MIAMI (AFP) - South Korea's Ko Jin-young fired nine birdies in a sensational nine-under par 63 on Sunday (Nov 21) to win the LPGA Tour Championship and pip Nelly Korda for Player of the Year honours. Ko's second straight victory in the season finale was her fifth LPGA title of the year. The US$1.5 million (S$2.04 million) winner's prize pushed her past US$9 million in career earnings. Ko and Korda had swapped the number one ranking all season, but it was American Korda who came into the event at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, atop the rankings and with a 10-point lead in the Player of the Year race. Both were among a four-way tie for the lead through 54 holes, and Korda's tie for fifth wasn't enough to secure the year-end award. Japan's Nasa Hataoka, who also shared the overnight lead, fired an eight-under par 64 to finish second on 266. It was four strokes back to Mina Harigae and overnight co-leader Celine Boutier on 270, with Korda heading a trio on 271. Ko opened with three birdies in her first four holes. She rolled in a 30-footer for her sixth birdie of the day at the ninth, seizing a four-shot lead. Hataoka sliced into her lead with birdies at the seventh, ninth, 10th and 11th. But Ko rolled in another long birdie putt at the 11th and birdied the 13th for a three-shot edge. Hataoka kept pressing, with birdies at 15, 17 and 18, but Ko's final birdie at the 17th was enough to clinch the victory. Ko, 26, now has 12 LPGA titles. Olympic gold medallist Korda, also going for a fifth LPGA win of the season, finished with four birdies and a bogey in her three-under effort that left her tied with Australian Minjee Lee and American Megan Khang. More on this topic Related Story Golf: Red-hot Ko Jin-young makes history with Founders Cup win Related Story Golf: S. Korea's Ko to reclaim top rank with 'lucky' BMW Ladies Championship play-off win
MIAMI (AFP) - Lee6 Jeong-eun fired eight birdies in an eight-under-par 64 on Thursday (Nov 18) to grab a one-shot lead at the US LPGA Tour Championship at rainy Tiburon Golf Club in Florida. Lee6, the 2019 US Women's Open champion, hit 14 of 14 fairways in regulation and 18 of 18 greens to put herself in position to achieve her aim of capturing a 2021 title in final event of the season. "I had a good time today," she said. "My goal was bogey free, so, I achieved it. "My goal is to win once this year, unfortunately just one tournament left. I'm going to try my best." Lee6 - who has the numeral added to her name to distinguish her from other players on the Korean tour with the same name - said work on swing changes had made for an inconsistent 2021 campaign, but now that she's more comfortable she can attack with accuracy. That was especially useful on Thursday, on the rain-softened and receptive Tiburon course in Naples, Florida. "It was raining so the greens were soft and we could clean the ball in the fairway," said Lee6, who was a stroke in front of four players. American Mina Harigae's bogey-free 65 was highlighted by a chip-in eagle at the 17th. She was joined by compatriot Jennifer Kupcho, France's Celine Boutier and South Korean Kim Sei-young. Boutier had seven birdies without a bogey, while Kim had nine birdies and two bogeys and Kupcho nabbed seven birdies to join the group at seven-under. Kim, who rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt at the 72nd hole to lift the title at Tiburon in 2019, was also in attack mode on the rain-softened course set up for scoring. "I had a lot of chances for birdie today," she said. "I expected a lot of rain today but there wasn't. We got the rain starting on hole 16. But the course was a little wet, so we attacked the pin when it was available." World number one Nelly Korda led a group of eight players on six-under-par 66. South Korean Ko Jin-young, who has swapped the top ranking with Korda this season as they racked up eight titles between them, made three of her five birdies on the back nine on the way to a three-under-par 69. Korda arrived in Naples off a roller coaster win in the Pelican Championship in Sunday. Now the 23-year-old is seeking a second back-to-back brace of victories this season after winning the Meijer LPGA Classic and Women's PGA Championship in successive weeks. Korda and Ko played alongside former world number one Lydia Ko of New Zealand in a marquee grouping, "I kind of saw that video of Lyd saying she was third wheeling, but I felt like I was third wheeling because they were speaking Korean," Korda said. "It was fun. I like playing with them and they played well, so it was nice." Her round itself, Korda said, was "pretty good". "I hit majority of the greens and I didn't really make any mistakes. Two loose shots that I kind of had too much curve on them and two three-putts. "But I definitely made a good bit of my putts out there as well." More on this topic Related Story Golf: LPGA championship increases prize pool to US$7 million in 2022 Related Story Golf: Top-ranked Nelly Korda survives triple-bogey to win Pelican Championship in play-off
MIAMI, FLORIDA (REUTERS) - Being ranked the world's best golfer is a remarkable achievement but Nelly Korda, who will return to competition at this week's Pelican Women's Championship in Florida, said on Tuesday (Nov 9) she had no idea she had reclaimed top spot in the rankings. The 23-year-old American, who will headline a stacked field in Belleair for her first event in three weeks, said she only learned of her new status while walking off the 18th green at Pelican Golf Club during her Monday pro-am. "I was like, 'No, you're joking. How is that possible?'"Korda told reporters. "So it was a little bit of a shock to me." After just two weeks on top, South Korean Ko Jin-young fell back down to the second spot in the rankings - which are based on a two-year rolling period - and lost her crown to Korda for the second time this year. Korda has collected three wins on the LPGA this year, including her maiden major triumph, as well as the gold medal in the women's golf competition at the Tokyo Olympics. Ko, however, is the hottest player in golf with four wins since July. "I was pretty dominant in the summer, and now she's dominant," said Korda. "So I think that is just how sports go. You kind of pass on the baton in a sense, and someone passes you and you just try to battle it out."
CARNOUSTIE, SCOTLAND (REUTERS) - World number one and Olympic champion Nelly Korda was one of three co-leaders after the first round of the British Women's Open at Carnoustie on Thursday (Aug 19). The American carded eight birdies on her way to a five-under 67 to top the leaderboard with Sweden's Madelene Sagstrom who dropped a shot at the 18th. South Korea's Kim Sei-young joined them after her round of 67 featured only one bogey. Korda is bidding to continue a sensational year having won the PGA Championship and Olympic gold, although she admitted after her round she was feeling a little jaded. "Honestly we didn't have much wind today. It was very chilly in the morning but other than that the wind kept calm and I took advantage of it," Korda told Sky Sports. "I am a little tired but I will still give it my all these next few days. I will go home next week and sleep in my bed for the first time in six weeks so that'll be nice." Korda's compatriot Andrea Lee, ranked 143rd in the world, finished in a chasing group on four under with England's Georgia Hall, Scotland's Louise Duncan and Yuka Saso of the Philippines. Last year's winner Sophia Popov struggled around the turn with a double-bogey at the 10th hole but found a couple of birdies to finish the day with a level-par 72.
LONDON (REUTERS) - Wimbledon main draw debutant Sebastian Korda reached the last 16 on Friday (July 2) with an impressive 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-4 victory over British number one Dan Evans on Centre Court. A few days after his older sister Nelly won the women's PGA Championship to become the world's top-ranked golfer, Korda maintained a fine family tradition with a superb display. Striking the ball crisply from the baseline and serving powerfully, Korda kept Evans under control to keep the home fans quiet and claim a relatively comfortable victory. The world number 50 is coached by his father Petr Korda, a former world number two and 1998 Australian Open champion, and also has former Wimbledon champion Andre Agassi in his team. Both would have been proud of the way he dispatched Evans after a blip in the second set and then coming back from a break down in the fourth to seize control. He was the dominant player throughout and struck 51 winners on his way to his second Grand Slam fourth round, having made his breakthrough by doing the same at the 2020 French Open. For Korda it was his first time on Centre Court and he said it was an occasion he will never forget. "It was the first time I walked down the stairs, it was incredible," he told reporters. "It was pretty crazy. I almost brought out my phone just to start recording. "All the years that I've watched tennis, they always show how the players are walking through all the rooms. I just thought to myself, this is nuts. "What's about to happen is going to be something I'm going to remember for the rest of my life." If he is to return to Centre Court this year he will have to next get past big-hitting Russian Karen Khachanov, the 25th seed, on Monday. Evans was one of three British men to reach the third round along with Andy Murray and Cameron Norrie. It was the first time since 1999 that had happened. With Murray losing later on, however, hopes now rest on Norrie upsetting eight-time champion Roger Federer on Saturday. More on this topic Related Story Tennis: Battling Murray in earliest Wimbledon exit since 2005 Related Story Tennis: Djokovic into Wimbledon last 16 after rocky third set
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Nelly Korda won the Women's PGA Championship on Sunday (June 27) to capture her first major title and become the first American since 2014 to seize the world number one ranking. The 22-year-old daughter of retired Czech tennis star Petr Korda made two eagles in outdueling compatriot Lizette Salas down the stretch for a three-stroke triumph. "I've put in a lot of work," Korda said. "And to finally get three wins under my belt this year and a major championship, I don't even have words, honestly." Korda fired a four-under-par 68 to finish 72 holes on 19-under 269 at Atlanta Athletic Club with Salas on 272 after a closing 71. She will jump from third to first in Monday's new rankings, overtaking South Korea's number one Ko Jin-young and second-ranked Park In-bee. Korda will become the first American atop the rankings since Stacy Lewis in October 2014 and only the third US player atop the list since it began in 2006 after Lewis and Cristie Kerr. Korda became the first American to win a major women's golf title since Angela Stafford at the 2018 Evian. "This is something I've worked for since I was 14," Korda said. "I wanted to win a major since I played in my first one. "To finally get it done here in Atlanta with such an amazing crowd, it was something special." South Korea's Kim Hyo-joo and Italy's Giulia Molinaro shared a distant third on 278 with Thailand's Patty Tavatanakit and American Danielle Kang sharing fifth on 280. Korda claimed her third LPGA victory of the year after Boca Rio in February and last week at the LPGA Meijer Classic. "I had a great week last week and carried the momentum into this week," Korda said. "I just played really well this week." Salas, whose only LPGA victory came in 2014 at Kingsmill, matched her best major showing, a runner-up effort at the 2019 Women's British Open. Korda birdied the par-4 third to grab a one-stroke lead over Salas, then hit a 7-wood 243 yards to within inches of the cup for a tap-in eagle at the par-5 fifth to reach 18-under. Salas opened with a pair of par saves before adding an eight-foot birdie putt at the fifth and a tap-in birdie at six to pull within one of Korda, who was battling nerves. "I wanted to keep a level head and tell myself there was a lot of golf to be played and take it one shot at a time," Korda said. More on this topic Related Story Golf: Nelly Korda fires 63 to grab Women's PGA Championship lead Related Story Golf: Confident Lizette Salas leads at Women's PGA Championship Turning point at 12th The turning point came at the par-5 12th, when Korda dropped her second shot within five feet of the cup and Salas sent her third into a bunker. Salas blasted out 15 feet beyond the hole and missed her par putt while Korda rolled in her eagle putt to reach 20-under par, the three-shot swing giving Korda a four-stroke edge. Korda sank a long birdie putt at the 14th to reach 21-under, stretching her lead to five strokes with four holes remaining. Korda was a threat to break the record for the lowest 72-hole score in women's major golf history, the 21-under 263 by South Korea's Chun In-gee at the 2016 Evian Championship. But after a lengthy wait at the par-3 15th, Korda hit her tee shot into water and went on to make double bogey, ending her run of 49 consecutive holes without a bogey and trimming her lead to three. Korda responded with three closing pars, the last on a long putt when the victory was secure.
MIAMI (AFP) - Danielle Kang produced a battling display to hold on to a two-shot lead after a ferocious challenge from Jessica Korda in the third round of the LPGA Tournament of Champions on Saturday (Jan 23). Kang, who is yet to drop a shot all week, relied on a red-hot putter to card an eight-under-par 63 at Four Season Golf & Sports Club in Lake Buena Vista, Florida - her third straight bogey-free round. The 28-year-old Californian's outing included a crucial save on the par-five 17th, when she recovered brilliantly after hitting her second into the water. She followed that with her eighth birdie of the day on the 18th to finish on 21 under after 54 holes, two clear of Jessica Korda, who earlier erupted over the back nine for an incredible 11-under-par 60. Kang was under pressure from both Korda sisters Nelly and Jessica - the daughters of former Czech tennis ace Petr Korda - throughout an absorbing third round. But the world number five was able to conjure birdies or saves at key times to stay just ahead of the chasing pack. The American, who started the day with a two-shot lead, saw her advantage evaporate early on after Nelly Korda opened with three straight birdies to grab a share of the lead. But Kang, who had birdied the first, then made birdies on the 4th, 6th and 7th holes to reach the turn at four under, 17 under overall. Nelly Korda, playing in the group ahead of Kang, then birdied the 10th and 11th to move within two of the lead. But Kang rolled in an eight-foot birdie putt on the 10th before sinking a 10-footer on the 11th to take a three-shot lead. A costly bogey from Nelly Korda on the 15th - fluffing a tap-in for par after narrowly missing a birdie chance - allowed Kang to take a four-shot lead after she promptly grabbed her seventh birdie of the day. But just as Kang appeared to have taken a stranglehold on the third round, Jessica Korda erupted. A brilliant eagle three on the par-five 17th left her two off the lead before a long birdie putt on the 18th put her on 19 under. Korda's charge began on the back nine as she rattled off seven birdies and an eagle to close out only the fifth 60 in LPGA Tour history. Younger sister Nelly finished the day in third on 15 under after a 67, two ahead of South Korea's Chun In-gee, who is on 13 under after a 67. Canada's Brooke Henderson is fifth on 12 under after a six-under-par 65.