Nelly Korda's emphatic Riviera Maya win ended with a golf ‘humbling'

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Nelly Korda celebrates winning the Chevron Championship

For Korda, that manifested itself in a week that saw her go 60 holes without a bogey. On Sunday, Korda entered the final round with a three-shot lead and then delivered an early haymaker to the field when she went eagle-birdie-birdie at 5, 6 and 7 to stretch her lead to seven. From there, all that was left was a walk to another trophy and another step toward the LPGA Hall of Fame.

But golf has a way of getting the last laugh even when you’re at your best. For Korda, that moment came on her final hole of the week, the par-5 18th.

With music pumping and the Mexico crowd ready to celebrate another Nelly Korda win, Korda lost her tee shot right into the jungle. After a provisional, she hit her third into the fairway bunker and then flew her next shot over the green and into the patrons. Korda’s chip from the sandy area behind the green rolled past the pin and left her a lengthy bogey putt. Of course, Nelly Korda rolled that in and then had to laugh about her adventure to her latest trophy.

“You just never know,” Korda told Karen Stupples after the round. “It’s golf. Like on the last hole here, I was humbled by golf there. I had a pretty smooth day and on the last hole just kind of like humbles you a little bit.”

Korda now has 18 career LPGA wins and 23 of the 27 points needed to qualify for the LPGA Hall of Fame. She’ll take next week off to rest and soak up the latest batch of brilliant golf. Then, she’ll head to Cincinnati for the Kroger Queen City Championship before turning her attention to the U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera Country Club.

But Nelly Korda isn’t looking far into the future. She knows her focus has to be on the next step. Because, as the 18th hole on Sunday showed her, you never know when the next obstacle might arrive.

“I’m just happy to be competing out here healthy, motivated,” Korda said on Sunday. “You know, I’m so happy on the golf course. I’m happy off the golf course. I just think that, yes, I am living my best life for sure. But golf also humbles you, so I know that I need to enjoy these moments.

“There have been so many times that legends have told me to smell the roses, so now I have a week off and I can officially smell the roses for a few days.”

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