ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – Nelly Korda may be focusing on her next shot and only her next shot, but make no mistake, the world No. 1 has her swagger back.
And it’s not just the purple pants and bright-accented Nikes.
When she was winning five straight tournaments, and six of seven, earlier this year, Korda had a stranglehold on the rest of the LPGA. Yet, as tends to happen in this game – even to its best and brightest – that grip has loosened in recent months with no top-20s in five starts, two missed major cuts and a stunning final-day plummet from Olympic medal contention.
It all led to Korda retreating home to Prague for a reset.
“I think the best part of the downs is that you learn so much about yourself … and I enjoy that,” Korda said earlier this week. “I’m still learning, and I’m still getting better from it.”
Now, with an 8-under performance in two rounds around St. Andrews’ Old Course, Korda showed out in easily the AIG Women’s Open premier grouping. She leads her closest competition and playing competitors Charley Hull and Lilia Vu, each at 5 under and at the top of their respective games, by three shots.
We’re getting close to the point of if Korda keep this level of play up, nobody is catching her.
That feeling was persistent earlier this year when Korda matched the LPGA record for consecutive victories. She was so dominant that she won in four different time zones. This week has been further proof that Korda’s best travels anywhere.
Sure, she doesn’t have the best links record, which includes just one top-10 finish in seven previous starts in this championship. But consider that her first taste of links didn’t come until her Women’s Open debut at Kingbarns in 2017, it’s possible that its only taken until now for her to find her groove here.
Armed with the mindset of taking on whatever the Old Course – and the weather – throws at her, Korda is embracing this moment well.
“You’re always adapting to your situations at hand,” Korda said Friday after a second straight 4-under 68, “and I think that’s what’s so fun about links golf is you’re literally starting it 30 yards left of your target, and I’m not a fade player, but I’m hitting massive fades. I think it’s fun hitting these little low drivers, too. … It’s all about just trusting the process and trusting what you have in your hand.”
Like the 5-hybrid she hit 150 yards on the par-4 second. That club travels about 200 yards in normal conditions.
Or the controlled 7-iron she flew into the green at the par-4 17th to set up her second birdie in as many attempts on the Road Hole.
Or the nifty 9-iron she pitched into the last to make the turn with back-to-back birdies.
But ask Hull and she’ll tell you a different key to Korda’s early success.
“I feel like I’m equally hitting it as good,” Hull said, “she just holed a few more putts than me today.”
Korda needed six fewer putts than Hull did on Friday. And she’s averaging 30.5 for the week, taking some pressure off her ball-striking, which also has been superb with just five missed greens.
The new putter is making a nice debut.
Korda had been using a Scotty Cameron Super Select Squareback 2 putter since her first win of the season, at the LPGA Drive On Championship in Bradenton, Florida. But following Paris, she needed a change. TaylorMade made her a Spider Tour X mallet putter that matched her previous specs, and she tested it out in Prague last week.
Then on Wednesday, a day before the year’s final major, she put a slightly heavier Spider in the bag. That’s the one she’s using now, marking the first time she’s competed with a TaylorMade putter since junior golf.
“I’ve won so many times this year with the putter that I had,” Korda said, “and I just wanted to kind of look at something different.”
Different putter, same Nelly that we’re used to seeing atop leaderboards.
If this year has taught us anything, when Korda gets rolling, she’s almost impossible to stop.