Nelly Korda – Photo by Max Bechtoldt/Women’s Golf Daily News
If there was any doubt that Nelly Korda’s LPGA Tour Hall of Fame future was locked up, that was likely slashed this past weekend in Houston, with her dominant five-stroke win. This latest title brought her to 22 LPGA Hall of Fame points, five short of the needed 27.
Korda’s winning pace, particularly when she is healthy, is a complete albatross on the modern LPGA Tour. Korda has 17 wins, three major championships, a Player of the Year award and an Olympic Gold Medal in Tokyo. Since 2020, she leads the LPGA Tour in total wins and is tied with Minjee Lee for the most major championships.
Korda doesn’t really show any signs of slowing down, and it is entirely possible she could reach the required number here in 2026. If she could reach that threshold, she would join Lydia Ko as the only two active players in the Hall of Fame. Korda hasn’t finished outside of the top two in any of the five events she has played this season. She is arguably in better form than even her seven-win season from 2024. That could be in the cards once again.
Korda will next head to Mexico, where she remains in the field against a relatively low field strength. She is one of just five major champions in the field, none of the other four are currently ranked in the top 200 in the Rolex Rankings. She won’t just be the heavy favorite this week, but it will probably be the greatest odds of the LPGA Tour season. It isn’t easy coming off a major championship to go play the very next week, but it is safe to think she might have her 18th win this time next week.
We know Korda plans to play a somewhat lighter schedule this season, at least that is what she said at the end of last year. There is some strong potential moving forward though. She has played well at the Meijer LPGA Classic in her career, though it is the week before a major, so her participation there may be in doubt.
The fall will likely be pretty light, coming off the torrid schedule pace in the Summer that sees four majors played in a very condensed time, along with the Solheim Cup that Korda will be part of. She almost definitely will not be playing the Asian swing, and realistically could be out for all of October into mid-November. At that time, she will play in The Annika, at a course that she plays better than any other player on Tour.
All this being said, I would set the over/under for Korda wins the rest of the season to 3.5. I would lean for the under, but we have seen Korda do some incredible things. If she gets to five wins, she will easily win the LPGA Player of the Year Award, which added up, would get her to within one point of making the Hall of Fame. If she plays enough qualifying rounds, she would also win the Vare Trophy for best scoring average in all likelihood, which would be enough for 27.
It is entirely reasonable that Korda will be a Hall of Famer by the time the calendar switches to 2027, but if that doesn’t happen, it should come in the early stages of next season.
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