THE CHEVRON CHAMPIONSHIP

April 24, 2026

Nelly Korda

Memorial Park Golf Course

Quick Quotes

Q. All right, joining us after the Nelly Korda after the second round The Chevron Championship. Can you just talk a little bit about how today went for you from your perspective?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, overall, really happy with today. You know, started a little bit slower, 2-under on the front. But it was nice to make a birdie on nine to kind of get it going into the back nine.

Back nine is definitely I would say a little tougher overall than the front nine, so I was hitting it really well and I'm just capitalizing on really good shots.

Q. (No microphone.)

NELLY KORDA: I just feel really good. I mean, I'm just hitting it in the spots that I want to, missing it into the spots that I want to. The communication between Jay and I is really good where if there is a tucked pin and it's kind of stupid, I would rather give myself a longer lag putt and give myself the best opportunity for par.

That's kind of the way we been playing the past two days, not taking kind of stupid risks. We're going to go after the ones we can and where we have to play back and miss in the right spots, that's kind of what I'm doing.

I think overall everything is really flowing.

Q. Nelly, what is an example of that, one of those holes?

NELLY KORDA: 15, the par-3. So you can go -- you can kind of maybe be a little bit more aggressive than I was that day where Mao went, but I just didn't see the risk to it. You have all the green to work with so I lagged it up to a foot. I didn't look at the left side that was falling off.

Sometimes I would. Sometimes if I wanted to be aggressive I would try to hit it ten feet right of that, but I think it's also maturing. I guess that's the word.

Q. How have you learned to be conservatively aggressive and just keep the pedal down?

NELLY KORDA: Because I know that the par-5s are gettable, so I'm just kind of taking the risks where I can and where -- at the end of the day like par is a really good score on 15. Why be aggressive and bring that left side into play and then stress yourself out more with an up and down?

The thing is with this golf course is it's still super wet after the rain that we had on Tuesday. On the first hole today I got such a bad mudball that I played for a 50-yard hook pretty much with my second shot. I did. That's what I got, because the ball was on the right side of the ball and I played for a massive hook there.

I was still getting a bunch of those today. With the chips around the greens, I mean, what I practiced on Monday hitting bump shots into it and kind of letting it trickle over, just plays so different because it is softer. So you are not too confident in what you want to do, so it's just better to give yourself that longer putt and hopefully you make it.

Q. Well played.

NELLY KORDA: Thank you.

Q. You were talking about your putting coach yesterday and how you spent some time in the rain on Tuesday.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah.

Q. How long have you worked with David and what is it that you were concentrating on early week?

NELLY KORDA: Since the end of last year. You know, what we really work on is the simple stuff: Reading the greens; starting it over my start target. He's finally someone that's giving my putting practice a sense of structure. Everything I do is very structured with him.

I feel like there is no gray area. It's black and white. For me there is a calm in whatever we do together that I know it's this and that.

Q. How did you meet up with him? How did that come about?

NELLY KORDA: I actually reached out to Phil Kenyon and originally Phil -- I was left-hand low and the week of Cincinnati Phil looked at my putting and told me I need to go back to conventional.

The week of the event. I was like, okay, I've been left-hand low for a really long time. We'll see how it goes. It worked out and Phil is just so busy that he recommended David. I went up to Sea Island to see David after that stretch of events and have worked with him since with still occasionally Phil looking over stuff.

Q. So before Pelican last year?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, way before. Yeah, yeah. No, no, just before, yeah, just before Pelican, correct.

Q. You talked about some the places where you wanted to miss. Can you talk about some of the shots you hit exactly where you were looking?

NELLY KORDA: 17 was a great shot. I was looking between the two Chevron logos and I hit it exactly there with the wind kind of off the right.

And then nine I hit a really good shot in on that one, the par-3.

Q. What club?

NELLY KORDA: I hit a 6-iron, controlled six.

And then obviously 18, too that was really good shot. The one on 15 I didn't really strike too well, but I knew that right was the miss.

So obviously I wanted to be a little bit more left than what I left myself, but overall, I mean, you have to hit really good shots out here. This is definitely a second-shot golf course with some of the bad misses being really bad, where you're almost saving 20-, 30-footers for par sometimes.

So, yeah, I mean, I can't complain about how I've been hitting my iron shots.

Q. Good to (mic cut out) sponsors by aiming between the --

NELLY KORDA: Always. That's why we have the logos there.

Q. Lastly, 14, was that just a stock 3-wood, par-5?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, so the wind was off my left and I had a little bit of a downhill slope, so I aimed it a little bit more left than I normally would. I kind of just hit a little bit of a fade in and it was just a stock 3-wood.

Q. Can you quantify how you were able to take advantage of the par-5s and how that helped put you in the position you're in?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, length has a big part in that. I mean, I'm giving myself good opportunities but at the end of the day, I mean, you still have to drive it into the fairways. Even if you're long you still have to hit the shots well.

Like I had a 3-wood into one today and I just left myself short a chip shot. Then I had a 5-iron into three. Where is the next par-5? Eight I couldn't get to. That's -- I laid up because I hit into the left rough.

But the ones on the back are a little bit longer. I mean, you have two. They moved up the tee box on 14. Is that the par-5? Yeah, 14. So I was able to go for that one. I had to hit two really good shots.

Then 16 is just -- they moved it back so that was a layup.

At the end of the day, I mean, yeah, taking advantage of your length, but still having to hit those really good shots. That's what I love about major championships. You have to hit really good shots in to give yourself a look at birdie or eagle.

Q. And then what do you like about the way you have played with the lead in your career and then also what's the most challenging about playing with the lead?

NELLY KORDA: I would say what's challenging about playing with the lead is you have a target on your back in a sense, but also I just like enjoy it. I enjoy golf. I think this year I just wanted to have a different mindset change of if I get into trouble, I'll figure it out. Not like you look at something and, excuse my French, and say I'm f***ed.

You know, there are times where I've had that and now I'm like, I'll figure it out. So that's my biggest takeaway from last year and the years before. I don't want to have that mindset. I want to be like, okay, I'll figure it out and not stress myself out too much.

Q. When all parts of your game are working like they are right now, how do you describe that feeling? Rory called it a flow state.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah.

Q. How does it feel to you?

NELLY KORDA: It feels very good, but you know that it's golf so you just try to enjoy it as much as possible because you're going to get bad breaks, hit bad shots. You just enjoy it as much as possible. It was fun to play in front of a great crowd. Seeing all the little girls and boys out there, that's what makes this so great.

So you just kind of try to soak it up as much as possible.

Q. When you play on the course like this that suits your game and suits you eye, how does that give you more freedom even though the stakes are pretty high at a major championship?

NELLY KORDA: I would say I just focus one shot at a time. Always been my mindset from the day I turned pro is I don't try to get too ahead of myself and anything can happen. I've seen it happen. I've done it, too. Just when you think someone is out they're back in.

So with sports you just -- that's what is great about them. You just never know. So focusing one shot at a time and being very present is what I'm going to think about going into the weekend.

Q. You make it look so easy.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, I wish it felt like that.

Q. Talk about your comfort level with your game right now and as well as this golf course.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, I'm comfortable with my game. I'm also very comfortable. I think where I'm the most comfortable is definitely with my mindset of knowing when I mess up I'll figure it out; trying to have that ease.

Sometimes I think you get stuck up in wanting to play well and wanting to be at the top always that you have this sort of like tension of not wanting to make a mistake.

I think there is a power in knowing it's okay to make a mistake and just bounce back.

Q. Final question from me. You've played 36 holes now. Is there a certain number you think it will take to win this championship?

NELLY KORDA: I don't know. I can't tell you that. I wish I had a globe for you, but I don't know.

Q. I don't know how many either opens or Nabiscos you would've played as an amateur --

NELLY KORDA: Two.

Q. Two. Was it more fun or more nerves?

NELLY KORDA: Playing as an amateur?

Q. Yeah, in a big event.

NELLY KORDA: Feels like another lifetime. I was just so excited. I played in my first major, the U.S. Women's Open when I was 14 at Sebonack. That was just like a dream come true. That's where I realized, this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.

I got to play a practice round with Na-yeon Choi, Jess and one also with Jess and Michelle Wie. I was just so starstruck by everyone that I met and that I was competing in the U.S. Women's Open. From then on I just took every experience competing as an amateur as a learning experience.

I mean, rarely are you going to go out and play your best golf but you're learning. You're learning how to manage your week at a major championship. You're learning Monday to Wednesday what you like to do in practice. And then also under pressure it's like is completely different pressure compared to junior golf, maybe college golf.

I never got that experience, but I would say the chances that I had to compete in majors as an amateur I learned so much.