LOS ANGELES — Nelly Korda had an incredibly close call last year at the 80th U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills.

The current Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 1 finished in a tie for second alongside Rio Takeda in Wisconsin, a performance that marked her career-best result in the major championship. And during what was a winless season for the American superstar, it would have been more than understandable if Nelly’s aggravation with the lack of tallies in her victory column was further compounded by another near miss at the tournament she wants to win the most.

But Korda didn’t adopt that kind of attitude in her review of her runner-up showing.

“That I was just hungry for more,” said Korda during her Tuesday pre-tournament press conference when asked about her takeaways from Erin Hills. “Last year was just a weird year of not necessarily playing my best, but also when I did, not getting the bounces or just missing by a centimeter here and there. But I also learned a lot about myself. It made me hungrier to be in those positions.

“There's no better place to be in than in the hunt on a back nine on Sunday at a major championship, especially at the Women's Open. It would have been a lifelong dream, but there are more chances.”

Another one of those chances is on deck this week in Pacific Palisades, Calif., as the women visit the iconic Riviera Country Club for the first time ever. And, excluding 2024, a year that saw Nelly hoist seven trophies on the LPGA Tour—five of which she captured in five consecutive starts—Korda has lately been playing some of the most consistently excellent golf of her career.

The 27-year-old kicked off her season by capturing her 15th Tour title at the season-opening Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions in her home state of Florida, a victory that was her first since she triumphed at the 2024 ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican.

Nelly finished solo second to Hyo Joo Kim in back-to-back weeks at the Fortinet Founders Cup and the Ford Championship presented by Wild Horse Pass, adding a T2 to her slate of 2026 results at the Aramco Championship at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas, a tournament won by her fellow U.S. Solheim Cupper Lauren Coughlin.

Late April then saw Korda become a two-time winner of The Chevron Championship, dominating at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston, Texas, where she finished five strokes ahead of Patty Tavatanakit and Ruoning Yin with a 72-hole score of 18-under en route to the collection of her third major title.

Flying to Mexico the next week for the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba likely wasn’t on anyone’s bingo card for Nelly following such an impressive stretch of golf, but Korda made the most of her tournament debut, racking up her third win of 2026 in just her sixth start of the year at El Cameleón Golf Course.

Then, in her most recent start at the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G, held for the first time at Maketewah Country Club in Cincinnati, Ohio, Korda carded her lone result outside the top two on an LPGA Tour leaderboard. Not to worry, though—she still finished in a tie for eighth.

So, for obvious reasons, Nelly comes to California as one of the clear favorites in the field at this year’s U.S. Women’s Open and is very much looking forward to the challenge that awaits at a venue like The Riv, which annually hosts the Genesis Invitational on the PGA Tour.

“It's in pristine condition. It's an amazing place,” said Korda. “Obviously, the men rave about it every year, and for us to get to play this golf course in a major championship in major championship conditions has – today being Tuesday, yesterday playing, it's already in absolute great condition. I know some golf courses wait until Wednesday to really speed up the greens, but it's amazing out here.

“The vibe of the place, knowing that so much history has been played out here, it's a great place for us to play.”

A Harton S. Semple trophy is one of very few accolades Korda has yet to add to her already illustrious career, and one she’s incredibly eager to chase after once again, this time doing so at one of the more prestigious facilities on the West Coast. However, a win this week would have much grander implications for Korda than that check mark on her professional golf bucket list.

She would find herself one step closer to the Career Grand Slam, opening the door to complete it either at The Amundi Evian Championship or the AIG Women’s Open later this summer. It would also put her within two points of qualifying for automatic entry into the LPGA Hall of Fame, as she currently sits with 23 points, and a major title earns its victor two points toward the Hall, which is widely considered to be the most exclusive in all of sports.

But there’s a lot of time between now and Sunday afternoon in the City of Stars, and Nelly isn’t a rookie when it comes to chasing history. Like she always has, Korda will climb into the safety of what she terms her “bubble,” block out the noise and set her sights on the silver cup she yearns for most when Thursday morning rolls around, ready to script a Hollywood ending in her national open.

Nelly Korda “Hungry For More” Success in U.S. Women’s Open After Close Call in 2025

Related Articles