From Planning To Walk Away At 30 To Being On The Back Nine Of Her Career Aged 26 - Here's What Lydia Ko Thinks About Retirement Now After Winning Olympic Gold

As a teenager, Lydia Ko initially had plans to retire at 30. Then, earlier this year, the New Zealander confirmed she was "definitely past the halfway point" of her career at the age of 26.

While it could initially be surprising to hear that, Ko turned professional as a 16-year-old in 2013 and has already enjoyed a stint in pro that most could only dream about, with two Majors, three Olympic medals, and 27 wins on either the LPGA or Ladies European Tour.

The 27-year-old has just won Olympic gold at Paris 2024 - adding to her silver and bronze medals at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, respectively - and in doing so earned her place in the LPGA Tour's Hall Of Fame alongside the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Nancy Lopez, and Se Ri Pak.

And asked once more whether the long-time goal finally being achieved had changed her mind at all in terms of potentially bringing forward her exit from the sport, Ko did not give much away.

She said: "I mean, I know I'm playing the Scottish Open next week and the British Open the week after. There's still so much golf to be played this season.

"You know, I have great days and I'm like, I want to play as long as I can, and then I have days where I wake up with a sore low back and I'm like, 'I don't think I can make it anymore.'

"So, I don't think there is a specific date, and now that I've got in the Hall of Fame, I don't know if that affects anything. But for now, I just want to enjoy this moment."

Ko's 2024 season began in some style, with a win and two further top-fives in her first four starts - including a runner-up at the LPGA Drive On Championship.

Since then, the South Korea-born golfer has been consistent enough without the results to back it up, until a T8th result at the CPKC Women's Open ended a six-event run without a top-25.

Ko feels she is still playing well, though, and hopes the relief of no longer chasing a Hall of Fame berth may allow her to kick on and enjoy even more success before she retires.

Ko said: "Golf has given me so much, and I know that my ending is sooner than when it first started. So I wanted to really enjoy it, and while I am competitively playing, I want to play the best golf I can.

"I think this takes a little bit of weight off my shoulders. But at the same time, I've seen a lot of progress these past couple months, and I'm excited to see how I can finish in my last major and finish this season, and assess and see where it goes from there."