Nelly Korda is again atop the Rolex Women’s Rankings.
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Nelly Korda, in her personal admission, simply can’t do issues the straightforward approach on the LPGA Tour.
Making her first begin since a dramatic playoff victory over Lydia Ko on the LPGA Drive On Championship in January, Korda appeared destined to get her second-straight LPGA title extra simply. She obtained it performed on the Seri Pak Championship, however she needed to go to a playoff as soon as once more.
“I say this all the time, but I seem to always make it interesting,” Korda stated Sunday night time from Palos Verdes Golf Club in California. “Yeah, just doing normal Nelly things, making it interesting.”
She began the day two again of the lead, however after an eagle on the par-5 14th, she opened up a three-shot lead. But she performed her final 4 holes bogey-birdie-bogey-bogey, to fall again to 9 underneath and find yourself in a tie with Ryan O’Toole after 72 holes.
“Honestly didn’t really start feeling nervous until I made that eagle putt. I didn’t really know what was going on, how the group behind me was doing. It was so windy was caught up in trying to control my ball flight,” Korda stated. “I got maybe a little nervous where it kind of got a little ahead of myself and started making some mistakes of yeah, interesting last couple holes.”
After Korda hit her method lengthy of the inexperienced on the 18th after which didn’t rise up and down, she nonetheless had time earlier than the ultimate teams completed earlier than the playoff.
She used that point to speak with coach Jamie Mulligan.
‘Weird sense of emptiness’: Nelly Korda reveals stunning post-win feelings
Jack Hirsh
“I vented to my coach on the putting green and then he asked me if I’m ready to be positive. Took a little bit and then I was ready,” she stated. “And then we talked a little bit, laughed a little bit. He’s really good at just cracking jokes, which sometimes I just give him a pity laugh.”
The mindset change labored. Both Korda and O’Toole missed the golf green off the 18th tee in the playoff gap, however every recovered to have seems to be at birdie from about 15 ft. O’Toole went first and missed, however Korda stepped up from simply inside and nailed the birdie putt for her second-consecutive win.
After the win, Korda credited Mulligan each for serving to her reset and getting her prepared after an extended break for the reason that Drive On Championship.
“[Having Mulligan here] helped a lot just because I haven’t played competitive golf in the past seven weeks,” she stated. “I took at least three-and-a-half weeks off — off of golf — so it was nice to have him here all week. If was struggling after the round he knew exactly what to say, what to do. He’s also a super positive presence and I enjoy spending a lot of time around him.”
The win provides Korda her tenth LPGA Tour title, the second most of any participant since her first victory in 2018. According to stat wiz Justin Ray, she’s additionally the primary participant to win two out of her first three begins in a season since Karrie Webb in 2011 and the primary American participant to get two wins in a season earlier than April 1st since Stacy Lewis in 2013.
She additionally strikes again to the highest of the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings.
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