Although she was born on 24 April 1997 in Korea, Lydia Ko is a New Zealand pro golfer. Currently, you can find her on the LPGA Tour.
Her young age notwithstanding, she has performed remarkably well and even ranked top in golf internationally.
She is the youngest among male and female golfers to have ranked first in the Official World Golf Ranking, at age 17 years, 9 months, and 9days.
Having won the Evian Championship in 2015, she became the youngest golfer to win major championship.
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Achievements Highlights
Right from her amateur stage, she registered a promising performance and won 6 tournaments. After turning pro in 2013, she has garnered several victories. That includes winning LPGA Tour 16 times, Ladies European Tour 6 times, ALPG Tour 5 times, and KLPGA once.
Besides the victories in tournaments, she has received several awards. Among them includes the Mark H. McCormack Medal 3 times in 2011, 2012, 2013, Halberg Supreme Award of 2013 LPGA Rookie of the year 2014, and the best female golfer in 2015, 2016.
With a total of 6 amateur wins and 21 pro wins, it’s worth questioning how her bag differs from other professionals such as Bernhard Langer WITB.
Lydia Ko WITB
The New Zealand golfer signed up with PXG and thus has her golf bag full of the clubs.
DRIVER: PXG 0811 X Proto with 9˚ Loft, Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei Pro White 1K 50 S Shaft
Every golfer understands the importance of having the right driver in your bag. And Lydia Ko’s choice of PXG 0811 X Proto couldn’t have been much better. To begin with, it possesses a minimalist look and a compact address structure.
In comparison to the second generation 0811, its crown has less noticeable carbon fiber; except for the middle raised section. And when you make a hit, it registers a quiet and solid sound upon making an impact with the ball.
The 460 cc driver presents a round and symmetrical shape. Its deceivingly looking head delivers impressive ball speed and low spin.
From the adjustable hosel, you can fine-tune the loft to move up or down by a margin of 1.5 degrees. Thus high spin players will find it highly irresistible.
Since it has adjustable weights of 5 to 20g with increments of 2.5g the club supports quick adjustability.
Fairway Woods
3-WOOD: PXG 0341 X GEN2 (15˚ Loft) and 5-WOOD: PXG 0341 X GEN2 (18˚ Loft)
Ko sticks to fairway woods that offer impressive ball speed but compromises slightly on launching height. As for the look the club borrows heavily from the Gen 2 drivers except that it has a miniature size.
Its face size on the other hand inspires confidence in a golfer when hitting off the tee or turf. And overall its head isn’t exaggerated.
At closer observation, you’ll realize it’s characterized by weight screws. That means you can make a slight change to influence the draw, fade, stability, or even lower the spin.
On comparing the 5-wood to 3-wood, 5-wood appears to be more optimized to deliver more speed.
HYBRIDS: PXG 0317 X GEN2 (19˚ & 22˚), with Graphite Design Tour AD IZ 65 R Shafts
The hybrid clubs come with two noticeable striking features; a carbon crown centrally located on the crown and an alignment aid labeled X. Besides it also has a dash of pear shape on it.
If you compare it to the previous 0317 hybrids, the 0317x has a slight decrease in spin. Although it has 8 weighted ports, the simple and clean color of the hybrid harmonizes their look.
Its consistency is easy to notice on different swing types. It gives a fairly consistent distance and negligible curve.
So if you need the hybrid that’s easy to use, gives consistency in performance and distance try the PXG 0317 X GEN2. In brief, you can describe the PXG 0317 X GEN2 hybrids to be straight, forgiving, and easy to hit.
IRONS: PXG 0311 P GEN3 (5-Iron to Pitching Wedge), with Aerotech FC 70 S Shafts.
Each of the irons employs the 8620 carbon steel forged five times to achieve perfection. The irons use the DualCOR technology.
That is from the outside it features the high strength polymer layer having high rebound ability. So it bestows high structural support to the thin face.
Beneath the outer layer is a soft polymer with even exceptionally high rebound properties. The new DualCOR technology enhances the feel and vibration dampening ability of the iron. A golfer also benefits from the enhanced face flexing, high energy transfer, and boosted speed.
It’s the perimeter weighting and the Dual COR techniques that make the PXG 0311 P GEN3 irons stand out.
WEDGES: PXG 0311 Milled Sugar Daddy (54˚) and 0311 Milled Lydia (58˚), with Aerotech FC 80 S Shafts
Whereas Ollie Schniederjans WITB contains Callaway MD3, Lydia prefers the PXG 0311 Milled Sugar Daddy. Although designing the 100 percent milled PXG 0311 wedge is demanding and hence its hefty price, very few wedges can match it in terms of precision and accuracy.
The manufacturer picks on 8620 steel then subjects it to CNC milling and thus eliminates all traces of inconsistency.
Also, the wedges employ the skillful use of tungsten, steel, and titanium weights to influence the position of the Center of gravity (CG) on the wedge. As a result, the CG of the wedge lies not only higher but central to the face.
So even if you open the wedge to play delicate shots, the club still gives you unparalleled playability and enhanced spin.
PUTTER: PXG Prototype Thunderbolt C
When it comes to putters, Ko goes for a PXG prototype Thunderbolt C. That gives her the advantage of a customized putter to suit her in every aspect. That includes a modified shaft and head design.
BALL: Titleist Pro V1x
The design and overall performance of the Titleist Pro V1x are geared towards professional golfers with swing speeds of atleast115mph. Its multilayer and the 328 tetrahedral dimple patterns spherically tiled design all works to the advantage of such skilled players such as in Lee Westwood WITB.
Besides its ionomeric casing exhibits speed-enhancing and spin controlling abilities. That’s why the ball registers consistent flight even in a windy environment. And if you need to have a fine grip of the short game control, the Titleist Pro V1x fits the bill.
Unlike the earlier models, the Pro V1x uses the urethane elastomer on the outermost layer. That prolongs its lifespan.
Conclusion
Lydia Ko has registered admirable performance and defeated even golfers much older than her. So if you have a promising upcoming player, it pays to lay the right foundation for the golfer.
One of the vital considerations is securing the right golf equipment. On the same note Lydia Ko WITB gives you some of the clubs that have propelled the young player to greater heights of success.