If she could go back, Nelly Korda says she'd do this differently at Chevron Championship

USA Today

27-04-2025

If she could go back, Nelly Korda says she'd do this differently at Chevron Championship
THE WOODLANDS, Texas – If Nelly Korda could go back and do something different at the Chevron Championship, she would've tried to get more reps in early week. It's not easy to get from a 6 p.m. finish in L.A. to Texas. And with the champions dinner on Monday, Korda didn't get a look at the golf course until she played in the nine-hole pro-am on Tuesday afternoon, when she couldn't do any extra practicing.
The world No. 1 came out early on Wednesday and got some practice in before the course was closed due to dangerous conditions. With an early tee time on Thursday, she chose not to come back out later that afternoon when the course opened.
"At the end of the day, I mean, you've got to roll with the punches and you have to continue learning," said Korda. "I just played the pro-am the front nine, so I didn't get to chip, putt, see how the greens were releasing with this new pro-am protocol where we can't chip or putt anymore, so not having that kind of sucked. But at the end of day, I did have the chance to play in the afternoon on Wednesday and I didn't take it, so that's on me."
Angela Stanford, the 2026 Solheim Cup captain who is working for ESPN+ this week as an on-course reporter, got chills listening to Korda's comeback round in her headset on Friday to make the cut. After an opening 5-over 77, Korda rallied back on Friday with six birdies over the last 11 holes to make the weekend.
"She's that type of player that any time she could flip a switch," said Stanford. "And she can flip a switch because she's good at bouncing back and leaving things in the past."
On Sunday, Stanford worked Korda's group and said it was the first time she'd had an opportunity see Korda's game under a magnifying glass.
"It's just beautiful to watch," said Stanford. "There are not many players in the world that you can watch and it's just poetry, it really is."
Chevron gifted Korda a LEGO bouquet set after a closing 2-under 70 moved her up the leaderboard into the top 15. Korda will host her own AJGA event next week, The Nelly Invitational, at The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Florida, and get prepared for her next title defense at the Mizuho Americas Open.
When asked what area she'll focus on, Korda said she talked to her caddie, Jason McDede, about it and thinks she'll spend more time playing and less on time on the range.
"My dad will probably go to every one of my practice sessions next week, which I really enjoy," said Korda, "he did it with me before I left for L.A. It's nice because sometimes he just tells me to take a break when I don't want to."
When will Nelly Korda play again on the LPGA?
As for how she'll prepare for the next four majors, Korda will skip the new event in Mexico, the Riviera Maya Open, one week ahead of the U.S. Women's Open. And because she'll play in the ShopRite LPGA Classic, she'll skip the Meijer in Michigan this year ahead of the KPMG Women's PGA because won't play four in a row.
She'll skip the Dow Championship team event ahead of the Amundi Evian but she will play the ISPS Handa Women's Scottish Open for the first time ahead of the AIG Women's British Open in Wales.