With an overhead camera fixated on her group in the scoring area, the television eyes were focused on Nelly Korda on Friday evening. She barely stared into space as a number of thoughts – or perhaps none at all – passed through her mind.
For the second time in less than a month, Korda failed to break 80 in an LPGA major. She went from leading through the 18 holes to her third consecutive missed cut at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
The world No. 1 had eight bogeys, one double bogey and a lone birdie at the last spot as he shot 9-over 81 at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish, Washington. It marked her highest score as a professional.
Korda completed 36 holes at 6 over par, one outside the cut line.
After winning six of her first eight starts this season – including five in a row – Korda has now failed to advance to the weekend three times in a row (a first in her career). It started with an opening 80 at the US Women’s Open, which led to a missed cut. It continued, after a week off, with rounds of 76-67 at the Meijer LPGA Classic. And it culminated (at least for now), with opposing performances over two days in the Pacific Northwest.
“No words,” said an emotional Korda shortly after her round. “I’m just going to go home and try to reset.”
A few weeks ago at Lancaster Country Club, Korda shot a 10 on her third hole of the national championship and never recovered. There was no huge blunder this time; rather a steady stream of errors.
She started this major by making nearly 110 feet of putts in shooting 69, putting her one behind the overnight lead. However, the putter didn’t cooperate in Round 2. In fact, her entire game didn’t last.
The trouble started immediately when Korda hit her tee shot on the first into a fairway bunker and played her second shot to a short-sided position. A bad throw led to two putts and a bogey.
She then missed a 10-footer for par on the second, missed a 12-footer for par after going long on the par-3 third, and then missed another 10-footer for par on the fourth.
Four holes, four bogeys.
She appeared to have righted the ship on the par-3 fifth and hit her tee shot to 5 feet, but again she missed the putt.
Korda then found the left rough off the tee on the par-5 sixth and struggled to escape. Her second shot, with a fairway wood, went just 25 yards and her third shot went 103 yards. After finally finding the putting surface, she missed the par save from 12 feet.
Five left in the day, two left for the championship and eight shots off the lead, Korda coaxed par putts from inside 7 feet at Nos. 7 and 8. But after being long off the green on the par-3 ninth had gone, her par at a distance of fifteen yards clung to the lip and did not fall.
Her tap-in for her sixth bogey of the round was her 18th putt on the inner half.
Things didn’t improve on the back nine.
Korda made bogey on the par-5 11the and par-4 14e holes to place hair on the projected cutting line. After missing the fairway, turn left at the par-4 15eHer hybrid approach shot over the green and finished just beyond the out-of-bounds posts.
She had to accept a stroke-and-distance penalty and after her fourth stroke she wiped away tears as she walked to the green. The subsequent double bogey dropped her outside the top 90.
Korda managed a birdie on the par-5 18e but the cutting line did not waver.
“It all went the way I wanted at the beginning of the year,” Korda said, “and it’s just coming back now.”
