Where does Lydia Ko live?

Lydia Ko won the gold medal for New Zealand in golf at the 2024 Paris Olympics. However, there are also places in other countries that hold a special place in her heart, like Lake Nona in Orlando.

Ko, the newest member of the LPGA Hall of Fame, has her permanent residence at Lake Nona in Orlando, Florida. Most tournaments on the LPGA tour are played in the United States, so living there is a professional imperative for golfers.

Lydia Ko has lived in Orlando for more than four years. In an interview for the New York Times in 2020, the Kiwi commented on what she likes about Lake Nona:

"My friends and I love going to Universal [a local theme park]. I’m not a fan of roller coasters, but I can’t get enough of the 4-D Despicable Me Minion Mayhem attraction"

"I also go to Disney Springs [a shopping center], a big complex with stores and restaurants. I have a hobby of doing Legos so I always head to the Lego Store there to buy a new toy, and I go to Sprinkles to get a carrot cupcake."

Lake Nona is a community in Orange County, Florida, within the city limits of Orlando. World golf superstar and fellow LPGA Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam resides in the same community.

What other places are special to Lydia Ko?

Lydia Ko has lived in Lake Nona for several years, so it has become her home. Two other places mean a lot to her: Korea and New Zealand.

"They’re different and all equally dear to my heart," dijo en su entrevista para The New Yorkl Times.

Ko was born in 1997 in Seoul, Korea. Although she emigrated to New Zealand in 2001, she has not lost touch with her birthplace, as much of her family still lives there. She chose Seoul's Myeongdong Cathedral to celebrate her wedding in 2022.

As for New Zealand, Ko lived there since she was four years old and became a citizen at the age of 12. An important detail is that it was also in New Zealand that she developed as a golfer. She started playing the sport at the age of five.

Under the guidance of his first coach, Guy Wilson, Ko trained at Pupuke Golf Club in Auckland. His progress was so rapid that by the age of seven, she was playing in the New Zealand Amateur Championship.

Ko was coached by Wilson until 2013, when she turned professional and began her career on the US-based LPGA Tour. By that time, the Kiwi had won four professional-level tournaments (including two on the LPGA Tour, one on the Ladies European Tour, and one on the ALPG Tour), all under Wilson's guidance.