Korda opens strong with LPGA history on line
ESPN tennis analyst Rennae Stubbs came out to the Cognizant Founders Cup on Thursday wearing a T-shirt that read “Everyone watches Nelly Korda” in large upper-case font.
It was a hopeful message from Stubbs, who believes not enough attention is being paid to Korda as she tries to become the first player in LPGA history to win six consecutive starts. Korda, who dazzled at the Met Gala earlier this week in New York City, opened with a 3-under 69 at Upper Montclair Country Club and sits four back of clubhouse leader Madelene Sagstrom.
LPGA legends Annika Sorenstam and Nancy Lopez join Korda as the only players to win five consecutive starts.
“The fact that she’s going for six in a row and really, in my opinion, the sports media is not there enough,” Stubbs told ESPN+ reporter Chantel McCabe. “So we are trying to bring a little bit of press, some social … get people to understand that what Nelly Korda is on the precipice of actually doing is history-making in women’s golf and in women’s sports.”
Stubbs, who won four Grand Slam doubles titles and two mixed-doubles titles, then headed back out to watch LPGA rookie Gabriela Ruffels finish her own round of 69. Stubbs was coached by Ruffels’ father, Ray, early in her career.
Korda, the 25-year-old daughter of two world-class tennis players from the Czech Republic, notched four birdies in an opening round she deemed “solid.” She was especially pleased with her irons. “This golf course is pretty intimidating off the tee,” she said of some wayward drives that got caught in the wind.
While Korda had a large support team at the Chevron Championship, the LPGA’s first major, this week it’s back to a small contingent. Her swing coach, Jamie Mulligan, is out with Patrick Cantlay at the Wells Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her agent was in town briefly, but her parents didn’t make the trip at all to Cliffton, New Jersey.
Her physio, Kim Baughman, who keeps fruit in her backpack for Korda, who enjoyed a mid-round plum, is with her all week, along with longtime caddie Jason McDede.
Korda said she’s not thinking about what’s on the line.
“I’m not trying to think about the outside noise,” she said. “Would it be amazing? Of course. But it’s still so far away and proud of what I’ve achieved so far.”
After winning her second career major at the Chevron, a worn-down Korda withdrew from the next week’s stop in Los Angeles. She crashed on her couch for a bit, sleeping 9 to 10 hours at night, before gearing up to host her first AJGA event at the Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Florida. The Nelly Invitational is an elite all-girls event near Korda’s home that benefits a local rescue shelter. Korda brought out Marvel the rescue dog for juniors to enjoy before the tournament started.
Korda, the first golfer to attend the Met Gala since Tiger Woods, said actor Jaden Smith, the 25-year-old son of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith, was the first person to say hello. A starstuck Korda, wearing an Oscar de la Renta gown and her first spray tan, sat close to Kylie Jenner and found herself in awe all night.
“Can confirm Chris Hemsworth is definitely a very good-looking person,” she said with a laugh.
Korda’s streak began back in January in her hometown at the LPGA Drive On where she beat former No. 1 Lydia Ko in a playoff, denying the Kiwi the final point needed to qualify for the LPGA Hall of Fame.
After a seven-week break, the winning resumed on the West Coast in March and hasn’t stopped. The first American to win five times in an LPGA season since Juli Inkster in 1999, Korda’s closing birdie at Upper Montclair gave her a seventh consecutive round in the 60s. Seventeen of her last 21 competitive rounds have been sub 70.
As for the “Everyone watches Nelly Korda” shirts, they’re a product of Togethxr, a media and commerce company founded by female athletes Alex Morgan, Chloe Kim, Simone Manuel and Sue Bird.
The “Everyone Watches Women’s Sports” merchandise includes a black hoodie, T-shirt and tote.
The Togethxr website says their products are more than a piece of clothing – “It’s a statement of enthusiasm and support for the unstoppable rise of women’s sports.”
With Korda on a run of historic proportions, one of the longest-running women’s professional sports associations in the world can only hope its own Caitlin Clark moment is coming.