AURORA, Ont.— For Jin Young Ko, consistency is the name of the game.
With her rock-steady mental toughness, the 24-year-old captured the CP Women’s Open at Magna Golf Club on Sunday, shooting a 26 under par total through the four rounds.
It was her ability to avoid costly mistakes that propelled the world number one to the top of the leaderboard this weekend.
#LPGAWinnerSelfie with @Titleist golf ball loyalist, Jin Young Ko. Jin Young won her fourth event of the year @cpwomensopen with her Titleist Pro V1. #TeamTitleist pic.twitter.com/EmeJBOOGqc
— LPGA (@LPGA) August 25, 2019
The Korean golfer doesn’t drive the ball the farthest on the LPGA, but where the Seoul native makes up for it is in her shot selection and golf IQ. The ability to avoid costly mistakes is what sets her apart from the rest of the competition.
Ko shot four bogey free rounds on route to her first Canadian championship and her fourth tournament win of the 2019 season. Her streak of par-or-better holes dates back to the AIG Women’s British Open’s third round — a total of 106 holes.
Sunday’s playing partners Nicole Broche Larsen and Brooke Henderson were aware coming into the tournament that Ko was going to be a tough challenge.
“I knew going into today it was going to take something extraordinary to win this,” said Broche Larsen, who finished second at minus-21. “She made no mistakes.”
With two majors under her belt on the season, Ko went into the tournament as the number-one ranked golfer on the LPGA.
A large proportion of the fans here this weekend, of course, were flocking to see Henderson, the young Canadian star, and she did not disappoint.
Give it up for @BrookeHenderson, your low Canadian at the 2019 #CPWO pic.twitter.com/eZLDu2Z2bO
— CPKC Women's Open (@cpkcwomensopen) August 25, 2019
Henderson finished the tournament in third place, narrowly missing the record books by being the first Canadian to win the tournament in back-to-back years.
“I feel like I made a lot of birdies and hopefully made it pretty exciting,” said the Smith Falls native. “(Tied for third). I couldn’t really ask for anything more.
“It would have been very difficult to catch Jin Young today. She shot like a million under.”
Ko herself was greeted by a plethora of Korean fans as she made her way through the picturesque Magna Golf Course.
“It was an incredible crowd out here,” said Ko, who has now picked up six wins in her LPGA career.
On the 18th hole, as Ko and Henderson made their way to the green for the final time, Henderson slipped her arm around Ko’s shoulder in affection, while the crowd roared with applause.
“I thought the crowd was [for] Brooke, not me,” said Ko. “She said ‘It’s [for] you’. Yeah, I like Brooke.”
The feeling of respect is mutual between the two golfers, with both putting on a show for the record breaking audience who gathered to for Canada’s largest competition.
“I think she’s leading the race in pretty much every category,” said Henderson of her Korean counterpart. “She’s world number one for a reason. She’s had an unreal season.”
Next year, the CP Women’s Open will be held at Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club in Vancouver, B.C., where both Ko and Henderson will look to claim victory for a second time.