Ko takes break before major
Lydia Ko will miss the two upcoming tournaments on the LPGA Tour as she prepares for her next attempt at her first Major win in five years.
Ko had a disappointing final day when in contention for her second win of the season at the LPGA Thailand tournament on Sunday.
The New Zealander started the final round just two shots off the lead and reduced that deficit to one with a birdie on the second hole, but that was as close as she got, eventually finishing in a tie for 10th after a one-under-par round on a day when many of the challengers shot low scores.
Ko said after her round that she will be taking a break from tournaments before the US Women’s Open starts in San Francisco at the beginning of June. ‘‘It’s been a long stretch of events, so I’m looking forward to taking three weeks off and getting ready for the next stretch,’’ Ko said.
She will skip the next LPGA tournament in Virginia, starting on May 20, and is not playing the following event, a matchplay tournament in Las Vegas at May’s end.
The 24-year-old has been in fine form this year and now head the Tour’s player standings for the season. She has recorded six top-10 finishes in eight tournaments, including a breakthrough win in Hawaii last month, and has won NZ$1.184 million in prizemoney in 2021.
She was in title contention in both tournaments on the short Asian leg of the Tour this month, but faded in her last round each time. Ko admitted prior to the events in Singapore and Thailand that she wasn’t at her best when playing in hot conditions.
Ko again had some notable troubles with her driver on Sunday and ranks 124th this year on the Tour in driving accuracy at 67.86 per cent.
However, she’s accumulated more birdies than any other player – 138 – and has been brilliant with the putter, ranking third in putts per Greens in Regulation (1.69) and seventh in putting average at 28.53 putts per round.
At the US Open, the Kiwi will be seeking to win her third major and her first since the 2016 ANA Inspiration. She finished second at that tournament – the first Major of the year at the start of April – when she shot a recordbreaking 62 in her final round.