Lydia Ko secures LPGA HOF ticket after her spectacular gold medal victory at 2024 Olympics

Lydia Ko couldn’t hold back tears of joy Saturday when she sank the birdie putt on the 18th hole at Le Golf National in Paris, France, that secured her a gold medal in women’s golf at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Ko currently holds the bronze medal at the 2021 Tokyo Games, a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Games and a gold medal at the 2024 Paris Games.

“That’s why I deleted my Instagram. I didn’t want to be upset about what other people said and I just wanted to enjoy this opportunity because this experience has been incredible and the fans have been amazing,” Ko said. “For me, this is the peak of my life. I don’t think I’ve ever had this much adrenaline and to experience it here is just too amazing.”

She is the first male or female golfer to win three medals at the modern Olympic Games.

On Saturday, the 27-year-old shot a 1-under 71 to finish at 10-under and win by two strokes.

She entered Saturday tied for first place with Switzerland’s Morgane Methot and explained that her younger self would not have been as consistent.

“I think when I was younger I thought, ‘Oh man, everyone’s trying to catch me,’ so I felt pressured by that,” Ko said. “I tried to think, ‘Hey, I have two more free shots than the other guys, but they don’t get to take them for free.’ I just wanted to have that as a cushion and focus on my game.”

The 20-time LPGA winner stayed focused and achieved her goal.

“This is one of the things I’m most proud of. I stuck to my game plan and played aggressively off the tee,” she said. “It’s something I’ve struggled with and have worked hard on with my coaches. I’ve slowly gotten better over the last few months and to culminate at the Olympic Games couldn’t be any better. Holding and wearing this gold medal is so surreal right now.”

Ko bogeyed her opening hole on Day 1, but quickly made up for it with birdies on the third and seventh holes.

She recorded her third birdie of the day to extend her lead to four strokes after the ninth hole.

A double bogey on the par-4 13th hole extended his lead to three strokes.

Ko made four straight pars on the way to the 18th hole, eventually finishing with a 7-foot birdie to win by two strokes.

After her putt dropped, the crowd went wild for Ko, and she was overcome with emotion as it all began to sink in.

It felt like fate, her own Cinderella story.

“Cinderella’s glass slippers were see-through and my podium slippers are see-through,” she noted. “I feel like I’m part of this story. Going into this week, people were saying, ‘What if you collected all the gold medals in addition to the silver and bronze medals?’ Of course, I would love to do that and finish the race, but it’s easier said than done.”

Joining her on the podium were Germany’s Estelle Henselied, who won silver, and China’s Lin Shiyu, who won bronze.

Photo by Emmanuel Dunant/AFP via Getty Images

Her performance also earned her the final point towards being inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame.

To earn the honor, a player must accumulate 27 points through an LPGA win, a major championship, an Olympic medal, a Vale Trophy and/or the Player of the Year award.

Ko won the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions in January, winning with 26 points.

“Winning the first event of the year at my hometown club in Lake Nona took the pressure off me and I knew if I do things right I could always play in tournaments,” she said. “Did I ever imagine I’d win the Paris Olympics? Probably not, but this is the coolest way to win it.”

She is now the 35th member of the LPGA Hall of Fame, making her the youngest by current standards. Ko is the first New Zealand golfer to be inducted and the most recent active player to earn points; the last inductee was Park Inbee in 2016.

After watching the Simone Biles documentary on Thursday night, Ko picked out one of the gymnast’s quotes: “I get to write my own ending.”

Ko wrote the perfect mantra in his yardage book and eventually achieved the Olympic triple crown.

Sometimes all it takes is a little confidence and a Simone Biles quote to get the job done, which for Ko led to a gold medal and a Hall of Fame induction.

Savannah Lee Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow us for more golf articles. Follow You can follow us on all major social platforms. You can also follow us on Twitter Follow Her Instagram account is @golf_girl_sl.