Nelly Korda Doesn’t Lose Anymore, Apparently

Another week, another win for Nelly Korda. That’s three in a row for the twenty-five year old after Sunday’s victory at the Ford Championship. She joins Ariya Jutanugarn, Inbee Park, and Lorena Ochoa as just the fourth golfer since 2008 to win three starts in a row. She also became the fifth American ever to win three times before April 1st, joining a Hall-of-Fame-only list of JoAnne Carner, Kathy Whitworth, Patty Berg, and Louise Suggs.

.@NellyKorda is No. 1 for a reason 🙌

Nelly birdies for the solo lead with just two holes left to go 😤 pic.twitter.com/WimuZPK0Pf

— LPGA (@LPGA) March 31, 2024

For all of Nelly’s success, her total number of wins always felt light relative to her talent. After a disappointing and winless 2023, she’s now winning at a rate she hasn’t come close to since 2021, when she grabbed her one and only major en route to four victories over the course of the year. She’s won on a flat course in Florida with Bermuda greens. She’s won during a gale warning at an extremely hilly Palos Verdes with Kikuyu and poa annua grasses. She’s won in the rain on a desert course in Gilbert, AZ. She’s won in a playoff against Lydia Ko after finishing birdie-eagle. She’s won in a playoff over Ryann O’Toole after giving away a lead with a bogey-bogey finish. She’s won by playing smart golf and not making any mistakes while the rest of the field stumbled in tough conditions. Whatever the course, field, setup, or weather, the end result is the same: a smiling Nelly Korda holding a trophy on the 18th green.

The putt that made it three straight wins for @NellyKorda 🏆🏆🏆 pic.twitter.com/Jt3PCzTM23

— LPGA (@LPGA) March 31, 2024

What’s clicked for her? Any number of things. The struggles with the putter seem long gone. She’s likely refreshed after almost two months off. KPMG Performance Insights shows a big jump in SG: Approach compared to last year. It all adds up to a historic start to the young season, with each week bringing that air of inevitability that Nelly will be winning come Sunday. No matter the sport, one of the best feelings as a fan is when you know you’re witnessing greatness, when you’re clearly watching an athlete on an all-time heater. That’s what Nelly is right now. A heat check might be coming, but for as long as this run continues she’s can’t-miss television.

This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.