Golf: Lydia Ko’s admission ahead of Women’s PGA Championship

Lydia Ko during a practice round ahead of the Women's PGA Championship. Photo / AP

Lydia Ko is determined to stay positive despite struggling on the course ahead of the second major of the year - after all, she’s been here before.

Since winning her first event of the year at the Saudi Ladies International in February, Ko has struggled to replicate the form that saw her return to world No 1 and claim the LPGA’s player of the year title in 2022.

Aside from a share of sixth in Thailand earlier this year, the 26-year-old hasn’t been able to crack the top 30 in her last six events on the LPGA Tour, including missed cuts at the year’s first major in April and last week at the LPGA Classic in Michigan.

She’s since dropped to No 3 in the world and will face a potentially even tougher challenge this week in the Women’s PGA Championship at the Baltrusrol Golf Club in New Jersey, as she looks to break her drought at the majors. She is still searching for her third major victory since winning the ANA Inspiration in 2016.

Ko admits the last few months have been frustrating, but she’s leaning on her team and a positive mindset that has gotten her out of worse ruts in the past.

“I feel like after missing the cut, you can’t really go below that, unless I disqualify myself for some reason, and touch wood, I don’t do that [this week],” she said.

“I just try to keep being positive, and I think that’s sometimes been a struggle. It’s been frustrating the last couple months, but my team and my family have been trying to keep me grounded and say, hey, we’re still moving in the right direction.

“I think I’m very grateful to have those kind of support system that believes in you when you necessarily might not believe in yourself.”

Ko says that self-belief is still something that doesn’t come naturally to her.

“My personality, I’m not the most confident, like cocky, like ‘oh yeah I’m the greatest player’. That’s just not who I am. I sometimes wish I was more like that.

“I saw some of the interviews from the guys last week [at the US Open], and I was like, damn, I wish I had that mentality. I think that’s such a great place to be at when you’re on the golf course.”

While Ko’s still learning to be cocky on the course, she’s comfortable in her ability to stay patient with her game, something she’ll need at the tricky Baltrusrol course.

“If you put in the right work and believe in your process and you’re patient, then everything is going to sort itself out.

“Even if it doesn’t, hey, golf is not me. Golf is something that I do, and it’s something that I love doing, and I’m very grateful for. It’s given me a lot of opportunities, but golf doesn’t equal Lydia.

“That’s what I’m trying to get a better idea at. But [patience] is the biggest key.”