How hard is it to keep winning? Ko could tell you a story

That Shakespeare fellow never shone in any sport, nor played with distinction on any tour, but he understood stuff. "Be not afraid of greatness," he wrote and athletes would understand. They can't be scared of the rough ride or of the relentless quest. This is a hunt with no end.

- Rohit Brijnath

Every player in the HSBC Women's World Championship is concerned with greatness. They dream it, chase it, offer proof of it and know its measure is found in titles. Except to win one is to shoulder barge your way through a forest of talent. In 2024, there were 33 different events on the LPGA Tour and 20 different winners. There were three first-time winners, one 20-year-old champion and one 34-year-old victor. Everyone feels they have a chance.

The great player doesn't hope for titles, they expect it because they sweat for it. But sport offers no guarantee. In 2024, Ko Jin-young, a truly great player, had seven top 10s, won US$1.8 million (S$2.4 million), but for the first time since 2013 didn't win a tournament on either the Korean or LPGA Tour.

How did she rate such a year?

"Okay," she says.

"Good," she adds and points out she came second in a Major.

It's Wednesday and Ko is eating and talking. English isn't her first language so she measures her words like her morsels. Carefully.

"It just happened. Golf is a really hard sport to win every tournament. Every tournament winner is different. If some players finish top 10, it's enough. Some players, it's not enough, (they have) to make inside top five. And I think I had very high expectation for myself and it makes me more nervous."