Ko wins Women's Open for 3rd major title

Lydia Ko's summer trip to Europe began with an Olympic gold medal in Paris and concluded Sunday with her third career major title at the 2024 Women's Open at St. Andrews. Not too shabby.

Ko poured in a birdie on the iconic 18th hole at the Old Course to seal the dramatic victory, her first major championship in eight years.

Ko covered her face with her hands and cried tears of joy over what she called a "Cinderella-like story," per The Associated Press.

"This is almost too good to be true," she added at the trophy presentation.

When asked, Ko couldn't choose a favorite between her Olympic gold medal, her first two majors, or the win at St. Andrews.

"It's kind of like saying, 'Do you like your mother better or your father better?'" she said, prompting laughter from the crowd. "They are all special in their own way."

Ko finished the tournament at 7-under par, two strokes ahead of the second-place group headlined by Lilia Vu and Nelly Korda. Vu, playing in the final group with Jiyai Shin, needed a birdie on 18 to force a playoff but came up short. She failed to clean up her par putt, resulting in a bogey.

Korda was in contention all day until a double-bogey on the par-5 14th hole torpedoed her chances of claiming her seventh victory of the season.

For the 27-year-old Ko, it's her first major championship since she was a teenager and won the 2015 Evian Championship and 2016 Chevron Championship. She's the only player in the last 50 years to trail entering the final round in each of her first three LPGA major titles.

Ko's Olympic gold medal in Paris 2024 earned her a spot in the LPGA Hall of Fame. In total, the Kiwi has 21 career LPGA wins to her name and 29 overall professional victories.