Nelly Korda
was born with the passion and ability to play sports in her blood. Her family tradition indicated that she should dedicate her life to hitting a ball with a racket, but she decided to "defy" that command and chose her own weapon:
a golf club
. She made her own path, side by side with her older sister Jessica, who guided her in that adventure, and today she is the great dominator of the
LPGA
, the American women's tour, in which on Sunday she won her third consecutive title in the season and made history.
With her victory in the inaugural edition of the Ford Championship in Arizona - she finished with 268 strokes (-20), two less than her guard, the Australian
Hira Naveed
-, she became the first player to win three trophies in a row on the circuit since the Thai
Ariya Jutanugarn
in 2016. And the first from her country to achieve it since
Nancy Lopez
, who added five consecutive in 1978, a record she shares with the Swedish
Annika Sörenstam
(2004-2005).
Korda has competed in four competitions this season. In January she opened her campaign with a 16th place finish at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions in Florida. He was the only one where he didn't lift the trophy. He then won the LPGA Drive On Championship in his native Bradenton, the FIR HILLS SERI PAK Championship in Los Angeles and closed the trio of consecutive celebrations on Sunday at the Seville Golf and Country Club in Gilbert, Arizona.
Unstoppable, with that consecration he also established himself at the top of the world ranking, a position he had occupied for the last time in July of last year and to which he had returned a week before, after his celebration at the Los Angeles competition.
"I think it was one of my least stressful victories. I played very solid golf," she said, happy, after winning the 11th of her professional career in the LPGA.
After three straight wins, it's safe to say @NellyKorda is on a roll 🔥😮💨
WATCH ⬇️ https://t.co/DmCbaDAKge
— LPGA (@LPGA) April 1, 2024
And asked if she has in her sights that record of consecutive consecrations that is just two wins away - and that due to her enormous moment, does not seem like a goal that would be too difficult for her to achieve - she stated without thinking: "Not really."
"I just live in the moment," he explained. "I have been a professional golfer since 2016 and I learned that when you want to look too far ahead, it is never positive. You have to think tournament by tournament, stay in the present. That has worked very well for me so far. Sometimes it is difficult to manage your own expectations and the ones that are created around you, but I'm going to try to stay in my little bubble and see how it goes.
The mentality to not let herself be overwhelmed by what is expected of her and not lose focus is perhaps something she carries in her genes, like her ability to perform on a court. Nelly comes from a family with a lot of history - and very success - in sports.
His father,
Petr Korda
, born in Prague 56 years ago, was a professional tennis player. He reached number two in the
ATP
world rankings in the first months of 1998, the year in which he won the
Australian Open
, his first and only Grand Slam and the last of his ten titles. And her mother,
Regina Rajchrtová
, also made a career with the racket: she reached the 26th place in the WTA rankings
and
participated in the
1988 Seoul Olympics
. The couple's three children - all tall, thin and athletic like their father - inherited a love of physical activity.
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Sebastian
, the youngest of the clan, first tried ice hockey, but eventually followed in his parents' footsteps. At 23 years old, he is 27th in the ranking led by
Novak Djokovic
. He was junior champion in Melbourne in 2019, has an ATP trophy in his cabinets (
Parma 2021
) and is considered one of the young Americans with the most future.
Jessica
, the eldest, took up gymnastics and figure skating, before setting her own course in golf. She has been a professional since 2010, she debuted in the LPGA in 2011, she was top 10 in the world and has won six titles. She stepped away from the competition in the middle of last year, after announcing that she was pregnant with her first child, who was born in February.
Nelly did not turn around to find her passion: she followed Jessica and soon surpassed her sister's achievements. She joined the LPGA Tour in 2017 and in 2021 she had an extraordinary year, which transformed her into a global star. In June, she won her first (and so far, only) Major, the
Women's PGA Championship
in Atlanta, and climbed to the first step of the world rankings for the first time. A month later, she won gold at the
Tokyo Olympics
. And she finished that season with five titles, her best harvest on the most important circuit.
Korda had an unforgettable 2021 in which, among other achievements, he won Olympic gold in Tokyo. AP Photo/Andy Wong
A blood clot that was discovered in her left arm forced her to miss several months of competition in 2022 and last year she did not have the continuity she expected due to back pain that did not allow her to move comfortably. But in 2024, physical problems seem to be a thing of the past and the American
has an impressive winning streak
.
"I really don't know what I'm doing differently. I'm just enjoying being on the course. I love golf. I always have. There are days when things are harder. Last year was definitely one of the toughest of my life." career. The last two years, actually. I was never able to pick up the pace due to injuries and those kinds of problems. I feel like I worked a lot on my physique, I feel much stronger than in 2021. And I also matured and grew a lot," he acknowledged on Sunday .
And he added: "Stopping and resetting after Bradenton (where he won his first tournament of 2024) helped me a lot. I enjoyed my free time with my family and a little bit of life outside of golf. I returned to Prague. I disconnected. It was the perfect readjustment".
Korda after the operation to treat a blood clot in his left arm in 2022. Photo Instagram @nellykorda
Nelly never tires of acknowledging how important her family is to her, as responsible for her success as she and her work team. And having people close to you who understand what you live every day, because they also live it or have lived it, is a plus.
What's more, he and his brothers have a
group that they named
"The Trio"
, through which they keep in touch from a distance. Nelly once said that they write to each other constantly, but that the messages are many more when someone suffers a defeat, perhaps because of a phrase that her father often repeats to them.
"My dad always emphasizes to us that we have to give time to everything that happens, enjoy the victories and learn from the defeats. That professional athletes don't usually do it because there is no time, there is always a trip or a tournament; but it is important," he revealed.
Nelly with her sister Jessica and her parents Petr and Regina, former professional tennis players, after winning the fourth title of her career in February 2021. Photo Instagram @nellykorda
Korda has the perfect combo to succeed: a privileged physique, natural talent for sports, a competitive spirit and a family that knows how to accompany her and help her from the outside. And the American is determined to take advantage of it to leave her mark on world golf.
At 25 years old, she is the absolute queen of the women's circuit and seems poised to build perhaps historic dominance. But she, with her feet on the ground, does not want to get ahead of herself.
"Comparisons are easy to make. I would say that the golf I am playing today could lead me to have a season like 2021 or better. But I don't want to focus too much on that, on the results," he said. "I just think about my process and enjoying the life I have to live. Traveling, playing in front of fans, inspiring the next generation. These are things that I appreciate a lot."