I followed Stacy Lewis and her caddie during the second round of the Lotte Championship.

Pretty much just me and them.

After the heavy downpour that soaked Ko Olina Golf Club on this late Thursday afternoon, my original goal was to catch up to Michelle Wie, just to make sure she made the cut, a far cry from her glimpse of glory a decade ago.

Along the way through this back-nine journey, I saw Morgan Pressel at plus 8, she, too a distant memory, washed away in a tsunami of outstanding players from Asian lands. Just that one hole with her group was too painful to watch, forcing me to walk faster through this lonely version of the LPGA.

At this point, I was still a hole behind Wie and Co., although I could see her faithful following in the distance, mom and dad still in tow, when I grew even with Lewis in the middle of the par-5 13th fairway. This part of the course takes you to the outstretches of Ko Olina, a cool north breeze at our backs, lucky 13 still shaking off the dousing.

It was so late, Golf Channel wasn’t even sending back images to the East Coast at the prime-time hour of 11 p.m. The cameras were bundled up in the empty towers guarding the greens. Nobody was out here but me, myself and I.

Watching Lewis, a former world No. 1 player whose father I briefly befriended a decade back when his child was on the rise, it was all yard books and club selections, fairways and greens.

Doing her own version of Side, Angle, Side, Lewis was struggling a bit out here after a nice front nine that had put her into the picture of contention. There was a time when Lewis struck fear into the heart of her competitor — an era, earlier this decade, where she ruled supreme.

Since her rookie campaign in 2009, Lewis has 11 LPGA Tour wins, two of them majors. At one point she was ranked in the top 10 of women’s golf for 264 consecutive weeks from 2011 to ’16. She recently married, made less than $1 million last year and hasn’t had a victory in 70 consecutive starts.

So, I decided to follow Lewis and her caddie all the way to the clubhouse. How often can you watch a former world No. 1 player, now at the ripe, old age of 32, not alone from the comfort of your living room, but out here at No. 13 at Ko Olina? Just strolling along while Lewis does mind math. I was conspicuous by my presence. A media member come to see what gives with this University of Arkansas product who has pocketed $11.5 million along the way.

She parred the two par 5s. Grinding hard. Miss a green here. Chip up. Tap in for par. Find the bunker there. Blast out. Tap in for par. Get on the green in two. Lag putt. Tap in for par. As much as she liked the front nine of Ko Olina all week, the back nine was a different land. Different wind before the calm before the storm. Different result.

It was like bizzaro world out here for Lewis. Everything changed. Breeze. Speed of greens. Momentum. Gone. Just gone. With the par at the difficult finishing hole, Lewis was halfway home at 8 under. Tied for fourth. Two shots in back of Se-Yeon Jang and four shots ahead of eventual winner Cristie Kerr, now tied for 23rd.

Strange game, this golf. By any and all arguments, Lewis is one of the top players in the world. Life came by and got in the way, as it does for all athletes, but this is a sport where you go it alone so much of the time. Like on this Thursday afternoon that could be a round of junior golf if you close your eyes and just think about it.

The distractions are spent when plodding toward the ball and after the ball. All that time spent wondering about what’s wrong with my stance, my swing, my approach, my caddie, my mom, my husband and most of all, my putting?

This time out here trying to find fairways and greens wipes out everybody eventually. Ask hobbled Tiger Woods. Ask any touring pro at any level and he or she will tell you: It’s how you spend that time between shots, controlling your mind and tempo, that hopefully provides the opportunities to win. Focus and confidence.

Lewis had them once. Believes she can find them again all the way to the winner’s circle. She made a run during Saturday’s final round. Got into contention on the front nine. Fell out of it on the back.

This time, there were plenty of fans to witness it. Some on the golf course and even more on television. The cameras were on today. Beaming worldwide. Lewis was one of most who didn’t win. Kerr did. At age 39. Gives Lewis hope heading back to Texas in two weeks. She’s close. Yard books and club selections … fairways and greens …

Paul Arnett, Star-Advertiser sports editor, provides insight from Ko Olina.