"Is this week even real?" – When Nelly Korda smashed two historic milestones in a few days
Nelly Korda won her maiden Major at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship in 2021. She registered a three-stroke win in the game and rose to World No. 1 in the Rolex rankings.
She also became the first American golfer in seven years to top the rankings since Stacy Lewis in 2014. The then 22-year-old Nelly Korda reflected on her two historic milestones with the victory.
Speaking of the incredible feat, Korda said (as ASAP Sports):
"A dream come true. A major championship and No. 1 in the world; is this week even real? It's amazing."
She also talked about her performance, saying:
"I'm not going to lie, it wasn't easy. I had to remind myself to breathe a lot. But thankfully I have such a great caddie. Jason helped me calm down. I hit it into the water on 15, and I was pretty upset there, but he pretty much punched me and was like, 'Come on, Bud, why are you so down?' I just have a great caddie."
In the last few weeks prior to the KPMG Women's PGA Championship in 2021, Nelly Korda had a mixed performance. She missed the cut at the U.S. Women's Open that year but registered a win in her next outing at the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give. She had a second back-to-back win of the 2021 season at the Women's PGA Championship.
Nelly Korda started the 2021 season with a solo third finish at the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions, before winning the Gainbridge LPGA. She had four wins in the 2021 season, with the fourth coming at the 2021 Pelican Women's Championship.
A look into Nelly Korda's performance at the 2021 KPMG Women's PGA Championship
Korda had a tough start to her game at the 2021 KPMG Women's PGA Championship with an opening round of 70. But she quickly managed to bounce back, playing the next round of 63. Korda maintained the momentum as the tournament progressed and played the next two rounds of 68 to register a three-stroke win.
During the press conference of the tournament, she reflected on her game, saying (via LPGA.com):
"I pretty much dominated a lot of the par-5s. I hit the ball really well, putted my putts. I just honestly -- everything was on, and when you look back on weeks like this, it's really special, and you don't take it for granted. I'm really grateful for all the work and for my family constantly pushing me."
Since then, Korda has won another Major title. Her next Major victory came in 2024 at the Chevron Championship. That year, Korda was phenomenal with her game, winning seven tournaments on the LPGA Tour. She is currently leading the Rolex rankings.