PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico — Nelly Korda capped a strong finish with a big drive and an 8-inch to 18-inch eagle on the final hole Saturday, giving her another 5-under 67 to move three shots clear of the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba.
At stake for the No. 1 player in women’s golf is a chance to win back-to-back at the LPGA and become the first player since Annika Sorenstam in 2001 to start a season with six straight tournaments without finishing worse than the runner-up.
He has played in the final round in all six of his tournaments this year.
Equally impressive is that Korda is coming off the wagon in a major tournament, playing string at The Chevron Championship at Memorial Park, a major course for the big hitters. El Camaleon is tough with issues on both sides, and navigating that is just fine.
“Even though I’m coming off a big win, I took Monday to rest. From then on, I come to work. I’m not on vacation,” said Korda with a smile. “It’s a tough golf course. The most important thing for me is to be mentally relaxed. I’d be lying if I said my energy level was 100%.
Korda was 14-under 202.
His finish included a right-to-left 9-iron to 2 feet on the par-3 15th hole, where the green is exposed to the Caribbean Sea breeze. It was his second straight bogey-free round — his only bogey of the tournament was on the 11th.
Three shots behind was Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, whose only birdie gave him a 66 and a place in the final group.
“I’ve never played with him before,” Yubol said. “Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko, they both like my idol because they play very well. And if I have to play with him tomorrow it’s like my dream come true. So my life is complete right now.”
Minami Katsu had a 69 and was four shots behind.
Korda has not been to Mayakoba since his first year in 2017. He has experience on his side in one big area, however. Going for his third win of the year — and 18th of his LPGA career — the four players behind him have yet to win an LPGA.
Korda had only one moment of stress on the difficult par-4 ninth, when he drove into the bunker and fell flat on the green. He hit the wedge to 8 feet behind the hole and did so to stay bogey free.
But he smoked a 3-wood on the green on the par-5 13th for a two-putt birdie, attacked the front pin on the 15th and finished best with an 8-iron on the 18th.
“We’re just trying to avoid mistakes as much as possible,” he said. “You’re going to hit a bad shot here and there and you’re going to find yourself in trouble, but trying to stay away from the holes that lead to trouble is the goal.”
Yubol had a low round of the day and gets to play with one of his golf idols on Sunday, his birthday. You are turning 24 years old.
“He’s young, but at the end of the day I’m just focusing on myself, trying to get the job done and see how the day goes,” Korda said.
