‘Playing for Her’: When Lydia Ko Gave a Subtle Tribute to Her Late Grandmother While Making Her Country and Family ‘Proud’ at 2021 Olympics

The LPGA Tour is filled with talented players from all across the world. And among them is New Zealand-born professional golfer Lydia Ko. The former world no. 1 has made tons of records in her career. However, she once dedicated a special achievement to someone she loved the most.

Lydia Ko dedicated her achievement to her grandmother

Ko is counted as one of the most successful golfers at LPGA of all time. The golf star was the youngest player to be ranked no. 1 in pro golf at the age of 17 years. Setting records is nothing new for Ko. But there was something special about her game at the 2020 Olympic Women’s Golf.

Ko finished her final round with a score of 65 but lost a playoff against Mone Inami from Japan. Ko ended up winning the bronze medal after losing her grandmother a week before. And therefore, she decided to dedicate her medal to her late grandmother. “I was playing for her,” Ko said emotionally. “I just wanted to make our family really proud and our country proud and to be able to win a medal for them means so much to everyone who has been on this journey with me. This has been for my grandmother.”

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Although she managed to win a medal at the tournament, Ko was not very happy with her results. “I wish I could have brought [home] a different color medal,” she said. But she also hoped for all her fans back home to be “proud” of what she had done. She also mentioned that winning the bronze medal felt quite similar to the time she won the silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics. However, she wanted to do better and hoped for a better outcome for her performance.

Ko returns to the number 1 spot

Surprising all her fans around the world, Lydia Ko has managed to climb up to the number 1 spot per the Rolex Women’s Golf Rankings. It is the third time that the golfer has reached the pedestal in her 10-year-long career. Her ranking was a result of her victory at the CME Group Tour Championship.

The golfer received the biggest paycheck in the history of women’s golf. However, she was not expecting to reach the first spot again anytime soon. “I’m very grateful to be World No. 1 again,” she said. “To be honest, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be back here again.”

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