Go set for the pro league

WHILE Yuka Saso and Bianca Pagdanganan tee off this week in the Tokyo Olympics, their former teammate Lois Kaye “LK” Go is gearing up for her professional career. The 22-year-old Cebuana recently graduated summa cum laude from the University of South Carolina where she finished with a double major in finance and accounting.

Go’s is fresh off a successful campaign last week in the 121st Women’s Western Amateur in Park Ridge, Illinois, where she reached the quarterfinals before bowing to eventual finalist Australian Maddison Hinson-Tolchard.

It can be recalled that Go teamed up with Saso and Pagdanganan to win a gold medal for the Philippines in the 2018 Asian Games in women’s golf. Go also won a bronze medal in the 2017 Southeast Asian Games (SEA), then a gold in the 2019 edition. She’s the only one among them to win medals for the country in three consecutive years.

Go’s teammates have gained success in the pro ranks. Saso won a couple of events in Japan before her historic US Women’s Open victory last June. Pagdanganan is already in her second year campaigning in the LPGA Tour. Go’s SEA Games teammate, Abigail Arevalo, recently won a professional event in Las Vegas.

On local soil, Go’s biggest win was the 2019 Philippine Amateur Open in Riviera, Cavite, where she bested Pagdanganan by a stroke. Finishing third there was Atthaya Thitikul, who is now a three-time winner in the Ladies European Tour.

Given the pedigree of the players Go has beaten or played alongside, joining the pro ranks is the logical next step for her. Considering her double major degree and academic achievement, Go feels comfortable having held off turning pro until after she finished school.

With the rigors of college academics out of the way, Go will be seeing action next week in the Cactus Tour Women’s pro event in Rancho Mirage, California. That will serve as her preparation for the LPGA Q-School, which starts on Aug. 19. Given her past performances of winning medals for the country, it won’t be that far-fetched to see Go representing the Philippines once again in the 2024 Olympics.