Lydia Ko has received a lot of accolades and has another trophy to add to her collection.
The Lonsdale Cup is presented to a competing athlete or team who makes an outstanding contribution to Olympic or Commonwealth sport in New Zealand during the previous year, and there is no doubt Ko is an on-form athlete storming the golfing world.
She only became eligible for this award in 2009 (when golf was reinstated as an Olympic sport) but for her, timing is everything these days.
Ko has been described as a ‘‘silent assassin'' by her coach and seems to enjoy the pressure and competitiveness that come with professional golf.
Yet she manages to maintain a friendly demeanour, apparently has an amiable personality and likes to have fun and chill-out time like most teenagers.
She accepts all of her trophies with gratitude and humility and so the Lonsdale Cup will sit alongside her March H. McCormack Medal trophies (of which she has three), her Halberg Supreme Award (2013), her NZ Sportswoman of the Year awards (2013, 2014), her LPGA awards (three for rookie, player and money winner of the year) and her Best Female Golfer ESPY Award (2015).
It is amazing that a player of this calibre has included the NZ Women's Open at Clearwater Golf Club in Christchurch as part of her playing schedule and we really do have a superstar among us.
How disappointing it is, then, that we won't be able to see the No1-ranked female professional golfer live in action on our screens.
NZ Golf and Sky are claiming the costs of production are too high at $600,000 plus.
Unfortunately, TVNZ didn't see this as an opportunity to win some brownie points/viewers, and there hasn't been much of a public uproar, so highlight packages from Sky is all we can hope for.
It makes attending the event live more appealing but sponsors and investors will get exposed to only a live audience rather than the thousands (and maybe millions?) they could have captured via televised coverage.
We see so much of power and performance men's sports like rugby, rugby union, cricket and the over-hyped American Superbowl, and yet we can't watch one of the golfing wonders of the world?
We should be humbled that she has come back to New Zealand to honour our national women's competition, but also as part of her ‘‘slow and steady'' comeback after a month off.
It is still something a player of her calibre doesn't have to do. Perhaps Ko would trade in a few of her awards for more air time?
Ultimately it would help her, New Zealand tourism, the event organisers, sponsors and NZ Golf.
The Government financially supports the Rugby World Cup and the America's Cup, so why not Clearwater?
