Nelly Korda is not just one of the biggest names in women’s golf, she is quickly becoming one of the game’s major stars. The American has registered multiple victories on the LPGA Tour, including two Major championships at the 2021 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the 2024 Chevron Championship, while she also won the Gold Medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
But, how well do you actually know Korda? Below are 25 things you might not have been aware of…
Nelly Korda facts:
1. Nelly Korda was born on July 28, 1998 in Bradenton, Florida.
2. Korda is from a renowned sporting family. Her father, Petr, won the 1998 Australian Open (tennis), and her mother, Regina, is also an ex-professional tennis player. Both represented Czechoslovakia
3. The American has two siblings. Her sister, Jessica, is also a multiple-time LPGA Tour winner, and her brother, Sebastian, is a professional tennis player who is currently ranked in the top 50 in the world.
4. Korda started playing golf seriously when she was six years old. She would frequently have lessons three to four times a week.
5. While growing up, Korda would often spend her summers in the Czech Republic with her family.
6. The American’s hobbies include tennis and ice hockey. Her favorite team is the LA Kings.
7. Korda enjoyed an extremely successful amateur career and was part of the winning 2015 Junior Solheim Cup team.
8. In 2013, a week before her 15th birthday, Korda made the cut at the Women’s US Open.
9. Korda is currently dating Canadian ice hockey player, Andreas Athanasiou, and has been since late 2019.
10. After turning professional in 2016, Korda won her first event at the Sioux Falls Challenge. That season she finished ninth on the money list and earned her LPGA Tour card for 2017.
11. Both of the Korda sisters are Whoop ambassadors and have been since 2018.
12. In 2021, she won her first Major at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club. She beat Lizette Salas by three and equalled the championship record score of 19-under-par.
13. Later in 2021 she won the gold medal at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics, beating silver medallist Mone Inami and bronze medallist Lydia Ko by one stroke.
14. She has a host of sponsors, including Nike, TaylorMade, Goldman Sachs, Whoop and TUMI.
15. Tiger Woods was her hero growing up and in 2021, at the PNC Championship, she had to pluck up the courage to ask for a photo with the 15-time Major champion.
16. Korda has around 1m followers on Instagram – the app on her phone that she says she uses the most.
17. She’s a big fan of country music.
18. Her favorite television programme is Criminal Minds.
19. Tennis legends Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are among her all-time favorite sports stars.
20. If she wasn’t a professional golfer, she thinks she may have trained to be a lawyer.
20. If she wasn’t a professional golfer, she thinks she may have trained to be a lawyer.
21. She reached World No.1 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings in 2021 and has returned to the top spot at least once in every year since.
22. In 2024, Korda made history by becoming the third woman in LPGA Tour history to claim five consecutive victories – the fifth of which was her second Major at the Chevron Championship.
Nelly Korda smiles while lifting the 2024 Chevron Championship trophy
23. She has earnings of around $12m on the LPGA Tour.
24. She became the first LPGA golfer and first golfer since Tiger Woods in 2013 to attend the MET Gala in 2024.
25. She has made three Solheim Cup appearances for Team USA but has yet to be on the winning side.
