Korda of the United States looks on from the sixth green during the final round of The Chevron Championship at The Club at Carlton Woods on April 21, 2024 in The Woodlands, Texas.
Five wins. Five starts. Nelly Korda has once again matched women’s golf history.
Korda won the Chevron Championship for her fifth victory in five consecutive tournament starts, joining Nancy Lopez (1978) and Annika Sorenstam (2004, 2005) as the only players to go five-for-five on the LPGA.
The 25-year-old defeated Maja Stark by two shots to capture her second career major championship and 13th Tour win, carding a 13-under tournament total at the Club at Carlton Woods on Sunday.
“I can finally breathe now,” Korda said standing on the 18th green in Houston after the final round took more than six hours to complete. “That back nine felt like the longest back nine of my entire life.”
After the weather-delayed third round concluded in the morning, Korda teed off in the final threesome tied with Canada’s Brooke Henderson at 10-under, one shot behind the solo leader Hae Ran Ryu. But as Henderson and Ryu faltered within the first four holes, Korda surged. She made back-to-back birdies on the third and fourth holes to take an early but commanding three-shot lead at 12-under.
Korda made two more birdies on the par-5 eighth and 10th, where she chipped in from the long of the green to move to 14-under par. With eight holes to play, the impending result seemed inevitable, but Korda couldn’t let her historic performance unfold without a few blips as the pressure piled on.
Korda bogeyed the par-4 11th and subsequently the 15th, where her drive found the penalty area lining the left side of the fairway. A one-handed finish after her approach over water indicated a big number could be on the way, but the iron shot landed safely on the putting surface and she two-putted to drop back to 12-under.
For a moment, a final-round push from Lauren Coughlin looked like it could challenge Korda, but the UVA product soon carded back-to-back bogeys and never came within one shot of the world No. 1’s lead.
“I was definitely starting to feel it on the back nine, the nerves setting in,” Korda said. “It’s a major. It’s everything that I’ve always wanted as a little girl to lift that major trophy.”
On the par-3 17th, Korda’s tee shot exemplified exactly why she continues to dominate on the LPGA. Korda fired directly at the flagstick, nearly holing out for an ace. The ball ricocheted off the pin and she two-putted for par.
On the 18th, Korda stuck to her aggressive game plan once again. She outdrove her playing partners and launched a long iron at the water-lined green, landing safely on the back fringe.
The Bradenton, Fla., native kicked off her historic 2024 run with a win in her backyard at the LPGA Drive On Championship at Bradenton Country Club in January, defeating Lydia Ko in a two-hole playoff. Seven weeks later, she prevailed in a playoff again, this time outlasting Ryann O’Toole with a birdie on the first extra hole at Palos Verdes Country Club in Los Angeles.
At the next event, the Ford Championship in Gilbert, Ariz., Korda had a much more relaxing victory, winning by two shots to become the first player since Ariya Jutanugarn in 2016 to win three in a row. The streak didn’t end there.
Korda went on to play the LPGA’s revamped match-play event in Las Vegas and once again came out on top. She took down Ireland’s Leona Maguire in the finals, winning 4 and 3, to extend the historic run. On Sunday in Houston, Korda officially matched Lopez and Sorenstam, two of the game’s all-time greats, with her fifth title.
Since turning professional in 2016 on the Symetra Tour, Korda has steadily risen in the ranks of women’s golf. She won her first LPGA title in 2018 and her first major at the 2021 Women’s PGA Championship. Six weeks later, she captured the Olympic gold medal at the Tokyo Games.
She comes from a family of elite athletes. Her parents were both pro tennis players. Her brother Sebastian, 23, currently plays on the ATP and her sister, Jessica, 31, is a six-time LPGA champion.
Korda has battled inconsistent play the past two seasons due to on-and-off injuries, including a blood clot in her arm and lingering back issues. She failed to capture a victory in 2023 while continuing to recover. Feeling healthy and satisfied with her game, the 2024 season has provided a blank slate for Korda.
