LANCASTER, Pa. — Standing on the edge of the ninth green at Lancaster Country Club, moments after making her last putt of the day, Nelly Korda opened her purple scorecard case, looked down and sighed so deeply you could see her chest expanding a few steps away.
Her shoulders rose. Then they sank. The huge, fat 80 from the first round of the U.S. Women’s Open looked back at her, and the sight of her seven-bogey 10 early in the round probably sent chills down her spine again.
The world No. 1 didn’t look like herself on Thursday. This season, she won six tournaments in seven starts on the LPGA Tour, including her first major tournament, the Chevron Championship. She managed to win trophies with her B game. But Korda still faltered in the face of the US Open test. She didn’t have it. To even consider qualifying for the race, an all-time second round is needed in hard settings.
“I am human,” Korda said after signing the contract in which she scored 10 above the norm. “I will have bad days. Up to that point I had been playing really solid golf. Today was just a bad day. That’s all I can say.”
There was nothing more to it. Korda’s game eluded her on a golf course that required precision and control. It started after her third tee shot of the day, on the 161-yard, par-3 12th, which one player described as a hole that gave “nothing to miss.” Korda learned this the demanding way.
After waiting on the tee box for more than 25 minutes, Korda’s group had seen it all. Ingrid Lindblad, the No. 1 amateur in the world, dropped one into the creek near the green. Gaby Lopez caught a gust of wind so sturdy that her ball landed right in front of the same threat. When the greenery finally cleared, Korda decided to apply the information she had gathered during the incredibly long delay. She clubbed, even making sure to put the ball a club’s length behind the markers for good measure, and fired a six-iron into the back bunker. The ball was safe and sound. But not for long.
With the leaf placed in an awkward spot beneath the ball in the sand, Korda’s shot never had a chance of stopping on the slippery, sloping front-to-front surface. Her ball fell into the water. She jumped on the opposite side of the winding stream. One penalty kick. She chipped and her ball rolled back into the water – again. Two penalties. Another drop. Another token in the pipeline. Three penalties. With her third chip, she finally took a long position in the cup.
Two putts. 10 on the scorecard.
World No. 1 golfer Nelly Korda scores 10(!) on 12th at US Women’s Open on par 3 #One of us pic.twitter.com/pknN91pLKT
For the rest of the day, Korda gasped for air. Pars was eager for diminutive victories. Sloppy mistakes still hurt, and her pace of play was noticeably faster.
“I just didn’t want to shoot 80 and I just kept making bogeys,” Korda said, suddenly remembering her recent history at this championship. “My last two rounds at the US Women’s Open were not good. I finished Sunday at Pebble, I think I shot 81, and today I shot 80.
Korda’s total in the top nine rose so high that a standard-bearer walking with her group had difficulty finding the appropriate number cards to reflect her score next to her name, momentarily leaving the spot blank, much to the confusion of many spectators. She finished her first nine 10-for-45.
Though surprised by Korda’s play – and mute at times as she allowed her driver to fall to the ground on off-line tee shots – those same viewers never missed the match. On Thursday morning, crowds turned out to watch the world No. 1 stroll along the narrow fairways at Lancaster – crowds befitting her novel status in the game, but that wasn’t always the case due to location or other external factors. When one local mother and daughter learned about her seven scarecrows, they ran to the golf course, hoping to catch a glimpse of Korda before she potentially missed the weekend.
Korda’s solid gallery was by far the largest of the morning wave, and its members were equally pleased, clapping in admiration of her brilliance and offering her words of encouragement when she somehow saved a nine-all 35 with three birdies.
Nelly Korda, scoring 80 points in the first round, eliminates her from the competition in the US Women’s Open. (John Jones/USA Today Sports)
Thursday’s World No. 1 battle at Lancaster was absolutely believable. This game is volatile. This is crazy. Sometimes it doesn’t make sense. Sometimes it can feel like a breeze. And no one understood the latter better than Korda, who has remained at the top of the rankings for over three months. But he is also aware that in this sport this feeling does not last forever – even for the best player in the world.
On Tuesday, Korda spoke about the phenomenon, almost foreshadowing the carnage that would follow two days later. “I think that’s what makes this game so great. You can be on top of the world for the first two days and then you wake up and wonder: what am I doing now? Why do I hit the side? And you have no idea what’s going on,” Korda said. “It’s entertaining, golf is such a hard game.”
After signing the scorecard, answering exactly three questions about the round in the interview room, and gathering with her team behind the clubhouse, Korda returned to the shooting range. When she reached her spot on the left edge of the impact area, she didn’t rush to grab her bat or stop to look at missed messages on her phone. She sat down on the grass with her legs crossed. Korda remained still for a few moments, alone.
She only needed a second.
(Top photo: Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
