Lydia Ko Nearly Hit ‘Rock Bottom’ Before Turning Her Entire LPGA Career Around in 2024

Witnessing young players retiring is no less than a shock. After the news of LPGA star Lexi Thompson’s retirement, the golf world was shocked but also supported her in the decision to overcome the struggle that has impacted her personal life. However, there was another piece of news that could have added remorse even further. It was the Olympic champion, Lydia Ko, who once planned on hanging her clubs.

The 27-year-old was struggling with bad form in the entire 2023 season. She recorded two top 10s, including one top 5. Following the below-average finishes, Ko had a strong start in 2024, including a victory at the  Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, and a runner-up at the next, i.e., LPGA Drive on Championship was a confidence booster. However, it wasn’t for long as the great start then saw a decline where the Kiwi professional missed the cut in the U.S. Women’s Open and KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, two events back-to-back.

While sharing about her imperfect form and struggles during those years, Lydia Ko shared her thoughts with Golf Monthly. Expressing regret about her performance, she was very disappointed and shared what her mom said, “my mum tells me I was a better golfer at 15 than I am now.” Even thoughts of retirement came to her mind following the performances. In 2023, Ko said that the poor form “made me question my place in the game a bit.” 

Even during the mid-2024 season, she was in doubt, which led to her struggling with her confidence. The performance shook her so much that she started to think, “It wasn’t exactly rock bottom, but I did start to wonder whether my ‘comeback’ year in 2022 – when I won three times and made it back to World No. 1 – was just a fluke.” A downfall after being at the top indeed seems stressful.

However, her wins kept her motivated and built her confidence. She said about performances, “Those good performances at the start [of 2024] were exactly what I needed.” It did in reality turn out to be true as she won 3 out of the last 6 events she played, including an Olympic gold. After winning gold, Lydia Ko became the first golfer to have a complete set of Olympic medals.

Now, with a great ending to the season, she is all set to keep retirement thoughts aside, at least till she is 30 years old, and focus on her new aim of the grand slam for the 2025 schedule.

Lydia Ko’s dream run for the 2025 schedule

After the struggle years, Ko found the victories as motivation and built on it till the end of the 2024 schedule. She recorded 4 wins and 5 top-10 finishes, even after struggling during the middle of 2024. Now with that, Ko aims to experience feeling “like Cinderella walking with my glass slippers” by winning two majors to complete the Grand Slam.

Continuing her interview with Golf Monthly, she expressed her aim, saying, “This year my thoughts have turned to the possibility of completing the career Grand Slam. It’s good to have goals. The Grand Slam seems really far out there, but what has happened the past few years has been on a similar level of craziness, I guess.”

Away from the regret of failing, Ko has finally accepted to try her best. As per her statement during the interview, she emphasized working on her goal. She even shared, “I would love a chance of winning all five different majors. For me, that would be the continuation of the fairytale. So why not try for another happy ending?”

After an exceptional year, Ko is just two majors away from her fairytale dream. Can she achieve it in the 2025 schedule? What is your prediction about Lydia Ko’s dream? Share with us in the comments below.