After a disappointing first round in the 2026 U.S. Women’s Open, held at The Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, world No. 1 Nelly Korda had the round of the day Friday to get into contention.
Korda came into the day at +2 after a frustrating first round that saw the best player in the world make four bogeys and just two birdies.
The front nine Friday already showed that Korda was in much better form, as she made three birdies and kept a clean scorecard. She added another quickly on the back with a birdie on the par 5 11th. Her lone dropped shot of the day came on the 12th, where she missed a fairly short putt for par.
Arguably the turning point of the round was on the 13th, where a wayward tee shot got lucky by hitting a tree and bouncing into the fairway. Coming off a bogey, Korda was left with roughly 240 into the hole after a drive of only 171 yards. She hit a great fairway wood just to the side of the green though and had a text book up and down to save par.
Korda got one more birdie coming in, on the par 5 17th, where she got a bit lucky her second shot avoided a bunker and landed ideally just off the green. She made the easy birdie putt before a solid par on the tough 18.
Korda hit just 11 greens on the day, but really showed off why nobody in the world is better around the greens when she is in form. She was fifth in strokes gained around the green and converted well with the putter, ranking No. 11 in strokes gained putting.
While her ball striking wasn’t in her typical elite form Friday, it was improved from Thursday, which Korda credited to a range session with her sister Jessica after the first round, where she made some adjustments to her grip.
Korda put herself in ideal position to attack on Saturday, sitting two strokes back of the lead. This feels reminiscent of her start at Erin Hills, where she started 72-67. She ended up finishing runner-up in that tournament.
With a win, Korda would become the first women’s player to get four majors in the 2020’s. She would also be the first player to win her fourth major since Inbee Park in 2013. It would be her second of the season and fourth win overall, bringing her total to 19 on the LPGA Tour. Still, Korda is just taking it one day at a time.
“I just tried to have a really easygoing attitude today. I was definitely going to leave it all out there and grind as much as I could, but I was not going to emphasize on my mistakes too much and just kind of play relaxed golf,” said Korda. “That’s kind of when I play my best golf.”
About the Author
