Reigning World No. 1 Nelly Korda Stumbles in Opening Round of 2023 U.S. Women’s Open

Lancaster, PA – May 30, 2023 – On a challenging opening day at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open, reigning world No. 1 Nelly Korda struggled mightily, carding a disappointing 10-over-par 80 at Lancaster Country Club.

Korda, who has won six times in her last seven LPGA starts including the Chevron Championship, appeared out of sorts from the start, making a disastrous septuple-bogey 10 on the par-3 12th hole after her tee shot found the water hazard not once, but three times.

“I’m human,” Korda admitted afterward. “I’m going to have bad days. I played some really solid golf up to this point. Today was just a bad day. That’s all I can say.”

The 24-year-old American made the turn in 10-over 45, leaving her in danger of missing the cut at this major championship. Though she did manage to birdie three holes on the back nine, Korda’s opening-round 80 has put her in a deep hole heading into Friday’s second round.

“My last two rounds in the U.S. Women’s Open have not been good,” Korda said, referencing her closing 81 at last year’s championship at Pebble Beach. “I just didn’t want to shoot 80, and I just kept making bogeys.”

Despite the struggles, Korda’s sizeable gallery remained supportive throughout her round, applauding her birdies and offering words of encouragement. The world No. 1 admitted the fickle nature of golf, acknowledging that her recent run of dominance won’t last forever.

“It’s funny, golf is such a hard game,” Korda said earlier this week. “You can be on top of the world the first two days, and then you wake up and you’re like, what am I doing right now?”

Now, Korda will need an all-time second round to have any chance of making the cut and contending for her first U.S. Women’s Open title.

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