Ko’s bid to join Hall of Fame on hold
Lydia Ko squandered a gilt-edged opportunity to enter the LPGA Hall of Fame with a disappointing final round in China on Sunday.
Seeking her 21st career victory, which would have earned her the 27th point necessary for automatic qualification into the LPGA Hall of Fame, Ko was in pristine position, tied for the lead, at 12-under, after 54 holes of the Blue Bay LPGA tournament.
And then the Kiwi’s putter went stone cold on the front nine, eventually leading to a one-under 71 and a tie for fourth place.
In just her second year on the tour, Bailey Tardy of the US broke away from the field just before the turn and romped to victory with a final round of 65 to triumph by four shots.
Partnered with Tardy and fellow American Sarah Schmelzel for the final round, Ko was unable to exert any pressure on her co-leaders, who were both gunning for their maiden LPGA titles.
Instead, it was the experienced pro under the pump from the outset quickly falling two shots off the pace after the opening two holes, with Schmelzel starting in brilliant touch and birdieing the first three.
While Schmelzel was quickly back to earth with bogeys at four and six, Ko was in no position to capitalise, dropping shots at two, five and nine, in a front-nine where she registered a lone birdie and missed three putts from six feet.
Halfway through her round she had slipped five strokes back as Tardy, who started with seven straight pars, surged to the front with eagle-birdie at eight and nine to fly out to 15-under.
The 27-year-old made five birdies in the space of seven holes on the back nine and while Ko made back-to-back birdies at 13 and 14 and added one at the last hole, the New Zealander will have been disappointed with her Sunday showing.
Ko started the year in brilliant form, winning the Tournament of Champions by two shots in Florida.
She almost booked her place in the Hall of Fame the following week when she lost a two-hole playoff to Nelly Korda at the Drive On Championship.