BELLEAIR, Fla. — Nelly Korda returned to competition for the first time in almost two months and did not miss a beat. He reeled off five straight birdies on the back nine to get back on track on Sunday, closing with a 3-under 67 to win over Annika for her seventh LPGA Tour title this year.
Korda had a rough start and said he didn’t have many happy thoughts as he turned 2 for the day, two shots behind Charley Hull. Starting with a birdie on No. 11, he made five in a row en route to a three-shot victory.
The only big surprise was seeing his younger brother, Sebastian, who was busy with his tennis career, keeping him from seeing his sister win until Sunday at Pelican Golf Club.
Korda, who earlier this year tied the LPGA record with five consecutive victories, became the first player to win seven times in a season since Yani Tseng in 2011. No other American had won seven times in a season since Beth Daniel in 1990.
Korda has now won four times this year when following the final round.
Hull, who would win wire-to-wire, couldn’t keep up with Korda’s birdie blitz. Coming off his first international win two weeks ago in Saudi Arabia, Hull closed with a 1-over 71 and tied for second with LPGA rookie Jin Hee Im (68) and Weiwei Zhang (70).
Zhang moved up 24 places to No. 82 in the race to the CME Globe to keep his card for next year. The top 60 will advance to next week’s CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, where the winner will receive $4 million. Carlota Ciganda moved up three places to secure last place.
Korda last played on September 22 in Ohio. He was planning to play twice during the Asian swing until a minor neck injury kept him home. He was eager to get back in time to play the Pelicans, where he had won two of the last three years.
“After taking time off due to injury, it feels good to be back here,” Korda said. “There’s nothing like being in the hunt, the adrenaline feeling on the back nine, and being in contention. I love it so much.”
The win puts him over $4 million on the year, and he could almost match that with a win next week at Tiburon Golf Club. Rank doesn’t matter at the end of the season — all 60 players have an equal shot at one of the biggest prizes in women’s sports.
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