The prestigious U.S. Women’s Open at CordeValle Golf Course in California in July could present itself with an interesting scenario for Victoria’s Naomi Ko.
A locker-room introduction could very well go: “Naomi Ko, meet Lydia Ko. Lydia Ko, this is Naomi Ko.”
Yes, the local 18-year-old freshman at North Carolina State will likely have the opportunity to meet the No. 1 women’s player in the world as Naomi Ko also qualified for the annual LPGA major through a sectional on Monday at The Home Course in DuPont, Washington.
Naomi Ko followed up a morning 2-over 74 with a spectacular 5-under 67 in the afternoon in the 36-hole event and secured the one and only available qualifying spot (among a field of 48), edging Caroline Inglis of the University of Oregon by two strokes.
Ko had four birdies on the back nine, including holes No. 14, 16 and 17 for the big finish. She also had a pair of birdies on the front at Nos. 2 and 5, after starting that second round with a bogey on No. 1.
“Yeah, I’m kind of surprised. I wasn’t expecting a 5-under, but it happened and, yeah, I had bogeyed that first hole. After that it was just steady golf. I made a birdie on 10 and that was a game-changer there,” a calm and collected Ko said over the phone while driving home with family late Monday night.
At No. 10, she hit her wedge to within four feet and made the putt on a blustery day.
The Claremont Secondary grad — who was named Junior Female Athlete of the Year at the Sport B.C. dinner on March 12 and is a member of the national women’s amateur golf team — will now be known as a U.S. Women’s Open competitor, which has a pretty good ring to it.
“It sounds good, really good,” she said. “At some point, it definitely was one of my goals, but it hasn’t sunk in yet. It just kind of happened.”
Ko had recently tied for 56th overall at N.C. State’s final regional of the year, starting sluggishly with rounds of 80 and 82 before popping a 68 in Round 3. Her other tournament finishes included a 28th, 29th, 36th, 55th and 57th finishes so Monday’s achievement was a little out of the blue.
“I actually played pretty well,” she said of her freshmen season. “We had a conference [event] a couple of weeks ago, and I came back from regionals, just a few days ago, where I didn’t play well the first two rounds, but I shot 4-under on the last day and I seemed to carry that over to here.”
The timing couldn't be better.
“I didn’t feel much different in the afternoon,” she said of starting Round 2 in a cluster, two shots back of Inglis and Muni He. “I think it was just getting to know the course. I kind of got a better feel for pin placements. It helped with club choices because I had a couple of holes where I had the same yardage as the morning and that made it easier with club decisions.”
They also had a practice round the day before.
“I was really happy with my first year [at N.C. State]. Going from junior golf to college golf is very different. You have to learn how to balance your time. I love the school,” said Ko, who will be back home for a few weeks before joining Team Canada at a June training camp in Ontario. They will then compete at the annual Porter Cup in the state of New York.
The big date for Ko, who hopes to major in sports management while representing the N.C. State Wolfpack, is July 7-10 where she will compete against the likes of Lydia Ko, Inbee Park, Stacy Lewis, Lexi Thompson and fellow Canadian Brooke Henderson, who is No. 5 on the Rolex world rankings.
“This means a lot,” said Ko, establishing goals for the summer after successfully earning her way on her fourth attempt to qualify.
