Nelly Korda captures 6th LPGA title of season, despite having her “C and D” game

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — It wasn’t easy for Nelly Korda, who entered Sunday’s final round of the Mizuho Americas Open with a two-stroke lead.

She admitted she didn’t have her best, but it was a far cry from Saturday’s wobbly round, when she shot a bogey-free 65.

But the best players always find a way to get the job done. And Korda, the best player in the world, did just that. She shot a 1-under 71, beating Australia’s Hannah Green by one stroke, on her way to her sixth win of the season.

“I definitely felt like I achieved my C and D game,” Korda said.

“I actually didn’t play that well. Even if I was two over, Hannah was playing solid golf and I told myself I still had a chance to take the lead on the back nine or compete with Hannah. Ta.”

Liberty National’s back nine presented numerous birdie opportunities, with Korda and Green each making three birdies on the inside nine.

But the pivotal moment of the tournament came in the final stages.

At the par-4 17th hole, Korda and Green tied for the lead at 14 under. While Korda drew off his tee shot, Green countered with a unique fairway finder, or power fade.

Of the two, Green played first. She pushed her second shot a bit, but she still found her putting surface, albeit 30 feet to the right of her flagstick.

Then, with a rush of adrenaline, Korda pulled out a 9-iron. She senses an opportunity and decides to go on her flag hunt.

But when she sent Green by airmail, she felt a rush of adrenaline.

“We went there telling ourselves it was over,” Korda explained.

“I wanted to control the 9-iron and hit it into the wind. [my caddy] I definitely have a little bit of adrenaline as I feel. It’s lower than before, but I definitely felt it. It was an arrow towards the flag and it went a little too far and was a long way to the left so it wasn’t a good spot to miss it. ”

With bogey looming, her ball landed in a difficult spot in the bowl beyond the green. But Korda made it look easy. She settled for par after chipping it into tap-in range and calling it her best shot she had hit all day.

Meanwhile, the green nearly exhausted its birdie putts, but it veered to the left at the end and was just one step short.

The final pair then headed to the 18th tee, one of the most difficult tee shots on the course. With the Manhattan skyline on his right, Korda found a short piece of grass, but the green missed the fairway on the left, which cost him.

The Australian was unable to recover par on the final hole, leaving him one stroke behind Korda, who easily secured par with two putts.

“It’s sad to lose to Nelly, but it’s also Nelly Korda,” Green said.

Photo by: Sarah Steer/Getty Images

“She’s obviously very dominant right now. It’s very nice to finish second behind her. Unfortunately, the bogey at the end was a little bitter, but I still fought there. Ta.”

Green put up an impressive fight, especially in the early going. He put pressure on with a birdie on the first hole and didn’t blink until the par-5 eighth, when his tee shot forced into a bogey.

Conversely, Korda hit three bogeys in his first seven holes, all due to poor tee shots. She seemed a little irritated at times, a rare sight, especially for women’s golf’s biggest star in 2024.

When she reached the tee on the par-5 sixth, Korda’s overnight lead was gone and she and Green held a share of the lead at 12 under.

“It definitely wasn’t a good start to the day,” Korda added.

“Nothing progressed, [my caddy] I was told to reset and start fresh,” Korda added.

After shooting a 2-over 38 on the front nine, Korda arrived at the par-5 10th and sensed an opportunity. She hit her tee shot to the right side of the fairway and at a perfect angle to the dogleg to her right.

Korda continued to get birdies, but her partner also got one as Green made a nice up-and-down from the left of the green.

Just like that, this final round was match play, with Korda and Green exchanging blows on Liberty National’s scenic back nine with no one on the field threatening them.

“I felt like we could take advantage of something when one of us hit a last-minute shot or something on the back nine,” Korda said.

Photo by: Sarah Steer/Getty Images

“The other guy hit it close and made the putt.”

Remarkably, both players also birdied the par-5 13th hole.

Two holes later, Korda and Green set off fireworks again.

After finishing their approach shots, they each got a birdie on the difficult par-4 15th, a dogleg to the left. Final pairing AJGA athlete Gianna Clemente also utilized a great approach.

Asked about Sunday’s memorable moment, Green said, “I thought it was pretty cool that all three of us made birdies and Gianna too.”

“When we got there, we were all about 6 or 7 feet away from the pin.”

But Green, the only player to win multiple times on the LPGA this season, couldn’t get the job done.

Instead, Korda won despite not having the best in the shadow of the Manhattan skyline.

“There’s something special about the pain you feel when you don’t have the best,” Korda added.

“Then you’ll be able to mentally get through it.”

That’s really special, Nelly. It’s really special.

Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through.Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Cover more golf. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko In the same way.