Nelly Korda is the biggest star on the LPGA Tour, and on Sunday she had another chance to break out of a very crowded group of women with two career majors.
Korda was in contention this week at the U.S. Women’s Open, but a Sunday struggle saw her come up just short. In the end, Korda finished in a tie for second place at 5-under par after signing for a 1-under 71 for her final round.
Maja Stark lifted the trophy at the end of the tournament, winning her first major championship by two strokes with a score of 7-under par.
Korda will rue Saturday’s front nine when she looks back at this missed opportunity at Erin Hills. She went out with a 4-over 40 on the front nine during the third round after starting the round at 5-under par, giving herself a massive hole to dig out of.
The World No. 1 showed a lot of resilience, bouncing back from that dreadful start with a bogey-free 33 on the back nine to give herself a chance on Sunday.
Unfortunately for Korda, she could never kick it into high gear during the final round, making three bogeys and four birdies to finish T-2.
Stark, playing a few groups behind her in the final pairing, was rock-solid all day long and never felt the pressure of closing out her first major while holding onto a sizable lead for most of the back nine.
Still, this is easily Korda’s best finish at the U.S. Open during her career. She came into the week with just two top 10s and three missed cuts in 10 previous starts, so there are plenty of positives to take from the result.
The 26-year old will now start to get ready for the Women’s PGA Championship, which she won back in 2021. After a strong week at a very difficult Erin Hills course, Korda will be playing with plenty of confidence moving forward.
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