Nelly Korda beats Leona Maguire in 2024 T-Mobile Match Play final to win four in a row on LPGA
Nelly Korda won her fourth consecutive title on the LPGA Tour on Sunday, April 7, after defeating Leona Maguire 4-and-3 in the final of the 2024 T-Mobile Match Play.
Korda entered Sunday's play hoping to secure her third title in as many weeks and her fourth consecutive victory. She started strongly, winning four of the first seven holes against Maguire. Maguire managed to win the par-4 ninth hole to narrow the gap to 3-up, but Korda extended her lead by winning the 10th and 12th holes.
The Irishwoman attempted to make a comeback, winning the 13th and 14th holes, but Korda responded by winning the 15th hole to secure her victory. With the win, she became the first player since Lorena Ochoa in 2008 to claim four consecutive LPGA Tour titles. Now, she has a chance to match Nancy Lopez and Annika Sorenstam, who have each won five LPGA tournaments in a row.
After receiving $300,000 for her 12th LPGA Tour victory, Korda surpassed the $10 million mark in career earnings, becoming only the 25th player to do so.
Following her fourth victory of the season, Nelly Korda said that the last three weeks had been whirlwinds for her, and she couldn't wrap her head around it.
"I feel like I was in go-mode constantly," she said. "It will be nice to go home and see my whole family. Jess is driving up with Greyson, so I'm super excited. Played really well today. I stuck to my game plan of fairways and greens and made the least amount of mistakes."
Here's the leaderboard for the T-Mobile Match Play:
- 1: Nelly Korda
- 2: Leona Maguire
- T3: Narin An
- T3: Sei Young Kim
- T5: Minami Katsu
- T5: Moriya Jutanugarn
- T5: Angel Yin
- T5: Rose Zhang
What's next for Nelly Korda?
Nelly Korda will next compete at the Chevron Championship 2024, scheduled to take place from Thursday, April 18, to Sunday, April 21, on the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course at The Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands, Texas. The event will be the first women's major of the 2024 season.
Lilia Vu is the defending champion at the Club. Last year, she defeated Angel Yin in a playoff to claim the first major championship of her career. Korda finished solo third after falling one stroke short of the playoff.
The 25-year-old golfer has won only one major championship in her career, which was the Women's PGA Championship in 2021. However, with the confidence of four back-to-back wins, fans can expect her to add another Major to her tally next week.