Nelly Korda's hard fought 67 gives her a Sunday fighting chance at The ANNIKA

By Jeff Babineau

BELLEAIR, Fla. – Nelly Korda lives for winning, lives for the thrill of getting herself into the hunt late into the back nine on Sunday in big tournaments. On Saturday at The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican, she gave herself a shot at winning the event for a third time, battling back from a tough start to shoot 3-under 67, climbing within a shot of leader Charley Hull.

Korda, 26, started slowly in Saturday’s third round, but found her way back into things as Hull stalled and Korda began to get some putts to fall. Korda rolled in mid-range birdie putts at Nos. 8 and 9 to get back to even for the day after making row early bogeys. On the back nine, her driving improved, and it led to better chances for birdies. Korda birdied 11, grabbed another at the par-5 14th, then added two more at 16 and 17.

Korda, a six-time winner already in 2024 – already she has wrapped up Rolex Player of the Year honors on the LPGA this season – had a chance to tie for the lead at the difficult par-4 18th. Hull had rinsed a 7-iron into the pond fronting the green, but three-putted for bogey. In fairnesss, her 4-footer for par was stroked in near-darkness, as the final group finished up near dinner time after a long day on the Florida Gulf Coast.

“It’s kind of hard when you don’t really see,” Korda said, later adding, “At the end of the day, I’m the one who missed it.”

Hull, 28, is seeking her third victory on the LPGA, and has played nicely all week, but on Saturday, the birdies just weren’t there the way that they had been the first two days. Hull won in her last start across the globe two weeks ago – capturing an LET tournament in Saudi Arabia, shooting 18-under for 54 holes – and has the game (she has ranked 12th in the world) to win more. She does everything fast, and Saturday following the round, she was in something of a rush.

Before Hull left her brief presser, she said she had enjoyed the atmosphere of the day, liked “chitchatting” with Korda about Korda’s appearance in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, and described her play as “pretty solid.” Her last victory on the LPGA came two years ago, in Texas.

On 18, Hull had 7-iron into a back-right pin, and thought she’d hit plenty to get it there. But the shot came up short, caromed off the grassy front bank, and rolled into the pond. She dropped, chipped, and made from 3 feet for bogey, finishing up a final round that had taken 5 hours, 36 minutes. The closing hole, which measures 428 yards, is expected to grow even tougher on Sunday, when the tee gets moved back. Anyone needing a par to win will have to work for it.

Korda lives only 30 or so miles from Pelican, in Bradenton, and said she and was headed home to get some dinner and some needed rest. She came into the week not knowing quite what to expect having last played an LPGA event in September, the week after the Solheim Cup. The Solheim is where she and Hull met up in Sunday singles in Virginia, and Hull won that one handily. Sunday will be Korda’s chance to answer for that.   

Hull started and finished the day at 12-under – she is at 12-under 198, which means Sunday hardly shapes up as a two-horse race. Pelican’s greens are running fast, but good scoring is out there to be had. On Saturday, China’s Weiwei (pronounced Way Way) Zhang shot the best round of her career, an 8-under 62 just one shot off the course record shot by Korea’s Amy Yang in a previous ANNIKA.

Zhang’s round – the low round of the week – moved her to 11-under 199, the lowest 54-hole scoring total of her career.

Zhang’s putter was so hot, and she made so many birdies, that she had a difficult time Saturday evening even recounting them all. Zhang made five birdies in an opening-nine 30 and four more on the back nine against a lone bogey at the par-4 13th. The one that got her going early was the 30-footer she rolled in at the difficult par-4 second hole, and it filled her with confidence for the day.

Zhang is 27 and first joined the LPGA in 2022. She began the week ranked 106th in CME points as the LPGA motors toward next week’s season finale, the CME Group Tour Chamionship. Next week’s event, which carries a first-place prize of $4 million, is open to the top 60 finishes. And with a victory, Zhang actually has a chance to get there.

Jin Hee Im and Wichanee Meechai each shot 68 Saturday are tied for fourth, just three back. Germany’s Olivia Cowan, who has an LET card for next season, came into the week trying to secure privileges the LPGA as well. She needs to finish top 100 for that, and credited a recent pro-am round with American Billy Horschel at Wentworth, in England, for giving her a spark, and the last two rounds at Pelican, she has played bogey-free. Saturday, she shot 65.

Korda, the World No. 1, is beyond those things such as keeping a card or worrying whether she is eligible for the Tour Championship. She shows up everywhere she goes these days as the player to beat. Saturday had been a tough day for all, but fighting for a score and hanging around the lead has given Korda a chance to do what she loves to do on Sunday: chase yet another title. On the LPGA, she already owns 14 of them.  

“I do truly love it,” Korda said after posting 3-under 67, continuing her mastery on a golf course where she won in 2021 and 2022. “I am going to go home, get some food in my stomach, and hopefully give it my all tomorrow.”

Thus far in her career, it has been a proven formula. Hull, Korda and Zhang will play in Sunday’s final grouping, going off at 11:13 a.m., an hour earlier than the leaders did on Saturday. The day’s first group goes off at 7 a.m.