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Unrealistic Expectations: Lydia Ko (Guest Post by Rick Woelfel)

Oct 3, 2012 by Tiffany Litherland

It’s been a memorable year for Lydia Ko. She started off by winning the New South Wales Open, making her, at 14, the youngest golfer ever to win a professional tournament. In mid-August she put together an outstanding week of golf to win the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship. All that was a prelude to the recent CN Canadian Women’s Open outside of Vancouver where she scored a three-shot win over a field that featured the top professionals in the world at the ripe old age of 15 years, 4 months, and 2 days. Ko’s effort in Vancouver was historic on a number of fronts.

She is the youngest player to win an LPGA tournament,upstaging Lexi Thompson, who won the 2011 Navistar Classic at the age of 16 years, 8 months, 8 days.
She is the first amateur to win an LPGA event in 43 years, since JoAnne Carner captured the Burdine’s Invitational in Miami on January 19th, 1969. Ko is the fifth amateur to win an LPGA event in the organization’s 63-year history.

Ko’s accomplishments have been nothing short of remarkable, but her talents are unique.

In an era when golf champions are younger that ever it would be a mistake to assume that young players who shows promise can be assured of greatness at the professional level.

Unrealistic expectations are a burden that only becomes heavier with the passage of time. Organizations that promote junior golf and work at growing the game understand this.

All those who care about the game should see to it that young players aren’t forced to shoulder expectations that are too heavy to bear.

Lydia Ko Images