Korda hoping to get back to winning at CPKC Women's Open

Last year at this time, Nelly Korda was on top of the golf world. She’d won six times in seven starts and was easily the top-ranked female golfer in the world. She’d log one more win later in the season just to add to the discussion of whether she or Scottie Sheffler had the top season in golf.

A year later, Korda has yet to log a victory, although she does have five top-10 finishes including a tie for second at the U.S. Women’s Open.

So, what’s the difference between last year and this one? Not much if the stats are to be believed. Korda is still playing exceptional golf, but hasn’t been able to raise a trophy.

“I've been putting in a lot of work on every part of my game,” she said on Wednesday as she prepared for the CPKC Women’s Open at Mississauga Golf and Country Club. “Statistically I saw my stats, and seeing that I'm always in the top and some of my stats are maybe better than even last year, it's just crazy. That's just golf.”

Indeed it is. Korda’s scoring average per round this year is 69.87. A year ago, it was 70.04. She is third in Strokes Gained: Total, fourth in Strokes Gained: Tee to Green and first in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee. All three are very close or better than a year ago. Yet the winner’s circle still eludes her.

“By this time last year I had six wins under my belt and my stats are better and I have zero wins under my belt this year,” she said. “I think the most important thing is kind of sticking to your process, always trying to be in contention coming into the weekend, and kind of figuring out your groove, too.”

It would be no surprise if Korda found her groove this week in Mississauga. While she skipped the Canadian event a year ago, she is a combined 38 under par in the five starts she’s made. The 27-year-old praised the tournament and its fans for their support, especially for one player in particular.

“We get to play some amazing golf courses,” said Korda. “Like I said, the fans are unbelievable at this event every year. We get treated really nicely. Those are the little things that always make us come back. And I would say playing in front of the fans, it's always so fun to do that. For me, I'm just always in awe every single year since my rookie year of the support that Brooke gets here, and it's quite amazing.”

Henderson can understand what Korda is going through. She, too, is without a win this season and has managed just a single top 10. For the Canadian, however, the drought is into a second year and has become a frustrating search for a return to form.

The two players also share a dedication to hard work, believing that the only way to get back to winning is to grind it out on the range and the putting green. Henderson stated this week that she believes she is close to a return to form while Korda admits that winning becomes more and more difficult because of just how hard players on the LPGA work.

Players today use every asset they can find to help them improve. It’s not unusual for a golfer to work with swing coaches, putting coaches, mental coaches and physical trainers in the search for a better game. The result is more golfers who are able to win. This year, there have been 21 tournaments on the LPGA Tour and 21 different winners.

“You can see that transition from my rookie year,” Korda stated. “I mean, just the amount of people and dedication a player is putting into their game. At the end of the day, I mean, you have to stay on top of it. You have to continuously push yourself and try to raise the bar because everyone around you is getting better.”

All that hard work also has to be combined with timing and some luck.

“For you to win out here or to win in general, it's so hard,” said Korda. “Everything has to click. Bounces have to go your way. Everything just has to click. Unfortunately, it just hasn't. But never say never. I mean, we still have a bunch of events left in the season. Doesn't matter how you start, it's how you finish, so we'll see.”