She fought the good fight through the balance of Sunday, but in the end, it wasn't quite enough for Nelly Korda to win for the second time in 2026.

Korda, who won the season-opening Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions and then took the last six weeks away from tournament golf, shot a 3-under 69 Sunday at the Fortinet Founders Cup and ended up just one shot back of Hyo Joo Kim, who won the event for the second time.

Still, Korda's results so far in 2026 are 1-2, and she said, despite the stinging loss late Sunday, she's ready to go all over again.

"It's golf. It's a quick turnaround. There is next week, so just going to take all the positives," Korda said.

Korda opened with a tough bogey on the par-4 2nd but was all gas, no brakes from there. She birdied six of her next eight holes, including three in a row from Nos. 5-7 and then back-to-back circles on her scorecard on Nos. 9 and 10.

Her birdie on No. 10 was the last of the day, however, as she bogeyed No. 12 and then missed a par-saving putt from just a couple of feet on the par-3 17th, which was her ultimate undoing.

The par-5 18th should have also been a scoreable hole for Korda, given her length, but she ended up in the fairway bunker and couldn't capitalize on the opportunity to tie Kim, who bogeyed both No. 16 and No. 18.

"The front nine was great. Kind of battled a little bit more on the back nine. Wasn't really kind of producing as much as I was on the front nine. Obviously, something like 17 stings, so it is what it is," Korda said. "I felt great all day. I just kind of made one stupid mistake, and that was 17 (and then) 18. I wish I could have hit that drive into the fairway and given myself a better opportunity to press a little bit more."

Sunday's finale in California became a match-play situation quickly, as Korda began her front-nine charge. Korda's runner-up total of 15-under 273 was four shots better than the duo of Sei Young Kim and Jin Hee Im, who finished tied for third.

Even with that one-on-one situation unfolding – and with Hyo Joo Kim and Korda paired together for the final round – Korda said she was dialled into her own game more than anything else.

"I didn't really see too many leaderboards. I didn't really know where all the other girls were. I was really honestly just focused on myself," Korda said. "Wasn't really focused on what Hyo Joo was doing."

What Korda would have seen from Kim was an up-and-down final day that not only featured the two bogeys in her final three holes but also two in a five-hole stretch after making the turn and her hitting just nine fairways.

Kim now heads to the Ford Championship presented by Wild Horse Pass next week as the defending champion – her win in 2025 in Arizona broke a nearly two-year winless drought – with a trophy riding shotgun.

Korda, meanwhile, proved to the golf world that she's no rust to shake off after her recent break.

"That's just golf. Those are sports. Sometimes it's on your side, and sometimes it's not," Korda said of her tough Sunday finish.

But Korda has plenty of reasons to believe she'll be right back in the same position sooner rather than later.

Nelly Korda Taking Positives from Tough Sunday Finish at Fortinet Founders Cup

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