Lydia Ko in action at the LPGA Australian Womens Open. Photo / Photosport
A new year, but probably the same result for Lydia Ko.
Through three rounds of her first tournament of 2018, Ko sits in a share of 12th at the Australian Open, looking likely to continue the pattern of 2017 – earning a solid finish, without victory.
Last year, Ko claimed
11 top 10 finishes, but couldn't quite crack the winners circle. Now, with a new coach and caddie combination, she remains one of the leading contenders on the LPGA Tour, but is no longer the runaway favourite as she was as a teenage tyro.
Still only 20 years old, she is still more likely than not to win a tournament this year, but it's unlikely to be at the Australian Open.
Ko shot a third round one-under 71 to stay steady on the leaderboard, mixing two birdies on either side of the turn with a bogey on 17. She is eight shots off the lead held by her namesake Jin-Young Ko, who – in another sign of Lydia's descend back to mere mortality – is threatening to become the best Ko on tour.
