New Zealand’s Lydia Ko finished two strokes ahead and 10 under par to win Olympic gold in women’s golf at Le Golf National.
The 27-year-old Ko shot 71 (one under par) in her final round. Germany’s Esther Henseleit took silver with a total of eight under par and China’s Lin Xiyu took bronze, one stroke behind.
The triumph of the former world number one Ko completes her medal tally after she won silver in Rio in 2016 and bronze in Tokyo three years ago, and qualifies her for the Ladies Professional Golf Association Hall of Fame.
Britain’s Charley Hull finished the match one point over par after an impressive final round and tied for 27th place, while her teammate Georgia Hall finished tied for 36th place.
The Irish Stephanie Meadow and Leona Maguire finished 39th and 59th respectively.
Two-time major winner Ko began her final round with a shared overnight lead with Morgane Metraux.
However, due to misses on the first two holes and a triple bogey seven on the fifth hole, the Swiss golfer slipped down the rankings before finally reaching a joint 18th place with a score of seven over par 79.
American Rose Zhang also struggled in the last group and ended up in a shared eighth place on the first nine with four strokes over par.
And Ko, the only player who didn’t fall too far behind in the final three groups, was able to take full advantage of her opportunity, although her five-stroke lead shrank dramatically on the back nine after she landed in the water on the 13th hole and incurred a double bogey herself.
There were also nervous par putts on the 15th and 16th greens, but she secured gold in style with a birdie on the par-5 18th hole.
