“Maybe if I do that, then I might lose motivation like Rory. I’m sure he might have lost a bit of motivation, but at the same time, when a player is that good and is that calibre, I feel like he still doesn’t like losing.
Dame Lydia Ko: “I am really excited to see where my game is heading.” Photo / Photosport
“There might be the question in your head like, okay, what’s next? And I’ve had that question in my career at multiple points, and even after winning the silver medal in Rio, that was such a big goal of mine. After that was done, I had lost a little bit of sense of direction in my career.
“I think the US Women’s Open has always been a big star or key on the schedule in any season. I obviously haven’t won that. So that’s always a motivation.”
The Kiwi is coming off a tie for fifth at LPGA Thailand and a fourth in the Tournament of Champions. Two top 10s to start the season (she had four in 2025, including the Singapore win) show she’s tracking well to start the year.
“I think just outside of how many events I want to win and what tournament I want to win, I feel like my game is trending to the point where I know that if I just keep working on it, I’ll just become a better golfer and the results kind of sort [themselves] out.
“I’m honestly excited for the process. I feel like if I do the process well, then everything else is going to kind of sort itself out.
“I honestly am enjoying the work in between right now. And it’s pretty hard to say when you’ve been on tour for 13 years because sometimes I do turn up and I’m like, ‘okay, this again’.
“But I am really excited to see where my game is heading, and that’s why I’m excited for this year. Because I just feel like I’m becoming a little more consistent and stronger fundamentally as the golfer, Lydia.”
Ko said coming into the HSBC Women’s World Championship as defending champion doesn’t change much.
“I don’t think my mindset changes at all. Obviously, I’ve got a lot of good memories to draw back from. And also, [I] kind of know that I can win at this golf course.
“But I think outside of that, my course strategy, like course management, really doesn’t change. A lot of us, it’s literally a year later that we’re here. So it’s a whole new week,” she said.