‘Hyundae Family’ Daughter-in-law Lydia Ko "Won Again"

Kroger Queen City Championship FR 9 Under Par
Third Win This Year and 22nd Career Victory, Perfect Comeback
Titikun 2nd, Yu Hae-ran 3rd, Koda Tied 5th

The daughter-in-law of the Hyundai family, Lydia Ko (New Zealand), has returned to her former form.

Lydia Ko is teeing off at the 5th hole of the 4th round of the Kroger Queen City Championship.
[Maineville, USA=AP·Yonhap News]

On the 22nd (local time), at the final 4th round of the LPGA Tour Kroger Queen City Championship (total prize money $2 million) held at TPC River's Bend (par 72, 6,705 yards) in Maineville, Ohio, USA, she shot a 9-under-par 63 to secure a commanding 5-stroke victory (23-under-par 265). This marks her third win of the season and 22nd career victory, just one month after the major AIG Women's Open last month. The winner's prize money is $300,000 (approximately 400 million KRW).

Lydia Ko started 2 strokes behind in 2nd place and collected 1 eagle and 7 birdies. She reduced 3 strokes in the front nine with birdies on the 1st hole (par 4) and 'stepping stone birdies' on the 6th and 8th holes. Then, she gained momentum with a birdie on the 10th hole (par 4) and an eagle on the 11th hole (par 5). While her competitors faltered, she demonstrated overwhelming skill by adding 3 more birdies on the 13th, 15th, and 18th holes. She missed the fairway only twice and had an outstanding 24 putts.

Lydia Ko has been a 'golf prodigy' dominating the professional stage since her amateur days. Since debuting on the LPGA Tour in 2014, she has won 3 major championships. She has accumulated 30 wins in the US and Europe. On December 30, 2022, she married Jung Joon, the only son of Jung Tae-young, Vice Chairman of Hyundai Card, at Myeongdong Cathedral in Jung-gu, Seoul. Although she experienced a slump for a while, she has made a perfect comeback this year by winning 3 trophies, qualifying for the Paris Olympic gold medal, and earning eligibility for the LPGA Hall of Fame.

Gino Tiitikun (Thailand), who was the leader the previous day, finished with 2-under-par and dropped to 2nd place (18-under-par 270). Meanwhile, Yoo Hae-ran improved by 5 strokes to leap to 3rd place (17-under-par 271). Yuka Saso (Japan) is in 4th place (16-under-par 272), and world No. 1 Nelly Korda (USA) and Jang Hyo-jun tied for 5th place (14-under-par 274) with strong performances. Kim A-rim, Lim Jin-hee, and No Ye-rim (USA) are tied for 9th place (12-under-par 276), Kim Se-young is tied for 19th (10-under-par 278), and defending champion Minjee Lee (Australia) is tied for 27th (9-under-par 279).