Nelly Korda was dominant on Day 1 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, winning two full points in a dominant performance for Team USA.
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GAINESVILLE, Va. – As Nelly Korda lined up her shot on the 5th 14th at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club on Friday afternoon, the outcome of her four-ball game was in little doubt. At 5 over with five holes to play, he and Megan Khang were all but assured of victory. The only question left is how Korda will write his game of the day.
What followed was an exclamation point.
Korda hoisted the hybrid up to the right of the pinch pin and watched as his ball bounced back toward the flagstick. His ball fell from the sky near the hole, took a few hops before landing 12 feet behind the cup. Moments later, she rolled an eagle – her second in three holes – to seal a 6-4 victory over Georgia Hall and Leona Maguire.
“We have the No. 1 in the world,” said American captain Stacy Lewis. “And it helps a lot when he plays well.”
Korda is ranked as the best player in the women's game for the entire year 2024 – and on Day 1 at the Solheim Cup, she played like it.
Over the course of two sessions – foursomes in the morning and foursomes in the afternoon – Korda earned two perfect points for Team USA. She and partner Alisen Corpuz dispatched Charley Hull and Esther Henseleit 3 and 2 in the first match of the day before Korda regained the lead in the afternoon session en route to a 6-2 American lead after Day 1.
According to Team USA statistics, Korda averaged 7.5 strokes on the course during his four-ball afternoon in which he went eight under for 14 holes.
“It is very high [the stats team has] they saw one session they worked on,” said Lewis. “It's amazing this afternoon.”
Korda won 16 of the 30 holes he played on Friday. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, that number is the most holes won in one day at the Solheim Cup since at least 2015. The second oldest at that time was 15, her sister, Jessica, in 2019.
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Korda was particularly strong on the four par-5s during Friday's two sessions as he won each of the eight he played on the day, the last being an eagle on the 14th that sent the crowd in the surrounding amphitheater into a frenzy.
“I think he thrives on crowds,” Korda said.
When he and Khang played their four-ball game, they made it a point to unite the audience and set the tone for the Americans' afternoon. The two best friends did just that – and then some – by dancing, cheering and birding around the course all afternoon.
“Getting the crowd going that afternoon was great, fun and something I'll remember for the rest of my life,” Korda said. “It just seems like an exclamation mark will do with Megan this afternoon.”
Added Khang: “Me and Nelly, our friendship goes back to the Junior Solheim Cup days – that's how we got really close. Since pairing then I know we wanted to play in a real Solheim Cup team as partners. “
Korda and Khang played on that team's Junior Solheim Cup winning side back in 2015, but they are seen as teammates. the original The Solheim Cup was not so fruitful. The two have not played on a winning team in their three Cups together, most recently last summer at Finca Cortesin as Team USA tied with Team Europe.
“We got unfinished business,” Korda said.
If ever there was a year for Team USA to ride its star to victory, this is it. Korda's 2024 season was a historic one as he racked up six wins, including a major, in the first five months of the year. And while he hasn't won a tournament since the start of the summer, his performance on the opening day of the Solheim Cup reminded us that when he's on the fast track, no one can catch him.
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