Nelly Korda says playing with Caitlin Clark is like "two friends hanging out"
Nelly Korda played with Caitlin Clark in the LPGA Tour's ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge Pro-Am event. Korda accompanied the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) star for the first nine holes, while golf legend Annika Sorenstam took her place on the back nine.
At the end of her participation in the Pro-Am event, Korda shared her impressions of Clark with the press. The world number one said it was a great opportunity to see the impact the WNBA Rookie of the Year has had on the sport in general.
"It was so amazing. She's so sweet, so nice. It was nice get to spend some time with her. We've messaged a little on Instagram beforehand, but to get to spend some time with her and to see the influence that she has on people, bringing people out here, and to see how amazing of an influence she is just for sports, was really cool to see firsthand today," Nelly Korda said (via ASAP Sports).
Nelly Korda will play the ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge starting this Thursday, November 14. The LPGA's top ranked player has won this event twice (2021, 2022) and is a heavy favorite to win this edition.
Korda has won six tournaments this season, five in a row, including the second major championship of her career. She also won the LPGA Tour Player of the Year Award and the Rolex Annika Major Award, given to the player with the best overall performance in the majors.
Caitlin Clark on playing with Nelly Korda: "People would pay for that"
Caitlin Clark also spoke to the press following her participation in the ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge Pro-Am event. She celebrated the opportunity to play alongside Nelly Korda and Annika Sorenstam (via ASAP Sports):
"It was so fun. Obviously getting to see them do what they do up front is like people would pay for that. I got to do it for free and have fun with them. Definitely a fun morning."
"Feel very thankful that Gainbridge had me out here. Obviously their support of women's sports is tremendous. Very lucky and fortunate. Hung in there; did all right. It was a good day."
Korda waited for Clark at the 18th hole to fulfill a request from the WNBA star. The basketball star had asked for some autographed golf balls, and the golfer handed her four.
At the same moment, Korda asked for a signed basketball and Clark promised to send her one. The moment was captured in an LPGA Tour post on its X (formerly Twitter) account.
The Gainbridge-driven ANNIKA will begin play this Thursday, November 14. It is the final event of the LPGA Tour's regular season. The tour wraps up next week with the CME Tour Championship.