Nelly Korda may be the hottest golfer on the planet right now. Yes, that includes Masters winner Scotty Scheffler, who has won three of the past four tournaments.
That’s because Korda himself has actually won four straight.
She is preparing for her fifth straight victory this week at the Chevron Championship, the LPGA’s first major of the season.
Two-time major champion Stacey Lewis spoke about what Korda had accomplished leading up to the tournament.
“It’s very impressive. Four completely different golf courses. And I think the three weeks in a row was the most impressive,” Lewis said.
“I thought the amount of energy it took to do that, you could just get a little tired in match play and see your play drop off a little bit.”
Not only did Korda not lose energy on the course, he dominated the competition. That was especially true during her games over the weekend.
But I couldn’t even watch the entire championship match between Korda and Solheim Cup star Leona Maguire. Ms Lewis also expressed frustration at the lack of television coverage.
“We have to keep pushing our TV partners to get more coverage. It was disappointing not to be able to watch the entire game on TV on Sunday. Probably only a couple of hours to three hours. I felt like I was watching half a game of golf, and I was really disappointed that the whole match couldn’t be shown on TV.”
Instead, Golf Channel devoted its time to covering the Korn Ferry Tour.
It’s embarrassingly poor decision-making by those in power. Women’s golf is also gaining momentum. Wallets are reaching all-time highs as more eyeballs and, in turn, advertising revenue are generated.
Knowing the history of the LPGA sport and how male-dominated it is, it makes sense to try to push it as far as possible.
It’s easy to see why Lewis wasn’t thrilled. But she also recognizes that Korda needs to play a role in making a difference.
“I think Nellie certainly has a responsibility, but she probably doesn’t always want it. Just knowing her… We’re asking our partners, how can we make this happen?” We have to be creative. We have to come up with ways to be more visible, whether it’s changing the timing of the tee or playing faster or slower.”
Lewis herself is one of the greatest of all time, and her assessment is spot on. LPGA needs more visibility.
These women are incredibly talented athletes and deserve attention.
Kendall Capps is the senior editor of SB Nation’s Playing Through.For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough On all major social media platforms.
