Nelly Korda is back to defend her title at the Ford Championship, and the World No. 1 sure hopes to recreate the mindset she had 12 months ago.
Korda was on a heater, fresh off wins at the LPGA Drive On Championship and Fir Hills SeRi Pak Championship. That run of torrid play continued at Seville Golf and Country Club, where she made it three straight victories en route to a LPGA record-tying five consecutive wins that was capped at the year’s first major, the Chevron Championship
If only you could bottle that winning formula and sell it as a side gig.
“You’re kind of just like in a zone. You’re in your own little bubble,” Korda said in a news conference from Whirlwind Golf Club, the tournament’s new venue for 2025 in Phoenix, on Wednesday. “Nothing can really pop it. Even if you make a mistake, you know that it’s OK and that you’re going to bounce back. You’re just in very much like a flow state. Sometimes, it’s easier to get into that. It all has to do with confidence and putting really good rounds together. Sometimes, it’s a lot tougher when you’re struggling.”
Recapturing that feeling could be a little trickier this year as Korda is coming off a nearly two-month layoff, having skipped the LPGA’s Asia swing after playing in two opening tournaments to start the 2025 season. Will she have the same swagger she had a year ago?
Asked when she’s been in that type of zone at other points in her career, the 26-year-old noted: “Last year and I would say I had it a little bit in 2021 for a certain period. But golf always humbles you so it’s easily lost as well.”
Something everyone from professionals to weekend golfers can understand.
Korda’s final victory total in 2024 reached seven, the most of any LPGA player in a single season since 2011. In 2021, she won four tournaments, including two straight at the Meijer LPGA Classic and KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, her first major.
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Asked if she’s gleaned anything about zones from other professional athletes, Korda talked about her family. Her sister Jessica is a fellow LPGA Tour pro, who after a back injury and maternity leave, is planning to return. And her father, Petr, famously was a professional tennis player, same as her brother, Sebastian.
“I’m so grateful for the family that I have because they’ve all kind of been through that,” Korda said. “I can always pick their brain on what has helped them and hurt them. Also, having a great support system around you that’s traveling with you week in and week out—my coaches, my physio, Kim [Baughman], my caddie, Jason [McDede]. This is our eighth year together. I have all my wins with him, too. Having comfort in people around you puts you at ease and in a good mental state.”
Confidence and comfort is big for Korda. Some players have a roller-coaster rotation of caddies and others stick together for years. Korda has had stability there with McDede for nearly a decade.
“I’m so grateful for Jason. He’s one of my best friends,” Korda said. “He’s like my big brother. I’m grateful for the ride we’ve been on because there’s been a lot of ups and downs. The most important is that he’s stuck with me through it all. He shows up even when I’m down and no matter what. He’s a great teammate.”
They’ll be back for the lead up to the Chevron at The Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands Texas to defend her major. That won’t be easy to win the title in back-to-back years. Neither will that be the case this week at the Ford, where all top-10 players in the current Rolex Women’s Rankings are in the field and 19 of the top 20.
Korda has top-10 finishes in both tournaments she’s played to date in 2025: a tie for seventh at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions and a tied for seventh at the Founders Cup. If Korda can reclaim that zone from a year ago, maybe she’ll get on another heater. If not, it’s the constant search for that blissful state of mind.