Lydia Ko denies giving South Korea's first lady a golf lesson

Lydia Ko on Monday denied a South Korean opposition lawmaker's claim that she gave first lady Kim Hea Kyung a golf lesson, and said she intends to take legal action, as appropriate, over false reports.

Rep. Joo Jin-woo of the People Power Party alleged Monday that Kim, the wife of President Lee Jae Myung, received a private lesson from a well-known professional at Taereung Golf Club in Seoul on Oct. 20. That was the day a man in his 70s set fire to two buildings in Seoul's Yeoksam-dong district, leaving five people seriously hurt and 14 with minor injuries, according to The Korea Times. Joo named Ko as the golfer, raised the claim during a National Assembly audit session of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee and said he had video footage and other evidence.

Ko's statement

Ko answered on Instagram the same day, writing in Korean. "In particular, I was attending a sponsor's official event on the date mentioned in the article, and I have no connection whatsoever to what was reported," she wrote, in the Korea JoongAng Daily's translation. She said she plans legal action, depending on the case, against articles, posts and comments that spread unverified false information or damage her reputation. The post ended with a hashtag that translates roughly to "It's not me. Who are you?"

The political fight around it

The presidential office called Joo's allegation a one-sided claim not based on facts and warned it would hold people who spread false information accountable. The ruling Democratic Party said it would file a criminal complaint against Joo for repeatedly spreading false information about the president's family.

Joo has made similar claims before. On Oct. 11 he alleged that President Lee played golf on the day a commercial building collapsed in Daegu. The presidential office later said Lee had paid for that round himself after postponing it several times.

After Ko's denial, Joo posted the video on his YouTube channel, and MBC reported that he removed the portion that had included Ko. He said he would file a countercomplaint of his own and that the matter could be settled by disclosing who gave the lesson and how that person is connected to the others in the group.

Who Ko is

Ko, 29, was born in Seoul and moved to New Zealand as a child, and she has represented New Zealand throughout her career. She has 23 LPGA Tour wins, entered the LPGA Hall of Fame in 2024 and won Olympic gold in Paris that year. She did not play last week's BMW Championship in South Korea.

What to watch next

Ko is in the field for this week's Maybank Championship in Malaysia, which starts Thursday, Oct. 29, as the LPGA continues its Asia swing. Also watch whether the Democratic Party and Joo follow through on the complaints each has promised.