes 20 LPGA Tour victories, including two majors.