Nelly Korda “has the ability to be dominant” in women’s golf after clinching a third major title, says Catriona Matthew.
Korda returned to world No 1 as she produced a dominant wire-to-wire win at the Chevron Championship, equalling the tournament record-low 54-hole score en route to a five-shot victory.
It was the sort of dominant display that was routine during Tiger Woods’ time at the top of the men’s game, and Matthew, Women’s British Open winner in 2009, believes the women’s game would benefit from a similar figurehead.
“For me, in any sport, to have one dominant player grabs the interest of the general public,” Matthew told Sky Sports News. “We’ve seen in the men’s game, we’ve had Tiger Woods, and Scottie Scheffler in the last few years.
Tiger Woods won the last of his 15 major titles at the 2019 Masters
“If Scottie is playing, I tune in and watch to see if he’s going to do what he did last year.
“In the women’s game, obviously, we’ve had [10-time major winner] Annika Sorenstam, [seven-time] Karrie Webb and [five-time] Se-ri Pak. But laterally, there’s only been a few of them.”
With Korda now getting to three titles, adding a second Chevron success to her 2024 win and 2021 US Women’s Open, could she be the next to dominate in the women’s game?
Nelly Korda won her third major title at the Chevron Championship
“Golf-wise, absolutely,” Matthew said. “I mean her golf game: she’s tall, hits it a long way and her swing is just about perfect.
“If she can just keep the putter going, then she has the ability to be dominant.
“She’s got the poise and seems to have the mental toughness to do it.”
‘If Korda plays her best, none of them can beat her’
Dame Laura Davies was also full of praise for Korda when speaking on the Sky Sports Golf Podcast, the four-time major winner saying the 27-year-old American has the “complete game”.
“Cruise control,” Davies said of Korda’s emphatic victory at the Chevron.
“I’m not going to compare her to Tiger, because there is no comparison, but when a player like that hits the front as she did, you just can’t see her backing up.
“And she didn’t. She got better and better and won by a country mile.
“Nelly, for me, has the complete game when she’s on. I’ve always said this: if she plays her best, none of them can beat her.”
Davies added: “Nelly’s probably got, if she wants, another five to 10 years at the very top. I’m not sure anyone will ever reach Annika’s number of wins and majors, but she can certainly pull up alongside Carrie Webb, Se-ri Pak.
“She’s definitely got it all there. At the moment, her game is at a slightly different level. She seems to have another gear to go to.”
Get the best prices and book a round at one of 1,700 courses across the UK & Ireland
Leave a Reply