Jin Young Ko

Began her career on the LPGA of Korea Tour. She has won eleven times on Korea's LPGA and is in the top 30 Rolex Women's Golf Rankings. Ko was known for finishing runner-up to fellow Korean golfer Inbee Park in the 2015 Women's British Open after losing a three-shot lead on the inward nine of the Ailsa Course at Trump Turnberry. Ko famously met her caddie, a local young man, the day before the Open and had never played links golf before. But that was a distant memory when she won the 2019 ANA Inspiration and months later, the Evian Championship.
Jin Young Ko was one of the top amateur golfers in Korea as a teenager. After turning pro in 2013, she went on the Korea Developmental Tour.
2014 Notes: Won on the Korea Development Tour three times and finished in the top 10 nine times. She finished 4th at KLPGA Q-School to qualify for the KLPGA tour in 2014. On the Korean LPGA, she won the Nef's Masterpiece and ended the year with 14 top-10s and 458 million won ($400,567), finishing 8th on the money list.
2015 Notes: On the Korean LPGA Tour, she won three tournaments and finished fifth on the money list with over 533 million won (466,162) earned. In addition, she had five other top 10s, including a runner-up finish to In Gee Chun at the rain-shortened Samchully Together Open. Ko's great play qualified her for the Kowa Queens and ING Champions team events. The highlight of the year was taking the 54-hole lead at the Ricoh Women's Open, but when Ko put her second shot into a water hazard at the 16th hole, and she finished 2nd.
2016 Notes: Ko had 16 top 10s; besides the three wins, she had two seconds and two-thirds. She won KLPGA Player of the Year honors and became only the third golfer in history to exceed 1 billion won ($894,234). This still left her second behind Park, who earned over 1.3 billion won. Ko managed three wins, second to Park's seven. Her first win was at the KG-EDaily Women's Open in late April. She also won the lucrative BMW Ladies Championship and the Hite Cup, her first Korean major career. Ko also played three LPGA events but did not finish in the top 20 in any of them.
2017 Notes: Played in 21 Korean LPGA events, making the cut 19 times in 12 top-tens. Won twice, Jeju Samdasoo Masters and the BMW Ladies Championship. Was 4th on the money list with won743,181,423 ($624,360). She joined the LPGA for 2018 after winning the KEB Hana Bank Championship in October 2017.
2018 Notes: Played in 25 LPGA Tour events, making 24 cuts with 13 top-ten finishes. In her first official start as an LPGA member won the ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open. She beat Hye-Jin Choi by 3 shots. Ko became the second player to win in her first LPGA start as a Tour member, joining Beverly Hanson, who won the 1951 Eastern Open. She was T-2nd at the HUGEL-JTBC L.A. Open 2 shots back of winner Moriya Jutanugam. She was T-3rd at the ASI Ladies Scottish Open, 5 shots back of winner Ariya Jutanugarn. She was 10th on the LPGA money list with $1,159,005 and 14th in Race to CME. Also won the LPGA's Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year, the fifth straight Korean to win that award.
2019 Notes: Played in 22 LPGA Tour events, making 22 cuts with 12 top-ten finishes. Was 1st on the money list with $2,773,894 in earnings, she was also first on the CME points list. Started her season with a 2nd at the ISPS Handa Australian Open 2 shots back of winner Nelly Korda. She went on a one-month hot streak and was T-3rd at the HSBC Women's Champions. At the Bank of Hope Founders Cup. She shot 64-65 on the weekend to beat Jessica Korda, Nelly Korda, Carlota Ciganda, and Yu Liu by a shot. Ko began the final round five shots off the lead and won for the third time but first in the United States. The next week shot 67-65 over the weekend to finish T-2nd, 3 shots back of winner Nasa Hataoka. A week later, she won the ANA Inspiration for her first major title. Ko shot 10-under 278 to beat Mi Hyang Lee by 3 shots. The win moved her to No. 1 on the Rolex Rankings. In those four events was 58 under-par. At the end of April was T-5th at the Hugel-Air Premia L.A. Open. She had another one-month hot streak over four events, starting with a 2nd at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational with partner Minjee Lee. Next week in Frace won the Evian Championship, beating Jennifer Kupcho by two shots. The next week was 3rd at the AIG Women's Open she was two shots back of winner Hinako Shibuno. She then won the CP Women's Open, shooting 65-64 over the weekend, beating Nicole Broch Larsen by five shots. For the week, she didn't make a bogey.
2020 Notes: Played in only four LPGA Tour events but claimed the money title with a victory in the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship. The $1.1 million first prize lifted her to $1,667,925 in earnings. Qualified for the event by ranking 45th in CME points in only three starts. Because of COVID-19, Ko didn't come to America like she normally does in March. She played in six events on the Korean LPGA and earned won265,382,000 ($230,296) to finish 14th on that money list. Best finish 2nd at the KB Financial Group STAR Championship and 3rd at the Autech Carrier Championship with Sejong Field Golf Club. She also played in a challenge match with Sung Hyun Park to raise money for COVID-19 relief. She didn't play in her first LPGA Tour event until November, was T-34th at the Pelican Women's Championship and 5th at VOA Texas Shootout, three back of winner Angela Stanford. The next week was T-2nd at the U.S. Women's Open. Ko shot 68 in the final round but was a shot back of winner A Lim Kim. The next week won the CME Group Tour Championship by five shots over Sei Young Kim and Hannah Green.
2021 Notes: Won five events on the LPGA Tour, leading the money list by a wide margin with $3,502,161 in earnings and was No. 1 in the CME points list. Played in 19 LPGA events with 13 top-10 finishes.
Started her with a 4th place finish at the Gainbridge LPGA. Had another 4th place finish at the Kia Classic, then was T-7th at the ANA Inspiration, and then T-3rd at the HUGEL-AIR PREMIA L.A. Open, two shots back of winner Brooke Henderson. Was T-7th at the U.S. Women's Open, shot a first-round 63 at the Volunteers of America Classic, and won the event by a shot over Matilda Castren. Ko made the South Korea Women's Tokyo Olympics team and finished T-9th. In her last seven starts of the LPGA season had four wins, a T-2nd, and two T-6th finishes. Won the Cambia Portland Classic, finished T-2nd at the ShopRite LPGA Classic one shot behind winner Celine Boutier. She won the Cognizant Founders Cup and BMW Ladies Championship in her next two starts, with 266 totals. After a T-6th at the Pelican Women's Championship, she won the CME Group Tour Championship for the second straight year, shooting a final-round 63 for a 23-under 265 total, one ahead of Nasa Hataoka. In Korea, she won the BMW Ladies Championship on the KLPGA Tour.
2022 Notes: Played in 16 LPGA Tour events, making 12 cuts with five top-ten finishes. She was 17th on the money list with $1,260,471 in earnings and was 19th in CME points. She did not play in the first two months of the year as she rested the wrist she hurt at the end of the 2021 season. She started her 2022 season like she finished 2021, with a victory. Shot a 17-under 271 total to beat Minjee Lee and In Gee Chun by two shots at the HSBC Women's World Championship. She was # 1 on the Rolex Rankings for nine months during the year, from Jan. 31 to Oct. 31. Finished T-4th at the JTBC Classic, 2nd at the Palos Verdes Championship, and 4th at the U.S. Women's Open. She was T-8th at The Amundi Evian Championship. After missing the CP Women's Open cut, she took over a month off to rest her ailing left wrist. She returned to the Tour at the BMW Ladies Championship in her native Korea but struggled with rounds of 80-79 before withdrawing due to pain before the third round.
2023 Notes: Played in 18 LPGA Tour events, making 16 cuts with six top-ten finishes. She was 16th on the money list with $1,552,244 in earnings and was 6th in CME points. After starting her year, finishing T-6th at the Honda LPGA Thailand, she won the HSBC Women's Champions by two shots over Nelly Korda. She was T-6th at the LPGA Drive On Championship at Superstition Mt. and T-9th at the Chevron Championship. She was a South Korea team member at the Hanwha LIFEPLUS International Crown and was 1-2 in the matches. She won for the second time in 2023 at the Cognizant Founders Cup, beating Minjee Lee with a par on the first playoff hole. It was her third win at the Founders Cup, and the week after, she moved back to #1 in the Rolex Ranking. She was 2nd at the CPKC Women's Open, losing to Megan Khang, who won the tournament with a par on the first playoff hole. She was 2nd at the Aramco Team Series - Hong Kong. losing a playoff to Xiyu Lin on Sunday morning after the tournament's final round was canceled due to the threat of Typhoon Koinu in the area. Ko and Lin were tied after 36 holes Saturday and were the only players to return to the course Sunday, with Lin winning by making a long birdie putt on the second extra hole in the wind and rain.
2024 Notes: Played in 18 LPGA Tour events, making 16 cuts with seven top-ten finishes. She was 13th on the money list with $1,774,824 in earnings and was 12th in CME points She was T-8th at the HSBC Women's Champions. She shot 67 in the final round of the JM Eagle LA Championship to finish seven back of the winner, Hannah Green. Was T-2nd at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, 3 shots back of the winner Amy Yang. She played at the Paris Olympics as a member of South Korea's women's golf team, finishing T-25th. She was T-6th at the
ISPS Handa Women's Scottish Open, eight shots back of the winner, Lauren Coughlin. She had her second runner-up finish of the year with a 2nd place finish at the FM Championship. She was the 54-hole leader and shot 68 Sunday to Haeran Ryu?s 64, but she lost to Ryu after making bogey on the first extra hole. Was 7th at the LOTTE Championship and T-12th at the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship.
2025 Notes: Started the season with a T-4th finish at the Hilton Tournament of Champions. Finished 2nd at the Founders Cup, four shots back of the winner Yealimi Noh. Was T-7th at the JM Eagle LA Championship and T-6th at the Chevron Championship.