As Her Dismal Stretch Continues, Will Lydia Ko Be Able To Maintain Her LPGA Tour Card in 2024?

An athlete’s career is fraught with ups and downs. And as is the case with all players, Lydia Ko is no different. She has been experiencing a rough patch in 2023, despite making it to the top in the previous year. And now, the golfer is targeting getting back up on her feet at the ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican.

However, not much has changed, as the LPGA icon saw herself finishing at T31 at the newly named tournament after the first two rounds. And amid such a disappointing season and a similar start to the tournament, curiosity naturally arises: will she be able to hold on to her tour card in 2024?

Lydia Ko and the 2024 LPGA Tour card

The New Zealand pro had an amazing year in 2022, raking in three wins on the LPGA circuit, including the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship. However, 2023 hasn’t been easy for Ko, as she was able to emerge victorious just once at the Saudi Ladies International, along with a T3 finish at the BMW Ladies Championship. However, competing in the latter event did not award her any points owing to her playing as a sponsor’s invitee.

And now, after a disappointing season, the Kiwi has found herself at 101 on the Race to CME Globe season list with 228.571 points. In order to make it into the top 100 and be considered a full cardholder, the golfer would have to aim for a good finish at the ANNIKA event, thus sneaking her way inside the same.

However, for someone like the 2X major champ, there are other options as well. If she is unable to put up a good performance at the current tournament, the golfer would be able to play out of Category 4, which includes the winners of various LPGA events over the past two seasons as well as the current one. With three wins in the previous year, she naturally qualifies.

Moreover, she is currently fifth on the Career Money List, making her eligible for Category 2, which allows players in the top 20 of the same category at the end of the previous season to compete in the next one. A golfer can make use of this twice in their career.

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Although the professional is outside the top 100, she is unlike the other players who are part of the same group and who do not have that many options. Nevertheless, she would be focusing on getting back on her feet in the next two rounds of the ANNIKA event.

Ko’s performance in 2023

Ko was only able to put up scores of 67 and 69 over the first and second rounds, respectively. She entered the same year after a disappointing year involving just five top-10 finishes in 2023. Her subpar performance over the year led her to lose out on the No. 1 position on the Rolex ranking as well.

The 19-time LPGA Tour champ is currently in 10th place on the world rankings. Even if she were to win the $3.25 million event, the golfer would not be able to win back the top spot owing to the number of golfers above her, including Celine Boutier, Lilia Vu, and Nelly Korda, among others. Well, after a disheartening season, one can hope she is able to make a comeback in 2024.

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