Golf: Lydia Ko wins her 30th professional title at the Kroger Queen City Championship

It was the old Lydia Ko, which is hard to say about a 27-year-old, but it was reminiscent of her 2015/16 season, when she came close to the last place and looked like she would certainly catch up.

“It was pretty surreal. I had the most incredible three weeks in the UK and Europe. After having three more weeks off before coming here, [I] wasn't quite sure how it was going to go. I started this event really strong and played well the first couple of days. Yesterday I stuck it out. I knew Jeeno and a lot of the other girls weren't going to play bad golf, so I just had to try and play even better golf. To have a round like this to cap off a win is pretty special.”

She has dominated the par 5s all week and that continued today, with a five-shot lead, three birdies and an eagle. Controlled shots in windy conditions on the back nine, which were also a key part of her victory at St. Andrews, helped Ko take the lead and pull away from the field.

The 27-year-old made a birdie on the first hole, followed by two more birdies on the par-5 6th and 8th to move within one shot of Thitikul. Ko then took the lead and never relinquished it, with a birdie on the 10th hole, followed by a brilliant eagle on the par-5 11th.

Thitikul made two long-range birdie putts to keep the pressure on Ko, briefly cutting the lead to one shot before the New Zealander birdied the 13th and 15th holes to maintain the lead.

Thitikul was unable to keep up with Ko, making three bogeys and two birdies down the home stretch. With a five-shot lead on the 72nd hole, Ko found the middle of the fairway and reached the green in two. An eagle attempt from long range was just not enough, leaving her with an easy birdie putt for an impressive 63.

Thitikul finished second at 18 under par. World number one Nelly Korda, who had just won the Solheim Cup with the USA, finished tied for fifth and is still well ahead of Ko in the season rankings with six wins this year.

Today's performance is another reason for Ko's career in the Hall of Fame, a place she thought was in jeopardy just a few months ago before she secured her place in Paris when she completed her Olympic medal haul with gold.

“The things I didn't believe in have happened in the last few months. I was struggling a lot in the middle of the season and I was thinking, 'Am I really going to get into the Hall of Fame?' And all these doubts. The last few months have been like a fairytale and I thought, 'If I focus on this, maybe I can do it.'”

When asked what she still wants to achieve, Ko said she has set a realistic goal of winning every major in her career. To do that, she would have to win either the US Open or the Women's PGA Championship.

“It was always my goal to achieve the career Grand Slam, but I just thought it would be so far-fetched. But I feel like I've been part of that fairytale, so why not?”