Korean Women’s Golf ‘No Medal’… ‘Number 1’ Korda "I Am the Gold Medalist"

Ko Jin-young and Kim Se-young tie for 9th, Kim Hyo-joo ties for 15th, Park In-bee finishes tied for 23rd at Tokyo Olympics

Ko Jin-young (left) and Kim Se-young are playing together on the 8th hole during the final day of the women's golf event at the Tokyo Olympics. Saitama, Japan. Photo by Yonhap News.

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] The world’s strongest Korean women’s golf team ended up with no medals.

“Number 2” Ko Jin-young (26) scored 3-under par on the final day of the women’s golf event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, held on the 7th at Kasumigaseki Golf Club in Saitama Prefecture, Japan (par 71, 6,648 yards), but remained tied for 9th place (10-under par 274). “Number 1” Nelly Korda (USA) won by one stroke (17-under par 267), while Lydia Ko (New Zealand), the silver medalist from the Rio Olympics, and Inami Mone (Japan) tied for 2nd place (16-under par 268), competing for the medals.

Starting tied for 10th place, 8 strokes behind, Ko Jin-young made 4 birdies (1 bogey). She reduced 2 strokes with birdies on the 5th and 8th holes (both par 5) in the front nine, and added 2 more birdies on the 10th hole (par 3) and 14th hole (par 5) in the back nine. The final 18th hole (par 4) was a bogey. Ko said, “Although I feel a great sense of regret that the Olympics are over, I also feel relieved,” adding, “I did everything I could without any regrets,” and “I think the gap from the medal zone was due to my shortcomings.”

She continued, “If I consistently maintain a top ranking and prepare well, I will have another chance at the 2024 Paris Olympics three years from now,” and vowed, “If I go then, I don’t want to leave any regrets like this year.” Kim Sei-young (28, Mediheal) lowered her score by 3 strokes and joined the group tied for 9th place. Kim Hyo-joo (26, Lotte) shot 4-under par to rise to tied for 15th place (9-under par 275). Park In-bee (33, KB Financial Group), the gold medalist from the Rio Olympics, finished tied for 23rd place (5-under par 279).

Korda started with a 3-stroke lead and recorded 5 birdies, 1 bogey, and 1 double bogey. She was cruising with a birdie on the 2nd hole (par 4), but suffered a critical double bogey on the 7th hole (par 3), allowing a tie for the lead. However, she escaped her competitors’ pursuit with 3 consecutive birdies from the 8th to 10th holes. Aditi Ashok (India) finished 4th (15-under par 269), Hannah Green (Australia) tied for 5th (13-under par 271), and Feng Shanshan (China), the bronze medalist from the Rio Olympics, placed 8th (11-under par 273).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.