Why did Lydia Ko change caddie? real reason explored
Lydia Ko finished 2022 on a high with a win at the CME Group Tour Championship, rising to World No. 1 and receiving the Rolex Player of the Year award and Vare Trophy for low scoring average. However, Ko has now decided to bring some change.
Ko has decided to switch to a new caddie for the 2023 season. She will begin her new season at Aramco Saudi Ladies International. Ko's sister and manager Sura confirmed to Golfweek that David Jones will be caddying the World No. 1 at the Saudi event.
It's not the first time Jones and Ko have worked together. He was with the 25-year-old golfer during a successful run at the 2021 Lotte Championship, where Ko ended her 1,084-day title drought with a seven-stroke win.
Jones was recently in the bag for Nick Taylor on the PGA Tour. Prior to that, he worked alongside In Gee Chun during her victory at the 2016 Evian Championship and for Sung Hyun Park’s two major titles at the 2017 U.S. Women’s Open and 2018 KPMG Women’s PGA.
Prior to Jones, Ko had Derek Kistler as a caddie for the full 2022 season and in the second half of 2021. However, Ko's team decided not to comment on the reasons for the caddie change.
It's not the first time Ko has shockingly made a caddie switch. She is notorious for it when it comes to caddies. In 2014, when she received the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year, she jokingly thanked the men who carried her bag while addressing the crowd at the Rolex LPGA Award Banquet.
"This is the funny part, you see. I want to thank Scott, Mark, Steve, Steve, Domingo, Fluff, Greg, Jason," she said.
Where will Lydia Ko next participate at?
World No. 1 Lydia Ko is set to compete in the upcoming Aramco Saudi Ladies International, taking place from February 16 to 19 at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club.
Lydia Ko will join the 120-player field in the event starting on Thursday in the quest of repeating her 2021 win by a five-stroke margin. Ko was on a break from the tour for her honeymoon.
She married her fiance Chung Jun at Seoul's Myeongdong Cathedral in South Korea in December. Chung Jun is the son of Chung Tae, Vice President and CEO of Hyundai Card, a credit card company based in Seoul and part of the Hyundai Motor Group.
The two-time Major winner won three LPGA titles in 2022 and finished in the top 5 in nine events. She returned to No. 1 after five years of drought.
It is noteworthy that the prize money for the Ladies European Tour (LET) event has been announced to be the same as the men's PIF Saudi International.
The prize money for the event has been increased five-fold to $5 million, making it the largest purse in LET history outside of the Majors. Due to substantial rewards, top players are expected to participate in the third event of the LET season.