Nelly Korda’s emphatic victory in the Riviera Maya ended with a golf “humble”.

A week ago, Nelly Korda raised its arms in triumph at the Chevron Championshipthe first major of the year. She lifted them up as the Houston sun set behind her and then took them down with a cut, having just survived a tough mental weekend at Memorial Park.

Seven days later, Korda rolled in a tee shot on the 18th hole at El Camaleón Golf Course in Mayakoba and stretched her arms briefly before dropping them and punching the air to celebrate a four-stroke victory in Riviera Maya Openher third of the season and second in a row.

It was another game for Korda, who now has six straight top-two finishes to start the season. This one felt different, but it came with more history about the best player on the planet.

With the win, she became the youngest American since Nancy Lopez in 1980 to reach 18 career wins. She became the first player to win at the start after winning a major since Celine Boutier won the 2023 Scottish Open after winning Evian. Korda is the first American to accomplish the feat since Meg Mallon in 2024. She has more wins this season (3) than players who have finished ahead of her this season (Hyo Joo Kim twice, Lauren Coughlin).

Korda was not supposed to play in Mexico. After racing at Chevron to win her third major title, she could have cited physical fatigue and pulled away to savor her latest victory. But instead, the newly minted World No. 1 chose to do it in Mexico and continue her dominant run. Why did she do it? Because Nelly Korda is chasing something immeasurable.

“Whatever I set my mind to,” Korda said before the tournament about her next goal. “I mean, I just love to race and I love to be out here racing. I’m always trying to be better and play every major, every tournament. Just because what I’ve accomplished, what’s funny about the sport is that it’s in the past. What you want to do is look to the future and look to improve and see that it’s relevant to the bigger events. I’m constantly putting myself in that position.”

For Korda, that came in a week that saw him go 60 holes without a bogey. On Sunday, Korda entered the final round with a three-shot lead and then sent the field an early bogey when she bogeyed 5, 6 and 7 to extend her lead to seven. From there, all that was left was a walk to another trophy and another step toward the LPGA Hall of Fame.

But golf has a way of getting the last laugh even when you’re at your best. For Korda, that moment came on her final hole of the week, the par-5 18th.

With the music booming and the Mexico crowd ready to celebrate another Nelly Korda win, Korda lost her shot straight into the jungle. After a tee, she hit her third into the fairway bunker and then flew her next shot over the green and toward the patrons. Korda’s chip from the sand area behind the green missed the pin and left her a long bogey shot. Of course, Nelly Korda put it in and then had to laugh about her adventure in her latest trophy.

“You never know,” Korda told Karen Stupples after the round. “It’s golf. Like on the last hole here, I was humbled by the golf there. I had a pretty quiet day and on the last hole just kind of humbled you.”

Korda now has 18 career LPGA wins and 23 of the 27 points needed to qualify for the LPGA Hall of Fame. She will take next week off to rest and enjoy the last set of great golf. She will then head to Cincinnati for the Kroger Queen City Championship before turning her attention to the US Women’s Open at Riviera Country Club.

But Nelly Korda is not looking far into the future. She knows her focus must be on the next step. Because, as the 18th hole showed on Sunday, you never know when the next obstacle might arrive.

“I’m happy to be competing here healthy, motivated,” Korda said on Sunday. “You know, I’m very happy on the golf course. I’m happy off the golf course. I just think, yeah, I’m definitely living my best life. But golf also humbles you, so I know I have to enjoy these moments.

“There have been so many times that legends have told me to smell the roses, so now I have a week off and I can officially smell the roses for a few days.”