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Lydia Ko Clinches Third Victory in Four Starts at Aramco Saudi Ladies International

Ko solidified her world No. 1 status with the international win.

Gabrielle Herzig

With a win at the Aramco Saudi Ladies International, Lydia Ko started her 2023 season just as the world No. 1 should. After starting Sunday one shot back, a final-round 68 led the New Zealander to a one-shot triumph over India’s Aditi Ashok. 

Ko will take home a winner’s check of $750,000 as she ticks off her third win in four starts. Ko wrapped up her competitive stretch in 2022 with wins at the BMW Ladies Championship and the CME Group Tour Championship, where she collected the richest prize in women’s golf history. 

The 26-year-old now has two victories at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club, the same venue that hosted the men’s Saudi International tournament earlier in February. 

“I’m 2-for-2 on this golf course, so clearly something is going for me,” Ko said. 

It was Ko’s hot putting that did the trick on Sunday. A clutch birdie on the 17th hole gave her the first outright lead of the day over Ashok, a rising 24-year-old star. 

“I tried to stay really patient out there. I think the weekend my golf wasn’t—I shot 6 under yesterday and 3 under today—but I feel like it wasn’t as sharp as I would’ve loved it to be,” Ko said.

“Even when it wasn’t, I didn’t get too flustered, and I stayed calm. Just wanted to focus on my game, and I knew there were so many players that could potentially make birdie or eagles down the stretch to kind of flip it.”

Ko’s 26th victory not only comes at an exciting time in her professional career, it also marks her first win as a married woman. 

“I think I’ve just been very grateful,” Ko said. “A lot of great things happening, especially in the last few months again and again. You don’t know if this is real or not, but I’ve been trying to enjoy being out on the golf course.”

Ko will make her next start at the first LPGA event of the 2023 season, the Honda LPGA Thailand, hosted at Siam Country Club’s Old Course, from Thursday through Sunday. 

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Gabrielle Herzig
GABRIELLE HERZIG

Gabrielle Herzig is a Breaking and Trending News writer for Sports Illustrated Golf. Previously, she worked as a Golf Digest Contributing Editor, an NBC Sports Digital Editorial Intern, and a Production Runner for FOX Sports at the site of the 2018 U.S. Open. Gabrielle graduated as a Politics Major from Pomona College in Claremont, California, where she was a four-year member and senior-year captain of the Pomona-Pitzer women’s golf team. In her junior year, Gabrielle studied abroad in Scotland for three months, where she explored the Home of Golf by joining the Edinburgh University Golf Club.

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