Ko tops LPGA money list for 2020

World No. 1 Ko Jin-young pulled away from second-ranked Kim Sei-young with five back-nine birdies Sunday to win the LPGA’s season-ending Tour Championship by five strokes.

Ko, who was playing just her fourth LPGA event of the pandemic-disrupted season, had only squeezed into the elite field with a tie for second on Monday at the US Women’s Open.

But the 25-year-old South Korean made the most of her opportunity, firing seven birdies in her six-under par 66 at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida.

She rolled in a final birdie at the 72nd hole for an 18-under total of 270 and a convincing win over Kim and Australian Hannah Green, who shared second on 275.

The $1.1 million winner’s prize – down from $1.5 million last year but still the biggest in women’s golf in 2020 – put Ko atop the money list for the year.

Her $1.66 million in earnings in 2020 saw her top the $5 million mark for her career.

It was the payoff for the lonely weeks since she returned to the United States in November, leaving family and friends back in South Korea.