LYTHAM ST ANNES, England — It is all about staying in control for world No. 1 Nelly Korda as she heads into the AIG Women’s Open, the final major of the season, at Royal Lytham & St Annes golf course in Lancashire.
Korda, who celebrated her 28th birthday Tuesday by playing nine holes with friends, was on a major hot streak earlier in the season after winning the Chevron Championship in April and the U.S. Women’s Open in June. That latter win at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles made her the first American to win the first two majors of the season since Pat Bradley in 1986 and the youngest player to reach four major championships since Mickey Wright in 1960.
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“My attitude this week is control what you can control,” Korda said. “Sometimes with links golf you can kind of get pretty agitated with the bounces that you get. You hit a good shot, get a bad bounce, end up in a pot bunker, have to pitch out unfortunately and save par. So this week my attitude is going to be control what you can control.”
The four-time major winner would love to add the Women’s Open to a resume which already boasts 24 professional wins and has her on the edge of qualification to the LPGA Hall of Fame. Korda, who became an Olympic champion in 2021, came closest to winning the Open in 2024 when she finished tied for second, two shots off champion Lydia Ko at St Andrews. Korda had painfully led by two shots midway through the final round.
A triumph this weekend in north west England would banish the hurt of watching the trophy slip from her grasp at the Old Course two years ago. It would also put Korda, who has become the face of women’s golf, one major win from completing a career Grand Slam.
She can do so by winning four of the five women’s majors (all five is termed the super career Grand Slam). Six women have won the career Grand Slam, but only Karrie Webb is in the “super” club.
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Korda failed to make the cut at Amundi Evian Championship in Èvian-les-Bains, France, a course she calls “funky”.
“It’s golf…just because you’re playing well doesn’t mean you’re invincible and you’re going to make every cut and be in the top 10 every single week,” Korda said. “There will be weeks you just don’t have it and that’s the reality of it. I feel like I’ve done this long enough where I’ve missed enough cuts that it’s just about the bounceback.”
But bouncing back when the season has provided such emotional highs and lows can be difficult for any player, especially one who admits they have a “love-hate relationship” with blustery links courses like this one on the west Lancashire coast.
“I feel like sometimes with it being the fifth major and coming off a lot of condensed majors in a packed schedule, I feel like you’re a little bit more on edge because you’ve been in these high-pressure moments throughout this middle part of the year,” Korda said.
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“We’re coming off a big part in our season, so I always feel like maybe I’m a little bit more tired, so the bad bounces get to me a little bit, mentally. I’m just trying to really not get into that state of mind, and that’s why I said I’m going to control what I can control. Obviously sometimes it’s easier than others. It’s easy to say, harder to do.”
One player who is trying to control her own way to a first major win is home favorite Charley Hull. The 30-year-old Englishwoman is seeking her first-ever major win after five runner-up finishes, including finishing 1 shot off Korda at the U.S. Women’s Open.
“I don’t really see it as a rivalry at the minute because, no offense, Nelly has got however many majors and I’ve got none. I’ve got five second places,” Hull said Tuesday. “So let me get my major in first, and then that’s something we can think about in the future. But listen, what Nelly is doing for the game of golf is unbelievable and so good to watch and she’s a nice girl as well.”
Korda had some kind words of her own for Hull who she thinks “for sure” is destined to become a major champion.
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“It’s about putting yourself in that position. You can’t control what others are doing, but she’s doing something right to always be there and be relevant, to be in the hunt,” Korda answered.
“It’s kind of like Sam Burns (who led after 54 holes at the men’s Open Championship before finishing third, and was second at the U.S. Open). He’s been in the hunt a lot during major championships; hasn’t got it done. Eventually he will. You can’t get discouraged. It has to be encouraging.
“She’s (Hull) such a great personality. I think it would be great for her to do (it here), obviously on kind of home soil too. She’s an amazing player. Funny personality for sure. I enjoy playing with her any time. But, yeah, I think it would be great for the game of golf.”
Korda will tee off at 8:42 a.m. Thursday alongside Ko, who called this course the toughest women’s Open venue she has ever played. Also making up the trio is South Korean Haeran Ryu, who is looking for her third successive major victory after winning the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and then the Evian Championship 14 days later.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Golf, Women’s Golf
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