Her collection is now complete. Defeating her rivals at Le Golf National, Lydia Ko won by two strokes at the 2024 Paris Olympics and secured the gold medal she had long awaited. The New Zealander finished 10 under par, ahead of silver medalist Esther Henseleit of Germany at 8 under and bronze medalist Xiyu Lin of China at 7 under.
With her run to the top, Ko now owns a gold medal at this year’s Olympics, a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics and a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Coming into the competition as the only golfer – male or female – to hold multiple Olympic medals, Ko is now the first to hold three.
Not only can Ko call herself the most decorated Olympic golfer in Summer Games history, she’s also qualified for the LPGA Hall of Fame — all at the ripe age of 27. Coming into Paris, one point short of the 27-point threshold needed for entry, Ko’s gold medal was enough to put her over the line.
Her 27 points include 18 LPGA Tour wins (18 points), two major championships (4), two Vare Cups (2), two LPGA Player of the Year awards (2) and an Olympic gold medal (1).
Ko started the day in a shared lead with Switzerland’s Morgane Metraux, but got off to a shaky start with a bogey on the opening hole. Despite dropping her shot, she left the second green atop the leaderboard as Metraux’s nerves were evident from the start and often.
Ko found her form soon after, with birdies on two par 5s on the first nine sandwiching another on the par-4 seventh, where she connected from 45 feet to put an impossible circle on her scorecard. With her competitors Metraux and Rose Zhang of the United States both failing to break 40 on the first nine, Ko’s advantage grew to five.
Three pars to start the back nine maintained her advantage before encountering adversity on the par-4 13th. Hitting her approach into a water hazard protecting the putting surface, Ko lost two strokes and gave her opponents hope that a crack in the door might be opening.
Henseleit headed into the light and posted a total for Ko to consider as she closed the gap to one. The German birdied the last two holes for a final-round 66 and took the clubhouse lead by eight under. Lin had her eye on the same number, but a bogey on the 17th put her birdie finish in the bronze medal spot instead.
Ko’s quest for gold was still in her hands as she steadied the ship with a diet of pars and walked to the 18th tee with one shot to spare. Finding the fairway and opting to play the ball up, Ko faced a wedge shot over the water to seal the deal. Finding the green under immense pressure, Ko needed just one putt to find gold and complete her Olympic medal trilogy.
2024 Olympic Medalists
Silver — Esther Henseleit (Germany): With a one-shot lead heading into the second half of the competition, Henseleit had a memorable 36 holes. A third-round 69 gave her an unexpected chance of a medal before a fast start to the final round kept her in the running. Finishing four under, the 25-year-old swapped a birdie for a bogey early in the back nine before finishing quickly. A birdie on the difficult par-4 17th set the stage for an eagle on the par-5 final, bringing her level with Ko. Ignoring the low score, Henseleit instead took silver and Germany’s first Olympic medal in golf.
Copper — Xiyu Lin (China): As the only player to break par in every round, Lin’s consistency helped her secure the bronze medal. Starting the day four under par, Lin trudged around Le Golf National before bursting into birdies to close the day. Throwing three circles on her scorecard over the final four holes, the 28-year-old outlasted a group of opponents who were six under par. It was China’s second bronze medal in the last three Olympics.
Notable Finishers
Rose Zhang (United States): Zhang steadily improved with rounds of 72-70-67 to put herself in the final three on Saturday. She climbed to within a stroke of the gold medal position early in the final round before the wheels started to fall off. Playing her last six holes on the front nine in four overs, she hit 40 and couldn’t recover from there. Despite falling short of the target, Zhang’s Olympic debut marked another impressive first for the 21-year-old.
Nelly Korda (USA): The gold medallist failed to break 70 this week as a big number hampered her chances of a comeback. Korda made 19 birdies in her contest, but made up for that with 11 bogeys, a triple bogey and a quadruple bogey. The final seven of two came at the most inopportune time as she stood on the fairway at 5 under on the 15th hole and still had a chance of securing the final podium spot. Hitting the ball in the water, the American got seven points on the scoreboard before another bogey at 17 put an end to a 40-under back nine.
Celine Boutier (France): An opening 65 put Boutier on the pace that would eventually send her into a play-off for bronze. Unfortunately, the Frenchwoman went 11 shots behind at Le Golf National on Thursday to relinquish her lead. Unable to threaten on the final day, Boutier can look to a string of holes on the back nine where her rival went off course. Having played holes 13-15 in 2 under in Round 1, Boutier played those same holes in 11 over over the last three rounds.
