With five victories in five countries, Jessica Korda makes the jet-set life of an LPGA player look easy. Already with wins to her name in Australia, the Bahamas, Malaysia, Thailand and the United States, she is just 18 holes away from adding the People’s Republic of China to that winning roster.
Korda attributed that comfort on the road to all the miles she logged as a child, following the career of her father, 1998 Australian Open tennis champion Petr Korda.
“Luckily, I got to travel with my dad when I was a kid, so I'm used to living out of a suitcase. Hotel rooms are homes. It's just another week,” said Korda. “I would just say that foreign golf courses suit me more and maybe jet lag plays some type of positive in that.”
KANG LOOKING FOR BIRTHDAY MAGIC
In 2018, Danielle Kang celebrated her 26th birthday in style, turning one year older on Saturday, Oct. 20, and capturing the Buick LPGA Shanghai win on Sunday, Oct. 21. Fast forward a year and she could ring in her 27th year in the same fashion. She sits one stroke off the lead heading into the final round, which this year sits on her birthday.
“Game plan is to stay aggressive with the way I map out the golf course,” said Kang, who came back from a one-stroke deficit in 2018, her same trailing margin in 2019. “Yes, it is my birthday. I'm very excited. Honestly, tomorrow my mom and I are going The Bund (a scenic waterfront area in Shanghai) and I'm excited about that because I haven't been still. I don't know, really don't have a game plan except that. For my birthday plans, that's about it. For golf, just got to keep trusting my golf shots and my read.”
WITH AN WIN
Jessica Korda would earn her sixth LPGA Tour victory spanning six countries; she has won in Australia (2012 ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open), the Bahamas (2014 Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic), the United States (2014 Airbus LPGA Classic presented by JTBC), Malaysia (2015 Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia) and Thailand (2018 Honda LPGA Thailand)
Danielle Kang would successfully defend her title from the 2018 Buick LPGA Shanghai and earn her third LPGA victory
Korda or Kang would become the fifth American winner on Tour in 2019, joining Cydney Clanton, Cheyenne Knight, Nelly Korda and Lexi Thompson
Brooke Henderson would earn her 10th career LPGA Tour victory; she is already the winningest Canadian golfer in the history of the LPGA and PGA Tours, one win ahead of Sandra Post, Mike Weir and George Knudson
Henderson would earn her third title of the season, joining the LOTTE Championship and the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give, and would win three times in a season for the first time in her career
PLAYER NOTES
Rolex Rankings No. 19 Jessica Korda (68-67-66)
- She hit 11 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens, with 28 putts
- Korda is in her ninth season on the LPGA Tour; she has five career victories, most recently at the 2018 Honda LPGA Thailand
- This is Korda’s 15th event of the 2019 season; her best finish is a tie for second at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup and she has three other top-10 finishes
- She is playing in her first Buick LPGA Shanghai
Rolex Rankings No. 16 Danielle Kang (69-67-66)
- She hit 10 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens, with 27 putts
- Kang is in her eighth season on the LPGA Tour; she has wins at the 2017 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the 2018 Buick LPGA Shanghai
- This is Kang’s 19th event of the 2019 season; her best finish is a tie for second at the Kia Classic and the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, and she has six other top-10 finishes
- She won the 2018 Buick LPGA Shanghai
Rolex Rankings No. 6 Brooke Henderson (69-64-73)
- She hit 10 of 14 fairways and nine of 18 greens, with 26 putts
- Henderson is in her fifth season on the LPGA Tour; she is a nine-time winner on the LPGA Tour and is the winningest Canadian player in LPGA and PGA Tour history
- This is Henderson’s 24th event of the 2019 season; she won the LOTTE Championship and the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give, and has eight other top-10 finishes
- She tied for 26th at the 2018 Buick LPGA Shanghai
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