Nelly Korda, the current leader of the AIG Women’s Open at the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland, is focusing on staying present and taking it one shot at a time. Despite her 3-shot lead, she is not letting the results define her and is trusting her process. Legacy-defining moments don’t happen suddenly; they percolate over time. Korda’s lead may not be surprising given her status as the best-golfer-on-the-planet, but she is impressively playing with just one bogey and using a putter she picked up only on Wednesday.
This summer has been a rollercoaster for Korda, who won the Mizuho Americas Open three months ago but then struggled in the following events, including failing to break 80 in two different majors. After taking a vacation and a week in Prague with her family, she showed up at St. Andrews no longer as the betting favorite. The challenging conditions at St. Andrews, with winds regularly exceeding 35 mph, make the tournament comparable to grand slam tennis championships played on different surfaces. To be an all-time great in golf, winning on a links course like St. Andrews is essential.
Korda, who comes from a tennis background with both her parents being professional tennis players, understands the adaptability required to succeed in different conditions, similar to tennis players playing on different surfaces. Winning at St. Andrews would be a significant accomplishment for Korda, as it would validate her ability to adapt to different types of grasses and conditions. She enjoys links golf and finds it fun to hit low drivers and massive fades, showcasing her adaptability on the course.
Korda’s approach to links golf mirrors that of other golfing greats who have struggled before achieving success, such as Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson. McIlroy missed three straight U.S. Open cuts before finding success, while Mickelson took two decades to master links golf before winning at Muirfield in 2013. The challenge of adapting to different conditions and surfaces is a common theme among top athletes across various sports, highlighting the importance of perseverance and adaptation in achieving success.
As Korda continues to lead the AIG Women’s Open at St. Andrews, her ability to stay present, trust her process, and adapt to challenging conditions will be crucial in maintaining her lead and potentially securing a victory. The comparison to grand slam tennis championships adds another layer of complexity to her pursuit of success, emphasizing the importance of winning on different surfaces in establishing greatness in a sport. With her background in tennis and her family’s support, Korda is well-equipped to navigate the challenges of links golf and emerge as a champion at St. Andrews.
