KPMG WOMEN'S PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

June 24, 2026

Nelly Korda

Hazeltine National Golf Club

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: 2021 KPMG Women's PGA Championship Nelly Korda is with us now at the 2026 KPMG Women's PGA Championship. Nelly, welcome back to Hazeltine for your tenth appearance in this championship.

NELLY KORDA: Wow, I'm getting old.

THE MODERATOR: Two major victories this year. How do you feel coming into this one?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, great. Definitely nice to be back. Was here in 2019, so have some good memories. I didn't really remember the golf course until I walked onto it. Definitely nice to be back and going to be a great test.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Nelly.

Q. Talking about the golf course, compared to '19 do you see any changes and what will be the challenges here?

NELLY KORDA: I think the only change that I really remember is we were on a different tee box on 16. So we were a little higher up; we were by the water.

Conditions are great. I know that we got a lot of rain yesterday, which probably helped the golf course a little bit. It was definitely firm and fast. The greens are pretty bare so I think that's a really big defense of this golf course, is actually going to be like distance control and speed just because there is a lot of undulation and it is fast.

This afternoon the winds were pretty high, so that does affect the putts a little bit more. But overall, I mean, the golf course is in great condition.

Q. Everybody is talking about the putting, like you said. Putting.

NELLY KORDA: Oh putting. Yeah, yeah.

Q. When you say putting, your putting right now, the way you're putting right now, you're at the level you want to be?

NELLY KORDA: Hopefully. Yeah, you always hope to be prepared for every golf course. Doesn't just mean putting. It means kind of everything: short game, shots into the greens. I mean, it is premium as it is on every major to hit the fairways, and they're not the widest and this is a very much so a placement golf course on the fairway and on the greens, so hopefully, yeah, every part of my game is in tip-top shape.

Q. How's the grip feel?

NELLY KORDA: Much better. I had a few days to work on it. It still gets a little weak here and there. Still have to remind myself of it. But it feels way better than the Open. Now I'm actually kind of seeing it overdraw, which I prefer than a right shot.

Q. Yeah. Seeing you in New York City, you seem more at ease in those situations. Is that a fair assessment?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, I think I told myself -- obviously in 2024 it was all very new to me, right? So at the end of the day I feel like in everything that you do in life, if you're in the finance world, if you're doing this, the more you put yourself into that position the more comfortable you get.

I think the biggest change that I told myself I'm going to make is I'm just going to be authentic and be who I am. Either that comes across great or it doesn't, but I just want to be genuine.

I was having a lot of fun in New York. It's fun to be on a different stage in front of different people doing something that helps the game of golf and kind of puts us on a broader stage.

Q. Nelly, curious your thoughts on the LPGA Hall of Fame, the points system.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah.

Q. You play your way in, and being so close and your thought process. Is it part of your thinking whenever you trying to control emotions?

NELLY KORDA: I wouldn't say it's a motivating factor, but it would be something that is -- would be an absolute amazing accomplishment to be alongside some of the best that have ever played in this game on the LPGA Tour.

But if it's a motivating factor to me and I'm like thinking about it, not necessarily. I just enjoy playing golf and I enjoy being in the hunt in tournaments. I always say good golf kind of solves everything, and that's my main focus, is just trying to play consistent good golf.

Q. What's your thoughts on the system?

NELLY KORDA: It's one of the hardest Hall of Fames to get into for sure, but I've never really truly looked at it. If I'm being honest, I don't even know how many points you need to get into it. Yeah.

Q. 27.

NELLY KORDA: How many? 27. Okay, perfect, so that tells you.

Q. Do you know how many you have?

NELLY KORDA: I know I'm close. Yes, I do know that. I do not know much more about that. I kind of like to be oblivious about it in that way. I know a lot about the stuff that I want to know about, but this, I don't want to put extra pressure on myself.

If I always think about that then -- I feel like the game of golf is already hard enough. If I add more pressure on myself then it's going to be even harder. So it's not that -- I think it's an amazing accomplishment and it would be one of the best achievements of my career for sure.

But is it a motivating factor, the reason I go out and play every single day and practice? I would so say. I have just want to compete well in tournaments.

Q. We won't tell you where you're at then.

NELLY KORDA: Okay, thank you.

Q. What was the come-down like after the U.S. Women's Open at Riv?

NELLY KORDA: Well, I played the next week with 'Liv in Midland at Dow, and I was very tired. Honestly I couldn't go to sleep and every single morning I woke up I didn't want to wake up. I'm still a little tired from it. I had a nice week at home to kind of refresh and recharge the batteries.

But, yeah, I mean, it was fun to go to New York and kind of celebrate that, the win, and then being at home I kind of went straight into grind time. Got home Monday really late at night; took Tuesday off; started on Wednesday.

Q. You said the word "fun." We saw the video you posted -- well, seen both videos you posted this week of the left-handed shot and the twirl video.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah.

Q. What's been the key to you just having fun this year? Seems like you're so settled and having a blast with all this.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, you know, I saw -- so I was trying to remember the golf course. I went back into my photos and I was like, okay, because I really -- other than a few holes I couldn't remember it. Need to work on my memory. But I found that lefty video and I told myself I need to recreate it. It was fun to do that.

And then I don't know, I also want to show everyone my personality. Like I do laugh and I'm a little bit of a dork. On the golf course I am really serious obviously, but it has been fun especially with the platform that I have to kind of share my personality a little bit more.

Q. How would you define your personality?

NELLY KORDA: A little dorky for sure. The people that know me, definitely dorky.

Q. 2013 you were in the field when Inbee was trying to win three majors in a row.

NELLY KORDA: Uh-huh.

Q. I know you had a lot going on that week, but --

NELLY KORDA: '13, yeah.

Q. But did you process what she was doing at that time, what kind of history she was making? Do you remember much about that?

NELLY KORDA: No, not at all. I was so mesmerized by being there. I remember making the cut on the number. There was a fog delay and I was late/early and I was on the number. I had a really good first day and then the second day I think I shot like between 4- to 6-over, I'm not sure. Could be wrong on that, too.

And there was a fog delay and they had to go back Saturday morning to continue play, and I just made the cut on the number. I remember there was a par-4 that was moved up and I hit a driver to five feet. I made that putt, and that eagle like donated some money to a children's hospital and I got interviewed after and I said in this interview, you just got to risk it to get the biscuit. That was my first like quote.

Now, I look back at it and I'm like, oh, my God. I am a dork. I've always been a dork.

Q. So perfect. But what you're trying to accomplish this week has only been done twice before in the women's game. Have you let that sink in, appreciating the people ahead of you, and do you feel pressure?

NELLY KORDA: No. I'm just out here trying to play golf for sure. I think I have a very in-the-moment mindset this year, which I'm just trying to take towards the end of the year. No matter what happens, I've just told myself if I am lifting the trophy, like that is obviously the main goal at the end the week.

But I'm going to prepare or focus on my preparation and know that I'm 100% confident in it and lean on that.

Q. You had -- was it Monday you were in New York?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, Monday.

Q. What was your schedule like since? When did you get here and what's your practice schedule been like?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, so I went -- I flew out from Midland on Sunday after the tournament; landed in the evening time; then I did that whole day in New York on Monday; got home Monday night.

Then I took Tuesday off because I was just tired. Practiced Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and got here an Sunday. Played early morning on Monday morning because that's kind of what I like to do. I like to go out one of the first ones on Monday.

Yesterday was an 18 hole pro-am, and then I played the front nine today.

Q. And apologies if this has been asked, anything you learned this time around or something you remember differently than previous time you were here?

NELLY KORDA: No. I would say that obviously the greens are very bare and fast, and then with the wind it's going to obviously be a big defense of this golf course. The rough is really thick, too, especially around the greens.

As it is every major, there is a premium hitting the fairway, because if you don't, you can easily run through these greens if you're in the rough, and then it's just a hard time to make a bunch of up and downs.

So a premium on every part of your game, which I love in major championships. Really tests every part of your game even your mental, staying patient. The biggest change I've seen is just a new tee box on 16.

Q. Nelly, keeping with the Hall of Fame theme here, curious, Patty Berg, 15 majors. She's from here, from Minneapolis. She's been gone 20 years now, but curious what -- obviously one of the leading Pioneers of the Tour. Do you know anything about her or what is your knowledge of her in the history of golf?

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, obviously being in the Hall of Fame is an amazing accomplishment. 15 majors, that's something you don't see too much in the game of golf.

But it's funny, because the Legends that were around, I adore them. They're absolutely amazing. As for -- I never got to meet Patty Berg, so didn't really get to know her too well.

Q. Can you speak to the $13 million purse here this year? A lot has been made of that. I think one of her leading money years was $16,000; 1957. Just the evolution.

NELLY KORDA: Yeah, the evolution of sports in general. You see that across every sport. It is quite amazing because when we play -- when we play in these major championships and we have the Champions Dinners like we do at Chevron and this week, we sit amongst each other and sometimes that does get brought up. How much did you win winning this tournament? To see the evolution of where the women's game is to what it is now, or what it was to what it was now, it is quite incredible. You see that across every sport. You see that in tennis, right now in basketball, too. It is amazing to see the investment in women's sports, and we are just really grateful for our partners continuously raising the bar.

THE MODERATOR: Thanks for your time, Nelly.

NELLY KORDA: Thank you.