A backward step for Ko might be the step in the right direction

By Neville Idour

The recent news that Lydia Ko had sacked her fifth coach in four years was hardly what we wanted to hear, initially as none of the changes seem to have had the desired effect. 

In fact her ranking since those heady days with firstly Guy Wilson then David Leadbetter as world number one has continued to drop and she was at No 52 at time of writing.

Since the dramatic sacking of Leadbetter and her successful caddy along with a complete change of equipment it has all been downhill. 

It is almost impossible to remember any player who maintained their form immediately after major changes. Not even Tiger Woods or Rory McIlroy could do so.  

However, when Sean Foley revealed his plans for Ko at the end of last month, the ears pricked up. 

Just, maybe, this will be a step in the right direction. I hope so as it appears to be a sensible move for Ko to agree to. More on that later.

As I have said previously, whatever happens no one can forget or take away what Ko achieved during her golden run as arguably the most successful professional golfer New Zealand has produced. Of course she is not the first player to make changes when at the top and lose what produced the success.

Remember Australian Ian Baker-Finch who, after major championship success, sought the Holy Grail and ended up totally losing his swing and giving the game away only to become one of the game’s leading commentators. 

How about the classic bad move by Irishman Padraig Harrington who, after winning three major championships in two years, decided he had to improve and drive the ball further. He virtually disappeared from leaderboards overnight and even though he continues to compete on the European and PGA tours, when he can get a start he is rarely sighted. His current world ranking is 391.

Luke Donald is another former world number one to plummet after making changes that did not pay off. He is now 384. What about our own Craig Perks? After outduelling Tiger Woods down the final stretch to win the Players’ Championship, he sought improvement and quickly lost his game to the point where he had no idea where his tee shots would go. Like Baker-Finch he gave it away and is now a PGA Tour commentator.

Michael Campbell even admitted recently changes he tried to make after his United States Open win contributed to his loss of form. It is great to see him showing glimpses of former glory on the European Tour. Of course we could go on with so many examples of form lost inexplicably. Then there are those like Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Gary Player and Bob Charles who maintained and knew what worked best for them, thus they achieved longevity of performance.

Back to Ko and Sean Foley. Foley, of course, has worked with many of the top players such as Woods and Justin Rose. In an interview with Tony Richens of New Zealand Golf Magazine, Foley said he wanted to go back to the past with Lydia and help her be “the Lydia we knew again.” 

Foley said he wanted to rediscover what made Ko, who was the world’s top amateur and then top professional. 

“We have continued to go down memory lane to find those answers,’’ Foley said.

“Players should never get too far away from their DNA as what was learned during the early years is cemented in the brain and memory.”

So it seems that the mind needs to be cleared of the multitude of technical thoughts that appear to have dominated her swing in the last two years. Ko’s hallmark was always her feel, which produced a natural smooth swing and therefore enabled her to play with unerring control of length and direction. The drive to hit longer tee shots did not succeed and in fact at times saw her lose some length.

I would expect the attempt to restore what was lost will allow her to play with that infectious enjoyment again. Interestingly, Foley had close connections with Leadbetter in times gone by. Let us hope for the best, but whatever happens the memories of Lydia at her best will never fade.

This story was penned just before the resumption of the LPGA Tour at the Drive On Championship. Ko had two excellent rounds, but was derailed by a disastrous second round of 80 in difficult conditions. A par round would have been good enough for third. Her first round of three under par was much like her old self with her swing looking freer and without the technical-looking movements she had developed. She led for the first nine holes. Four birdies in the final round also showed good signs. While 28th was not Earth shattering there were enough indicators for a positive outlook.