In case you were at Tiburon Golf Club yesterday and saw a dog running wild on the greens, you spotted one of the most famous dogs in LPGA: Lydia Ko’s Shiba Inu. Being dead serious here, it’s not just the most famous one, but one that’s worth more than a major.

More on that later. But Lydia Ko’s furry four-legged friend is a nine-month-old Shiba named Kai. He was known as George before. That is when Ko first met the tyke in New York. It was before the Mizuho Americas Open. 

Ko and her husband, Jun Chung, the son of Tae-Young Chung, CEO of Hyundai Card, had to spend days apart for work. Their Orlando home looks empty. And the couple thought it was better to adopt a pet. 

Although both felt the need to adopt the Shiba when they first saw him, they didn’t. It wasn’t the right time. Ko recounted from Tiburon Golf Club, “I remember the rental car return ride. I started crying as I got to the airport because I was like, ‘Wow, I’m never going to be able to see him again.’”

But you know what dogs are like. Ko and her husband have to come back. Next, you know, the Kiwi International was running with her dog at the CPKC Women’s Open in Canada. “I’ve become such a dog mom,” the 27-year-old said in August, talking about her trip to Calgary with her dog.

Now, Shibas are not known for their obedience. Lydia Ko generally takes a dogsitter on tournament days. And she was texting her dogsitter when Kai got away. She saw him taking a dip in the lake. Then there was no trace. A frantic 20 minutes of search, and lo and behold! Kai was running on the 13th green. 

The nine-month-old ‘baby’ does give her pain (every Shiba does, right?). But Lydia Ko wouldn’t trade the experience of being a dog mom even for a major. She was given that choice, actually. Her response was forthright. 

What Kai means for Lydia Ko

In a hypothetical situation. Lydia Ko’s husband casually asked her, “‘Would you rather win one more major in the future and… not know Kai, or would you just rather have Kai and know you’re never going to win a major anymore?” Ko was a bit taken aback at first. But her answer would resonate with every dog owner.

Ko picked Kai over a major. She was yet to win the AIG Women’s Open then. And after she broke her major drought, the LPGA Hall of Famer said, “ I said, ‘I wouldn’t trade it,’ just even if it guaranteed me my third major win. I would rather not win a major and have Kai in my life (but) I have both, the best of both worlds.” 

She has an Olympic gold medal too. Interestingly, Kai was there in Paris as well. Now it remains to be seen if she can cap off a spectacular year with a victory at the CME Group Tour Championship. Kai is already here.