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1. Nelly Korda continued her dominance 2026, winning the US Open Women’s at Riviera for her fourth win of the season, fourth major and, most importantly, first US Women’s Open title. What did you learn about Nelly as she crossed the field during an emotional Sunday in LA?
Josh Berhow, managing editor (@Josh_Berhow): She continues to do what is one of the hardest things to do in any sport, which is to win when everyone expects you to. She has now finished first or second in seven of her eight starts this season and has kept a very entertaining story – the season-long Grand Slam – alive for a few more weeks. It’s really impressive how she kept hanging on on Sunday, kept hitting fairways and didn’t make any mistakes. This puts a ton of pressure on the people playing around you, as they know they have to make a move because it’s unlikely Nelly Korda will mess up. And it’s really hard to make a lot of birdies at the US Open.
Nick Piastowski, Senior Editor (@nickpia): I think this is not “learned”, but perhaps more confirmed – that she is willing to reevaluate. At her press conference Saturday night, Korda spoke of a recent “mindset shift,” saying that “instead of saying, you know, I’m depressed in this position, oh, here we go again, I’m just going to embrace the challenges and not walk off the golf course; I’m just going to figure it out.” Maybe it’s a minor thing, but it’s clear that something clicked, and the fact that she did the work here is impressive.
Josh Schrock, news editor (@Schrock_And_Awe): I don’t know if I learned anything new about Nelly Korda, but watching her navigate what was undoubtedly the scariest round of her life on Sunday showed me that she is exactly what many of us thought and hoped she would be. Her talent was always undeniable, but winning Chevrons and KPMGs is different than winning a US Women’s Open at a course like Riviera. Everything always pointed to this being her destiny, but even she admitted that she had doubts that it would ever come. There’s something rewarding about watching someone achieve their destiny, and now we have to find out where it takes them.
2. Charley Hull hosted a record weekend in RivieraGaby Lopez got hot late on Sunday and In Gee Chun hung on to keep the pressure on the contenders. What played a bigger role in making this one of the most memorable U.S. women’s strides in years: Some of the game’s biggest stars who battled it out, or the famous stage that hosted the event? And how can professional women’s golf replicate that?
Berhow: You can have one and not the other and still produce good golf tournaments, but when the two come together, it makes for must-see TV, which is what every major golf tournament is about. Korda and Hull are arguably the two most famous players in the women’s game and I love how different they are. Charley is edgy and aggressive with that fast pace, while Nelly is so calm and methodical. It’s a great, friendly rivalry if we can see them atop the leaderboards together more often, but what I really enjoyed was seeing how the women played the Riviera versus what we see when the PGA Tour stops there. It’s a great private course, but viewers at home can relate to it and appreciate it much better by watching the women play it.
Piastowski: I think they work hand in hand – great courses lead to great play, and subpar courses, well, you know the rest. This week also “felt” big, didn’t it? Prime time! LA! Rev! There is history there. There are challenges. Hell, places like Riv just look cool. And when it’s given a proper spotlight, more people care – although we have to talk about how the broadcast was only three hours on Sunday. I think this is the next step for the LPGA – provide more regular season events at big name courses. And yes, executives must continue the latest trend to do so. And, yes, somehow, somehow, women should play at Augusta National.
Schrock: You need both, but I think Michelle Wie West did it before the tournament when she talked about the importance of women playing the same courses as men. It adds context and elevates everything. What really works is when we have the same host country for the men’s and women’s US Open in the same year, like when Wie won at Pinehurst in 2014 after Martin Kaymer won. It is incredibly important for women to create their own moments on the iconic holes and cathedrals of golf. The cream also tends to rise to the top in cathedrals, as it did this week and in St. Andrews in 2024. Places matter.
3. What’s your final takeaway from the week of the US Women’s Open?
Berhow: Nelly is really good and will dominate the conversation later this month at the KPMG Women’s PGA – as she tries to make it three in a row – but another story is also starting to emerge: Charley Hull now has five major runner-up finishes without a win. Her last three: T2, T10, T2. It has to break through at some point.
Schrock: We’re entering the summer of Nelly. She will dominate KPMG Week, but will also arrive in Evian with a chance to win the LPGA Grand Slam (four out of five) and will also have a chance to do so at the AIG Women’s Open. If she wins both, she gets what Lydia Ko, and other ball connoisseurs, would call the true career Grand Slam. And she’s about to knock down the door to the Hall of Fame. It’s all Nelly, but the bigger question is: Can the LPGA seize a moment that feels much bigger than Nelly’s run in 2024?
Piastowski: That we are looking at a historic run. And, as Schrock said, above, the LPGA powers that be to capitalize on it.
4. With the Saudi PIF no longer funding LIV Golf beyond this season, the league is looking for investors. A few weeks ago, Bryson DeChambeau said he’s “giving everything I can to make it happen” in terms of potential investments, but admitted his role as a player may be limited. Meanwhile, Jon Rahm said last week he knows little about the business side of things and “his job is to play golf.” Should LIV stars feel obligated to help keep LIV afloat? Do they have too much power?
Berhow: Yeah. I mean, yes, if they have wealthy investors in their Rolodex, sure, reach out to them. But Rahm shouldn’t be scrutinized for his comments — he’s right. His job is to play. I’m sure promises were made to him when he joined the league, and I would assume it wouldn’t help them find future funding in a few years. That’s why they pay the executives big bucks.
Schrock: No. If you really, really want to help keep the league alive because you believe in team golf or want a place to play that isn’t the PGA Tour, then by all means, go for it. But I think Rahm has the right idea. Play golf and see what happens when the dust settles.
Piastowski: Maybe. If DeChambeau and Rahm are telling everyone they’re going to play LIV Golf for the next decade and that they’re working to bring in more stars, that’s a pretty good course. But yes, at the end of the day, the product is golf, so players need to play compelling golf.
5. We had all kinds of good golf over the weekend (in Spain, California, Ohio and elsewhere), but who won the weekend without winning on Sunday?
Berhow: Hmmmm. JT Poston, the winner of the Memorial, can now skip the US Open final qualifier on Monday, so he must be psyched, but that doesn’t answer the question. What about Kiara Romero? A 20-year-old amateur just finished sixth in the biggest women’s golf tournament on the planet. This is very good! (Oh, and honorable mention: Maria José Marin, another amateur, tied for 8th.)
Schrock: Four amateurs – Romero, Marin, Asterisk Talley and Aphrodite Deng – all acquitted themselves well at Riviera. Talley made US Women’s Open history with her 66 Saturday, and Romero took home the honors (Go Ducks!). The future of women’s golf is in great hands.
Piastowski: We all did, didn’t we? What a weekend. Here’s your permission slip on Monday.
