A pair of LPGA Tour champions tied for second on Sunday at the Aramco Championship in North Las Vegas, Nev., after finishing their weeks at Shadow Creek at 2-under overall.

Nelly Korda, who won the 2024 edition of the T-Mobile Match Play presented by MGM Rewards at this venue, carded a 3-over 75 in the final round to earn her fourth straight T2 or better result in her fourth start of 2026.

Coming into the week in Vegas, Korda had collected her 16th career title at the season-opening Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions and finished solo second in back-to-back weeks to Hyo Joo Kim at the Fortinet Founders Cup and the Ford Championship presented by Wild Horse Pass.

Entering round four at Shadow Creek, Korda was trailing Lauren Coughlin by two strokes at 5-under total and just couldn’t seem to muster up any sort of momentum, carding four bogeys and a closing birdie on the par-5 18th hole to post at 2-under for the tournament, one of just four athletes to be under par at the conclusion of 72 holes.

And while Korda has every right to be frustrated by the lack of tallies in her win column after so many consecutive close calls, the 27-year-old elected to take a positive, veteran’s approach to what’s been a stellar start to her 10th season as an LPGA Tour member, using this show of strong form as motivation to keep chipping away at it until a second 2026 turns up.

“It was tough. It was a challenge in every aspect of your game,” said Korda of her stroke-play experience at Shadow Creek. “But sports are funny. If you actually really think about it, you lose more than you win, so you have to always pick yourself back up and dust yourself off and continue to grind and practice and work hard. The only thing that I can control is that at the end of the day, and that's what I'm going to continue doing.”

Like Korda, Maguire knew exactly the kind of challenge that Shadow Creek posed well before arriving at the Aramco Championship. The 31-year-old had previously teed it up in four editions of the T-Mobile Match Play presented by MGM Rewards, an event that was contested at the facility located just under 15 miles from the Las Vegas Strip since 2021.

The two-time LPGA Tour winner had recorded two top-three results in that tournament, falling to Japanese native Ayaka Furue in the semifinals to ultimately tie for third back in 2023 and then losing to Korda 4 and 3 in the Championship Match in 2024.

The Aramco Championship, what was the Tour’s first full stroke-play event ever to be held at Shadow Creek, saw Maguire just patiently plug away throughout each and every round. The Irishwoman closed out the week as the only athlete to card three under-par scores across 72 holes after she birdied 18 to throw up a 1-under 71 in the final round, a performance that put her in a tie alongside current Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 2 Korda.

It’s the first time that Maguire has tallied a top-10 finish on the LPGA Tour since she tied for seventh at The Amundi Evian Championship in 2025, and oddly enough, the T2 showing is her first top-five result since she came second to Korda in Vegas in 2024.

And even though she would have preferred to put a bit more pressure on Coughlin throughout the championship at a venue that she adores, Maguire will head to her adopted home of Orlando, Fla. feeling rather confident in her game after an incredibly difficult test at a firm, fast, lengthy venue, a course that wound up being perfect prep for the major championship season that begins later this month.

“I felt a lot more comfortable than I thought I would. Still working on plenty of stuff on my swing, but it was nice to see that hold up on this golf course,” said Maguire, who was tied for fourth in greens in regulation at the Aramco Championship. “Lots of positives heading into the next few weeks. Obviously got LA and Chevron, first major of the year. I feel like Shadow Creek has given me more than it's taken off me over the years, so it's always one of my favorites.

“Feel like I'm leaving here with my swing and sanity intact, which is always a good thing.”

Both Korda and Maguire are slated to compete in The Chevron Championship at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston, Texas, a facility that is hosting the women’s major for the first time in 2026, but that has been a venue several times for tournaments on the PGA Tour.

And while Korda will skip the JM Eagle LA Championship presented by Plastpro, Maguire will take advantage of one final opportunity to tune up her game at El Caballero Country Club before traveling to the Lone Star State for the first of this year’s five majors that is set to get underway on Apr. 23.

Nelly Korda, Leona Maguire Tie for Second at the Aramco Championship

Related Articles