Sleepless in Scotland: Lydia Ko waiting for golden reality to sink in

GLASGOW – New Zealand’s Lydia Ko won a gold medal in the women’s Olympic golf competition in Paris on Aug 10 and immediately qualified for the LPGA Hall of Fame.

That was an impressive turn of events, so much so that the 27-year-old was not sure if her fairy-tale story was real or just a dream.

“I actually don’t know if it has sunk in yet,” Ko said on Aug 13, two days ahead of the Women’s Scottish Open in Ayrshire.

“I didn’t sleep Saturday night just because of travel logistics and all that. So I went to sleep for the first time on Sunday night. It was pretty surreal. I woke up, like, was that a dream? Did that just really happen?”

It did, and the gold for the South Korean-born New Zealander gave her the remaining points she needed to enter the LPGA Hall of Fame.

“Super exciting,” Ko added.

“I’ve gotten an overwhelming amount of support from the players and the people I know, and just very grateful for literally this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

So where does she have her gold medal?

“It’s been in my backpack. (It hasn’t) gone in the case yet,” she said. “So I haven’t been able to fully treasure it very well. But it’s right there now.

“I haven’t actually looked at (the medal) in a couple of days. When I was flying with it, it was weird to kind of take it out because not everybody knows that I’m an athlete or an Olympian or that I had won a medal. So it’s kind of awkward at times. I don’t really want to – like I don’t feel like bragging so I have to (keep it in the backpack).”

It is not bragging to note that Ko has 20 LPGA Tour victories to her credit, but her last Major title was the 2016 ANA Inspiration (now known as the Chevron Championship). Before that she won the 2015 Evian Championship.

She is looking to build off her momentum in Paris when she plays the links-style course ahead of the Women’s British Open at St Andrews the following week.

“I said it would be really, really cool to win a Major championship before I’m done competitively playing,” Ko said. “I don’t exactly know when that time is but I think it’s good to have another goal, and that’s definitely a goal of mine.

“I mean if it happens next week, I’d be pretty shocked to say, especially because it’s like two of the biggest events in my season.”

Ko had previously said that she would consider retiring at 30, but things may have changed now.

“I always said 30,” she added.

“But I said 30 like 10 years ago, and I don’t even know why I said 30 at that point. You know, even if I was to stop today, I’m obviously very grateful for everything that has happened in my career so far, but I haven’t really set an end date yet.” REUTERS