Nelly Korda’s adventurous start to the 2026 LPGA Tour season continued this weekend. on sunday, world number 2 spurned a comeback rally with a late 3-putt from short range in the final round to miss the 2026 Fortinet Founders Cup by one stroke.
Technically, Korda ended a long winning drought in the first LPGA tournament of the season. But that victory came in controversial fashion (more on this below). A win on Sunday in the 72-hole event would have silenced any critics who doubted her ability to return to world No.1.
But as has often happened to Korda in recent yearssome squirrels play down the stretch doomed her chances.
At the start of Sunday’s final round at the Founders Cup, Korda may not have had a win in mind. Although she settled for second place, she was five shots behind 54-hole leader Hyo Joo Kim.
That dynamic changed in a hurry.
After an early bogey on the second hole, Korda hit the rest of Sharon Heights and Country Club’s golf nine with five birdies. After a sixth birdie on the par-5 10th hole, Korda had completely erased the five-stroke deficit.
With eight holes to play, Korda and Kim tied at 17. Despite bogeying at 16, Kim had regained a one-shot lead by the time the final par reached the par-3 17th hole.
;)
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Going into the age of 17, Korda had done four-way pars as he watched Kim begin to wrestle. When Korda found the 17th green with her tee shot and Kim missed long, it looked like Korda would at least tie the lead, if not take the lead, going into the final hole.
That’s when things went wrong.
Korda’s birdie putt missed and left him with a three-foot putt for par. Meanwhile, Kim hit a heroic chip from deep in the rough to set up a par putt of her own with a similar length.
Kim batted first and parried it for a tournament save. Korda then stepped up and hit it, only to see her ball slide off the underside without touching the cup. The miss drew an audible gasp from an analyst on the Golf Channel broadcast.
The disastrous short putt gave Korda a 3-shot bogey, dropping her two shots going to 18.
Kim ended up bogeying the closing par-5, but Korda could only manage one par, which gave Kim a one-shot victory and Korda another near-miss.
After the round, Korda belied her “stupid mistake” on the 17th and called the 3-putt a “shot,” but also tried to take some positives from the experience.
“Obviously, something like 17 stitches, so it is what it is. I felt good all day. I just made a stupid mistake, and it was 17 (and then) 18,” Korda said Sunday night. “I wish I could have gotten that car on the road and given myself a better chance to push a little more.”
She continued: “This is just golf. These are sports. Sometimes it’s on your side and sometimes it’s not.”
Nelly Korda’s controversial victory in rain-shortened LPGA event
Korda’s unfortunate loss comes after a win in her first start of the season. But the situation surrounding that victory, the 16th LPGA victory of her career, was anything but normal.
At the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions in late January, the LPGA’s first tournament of the season, freezing temperatures hampered play.
When Sunday rolled around, several players had not yet completed their third rounds. After initially planning to play the final round with a late start to let the course thaw, LPGA officials controversially decided to cancel the final round and shorten the event to 54 holes.
;)
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A 64 Saturday had left Korda with a three-stroke lead heading into Sunday, so when the tournament was called, Korda was officially awarded the win. It was her first LPGA win since 2024.
But the decision came amid controversy. Korda was preparing on the range when the final round was canceled and called the course “playable” at the time.
LPGA legend Annika Sorenstam said, “I don’t know why they’re not playing,” while Korda’s competitor Lydia Ko, who was tied for fourth, said, “I’m sorry we’re not playing tomorrow.”
In one memo to LPGA members the next day received from GOLFLPGA Commissioner Craig Kessler apologized for the controversial ending to the Tournament of Champions, writing in part: “While the decision was difficult and contradicted previous statements we shared, I made a judgment call. With the benefit of the doubt, there were clearly other ways we should have handled the situation.”
