Lydia Ko became the youngest LPGA winner in history at the age of 15 when she won the 2012 Canadian Open. She became the youngest world No. 1 the next year and has two majors to her name. However, 7 years later, at 22, she dropped to No. 24 and had only one victory since 2016. That was one of the worst slumps of her career. And David Leadbetter, her swing coach from 2013 to 2016 had only one thing to blame: her parents Gil Hong Ko and Hyeon Bong-sook.

“I hope she gets it back but restoring confidence is never the easiest thing to do. Her parents have a lot to answer for – a case of unbelievable ignorance,” he had said back then. And yet, that was not the first time when the former coach spoke along that line. When he was fired in 2016, his thoughts about Ko’s parents were the same. “At this point, their sole occupation is taking care of Lydia’s every need. They tell her when to go to bed, what to eat, what to wear, when to practice and what to practice. And they expect her to win every tournament,” he had said.

Calling Lydia’s parents ‘naive’ about golf, he has further added, “And at some point, they’ve got to let the bird fly from the nest. I would often think, ‘It’s not easy coaching three people.’” He recalled one instance. Leadbetter had revealed that once Ko’s father was on the practice tee for her warmup. “He had a comment after every swing,” said Leadbetter. “And some of it was in Korean, so I didn’t know what advice that might be. You know, more than anything a player needs peace before a round. I finally had to say to him, ‘This is too much information here.'” But despite all these, Ko has risen to fame like anything.

Recently, Ko achieved a monumental milestone in her career, being appointed Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her incredible contributions to golf. It’s a well-deserved recognition of her dominance in the sport and her role as a global ambassador for women’s golf. As the world celebrates her damehood honor, a nearly 12-year-old clip of the young Lydia has surfaced, once again shedding light on the sacrifices she made as a teenager—especially those that were driven by her parents’ high expectations.

In the clip, a young Ko candidly opens up about her life at the time, saying, “My life seems to be like golf, golf, golf, golf, golf. So, you know, I miss seeing my friends going to movies.” It’s a candid moment, one that many of us can relate to—longing for the simple joys of childhood while balancing the pressure of a career. But Ko goes on to explain the mindset her parents had, saying, “My parents keep telling me, if you make a sacrifice, then something that you want to achieve will come.” Can you imagine the exact extent of that sacrifice?

Ko had once revealed to Golf Digest, “After school I head immediately to the golf course. The work I do there is intense. It’s how I’ve become a good player. I get home at about 8 p.m. There’s just time enough to eat, prepare my schoolwork for the next day, then go to bed. The good part is, I don’t have to do chores. Washing dishes, cleaning and cooking are not my responsibilities. I could do these things, but if you were me, would you take away six hours of golf practice each week in exchange for doing chores? As a family, we’ve decided the answer to that is a firm “no.” Probably, taking such interest in their offspring’s career is deep-rooted in Korean culture. Leadbetter knows that well.

In 1998, he parted company with Se Ri Pak, who had recently won the U.S. Women’s Open, after two years, citing parental and sponsor interference. He also has the instance of Michelle Wie, whose parents, BJ and Bo, have always been a regular presence and strong influence in their daughter’s up-and-down career. But for Ko, we can not really say that it has only done harm.

At just 14, Lydia was already competing on the global stage, taking on some of the toughest professional golf events. In whatever manner, her parents definitely played a big part in shaping her path, and the golfer is indeed grateful to them despite all the criticism. In 2022, when she regained her #1 spot, she thanked her family; “I’m very grateful to be World No. 1 again. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be back here again. This wouldn’t have been possible without my family and team. Thank you for your belief and love.” After her damehood honor, she again expressed similar thoughts.

What did Lydia Ko think of her Dame honor?

“It’s obviously special, not just for myself, but for everyone involved because I wouldn’t be here without them,” Ko said, reflecting on her damehood honor. Ko admitted that the honor took some consideration, saying, “You don’t grow up thinking, ‘I’m going to become a dame’… you might say, I want to become a Hall of Famer or World No. 1, but it’s so above and very different from what we can control, so I thought, ‘Do I deserve it? Is this the right time?’ But to have these opportunities and for someone else to bring it up, I’m very grateful.”

Ko’s journey has been nothing short of incredible. From moving with her family from Korea to New Zealand when she was just four years old to becoming a global sports icon, it’s wild to think how far she’s come. She’s even joked about how her life changed completely, especially since she only knew a handful of letters—and in the wrong order!

One of her proudest moments? That Olympic gold medal. It completed her medal collection and was super emotional for her, especially knowing it would be her last Olympic appearance. It’s one of those moments she describes as straight out of a fairy tale, like Cinderella in her glass slippers.