Golf's women strike blow for equality, says Ko

Top-ranked Lydia Ko said Saturday the well-played Olympic women's golf tournament helped strike a blow for "female power", amid a debate over male no-shows at the Rio Games.

Golf returned to the Olympics in Rio for the first time in more than a century, but much of the pre-tournament build-up centered on the absence of top male stars compared to a full turnout of the women's best.

"Its female power, really," Ko, the women's world number one, said of the 2016 legacy.

"There are sometimes people saying that it's because of the men that the women are here in this position (playing golf in the Olympics)."

"But now we have reason to say that the women can speak for ourselves. It shows how strong the women are," added the 19-year-old New Zealand phenom.

Ko finished with a silver medal in Saturday's final round behind Park In-Bee of South Korea, who took the first women's Olympic golf title in 116 years.

Golf had returned to the Games last week with the men's event that concluded Sunday.

Britain's Justin Rose won the first men's Olympic gold medal since 1904 in an exciting duel with Sweden's Henrik Stenson.

The tournament's appeal, however, was dimmed by the absence of more than 20 top men's stars including the world's four highest-ranked players.

Some cited health concerns related to the Zika virus.

But the no-shows triggered a debate about golf's future in the Games and whether male players value the lucrative winnings available on their tour over playing for their country.

- Increasing exposure -

Women golfers said Rose's thrilling win both inspired and challenged them to put on a show of their own, and in many ways they did.

Although less of a nail-biter, the women held their own.

Both Park and Rose won their tournaments with 16-under-par performances, and 28 women finished under par, not far off the 36 men who did the same.

The women's competition also had its share of final-hole drama.

Ko was unable to catch Park at the end, but she did roll in a clutch eight-foot putt on the 18th hole Saturday to snatch the silver medal from China's Feng Shanshan.

"Either way, it was a dramatic finish and I think we made it very exciting for the media and the fans and everybody who was watching worldwide," said Ko.

The male no-shows have sparked grumbling from some who see Olympic exposure -- rarely are women's tournaments broadcast globally as during the Games -- as vital to developing the women's game.

If golf is eventually dropped from the Olympics due to a lack of top male stars, critics say, the women have the most to lose.

"I know for the men it made a huge difference (to have an exciting Olympics tournament), so I'm hoping as well for the women," said Brooke Henderson, who competed for Canada.

It was a boon to just be "in the Olympic Summer Games where you get audiences that golf doesn't necessarily get all the time," she added.