Nelly Korda roared into contention at the Ford Championship on the LPGA Tour as she came back to life to put herself in contention for the weekend.
Korda completed a brilliant second round performance which saw her come in seven under par for the day and -12 overall.
The American dominated in 2024 and after Charley Hull broke records in the opening round, Korda knew she’d have to deliver.
Indeed, Korda did just that but rather than run away with things, her playing partner Jeeno Thitikul also carded a brilliant eight under par to go level with the American.
And speaking after her round, Korda had some nice words for Thitikul.
Nelly Korda praises Jeeno Thitikul after round two of the Ford Championship
Speaking to the media in her press conference post-round, Nelly Korda got onto the conditions of the Arizona course first, admitting she slowed down a bit as the round progressed.
“Yeah, you know, rolled in a birdie on my first hole, so got off to a good start. Slowed a little down on the back nine, but the wind picked up a little. It was starting to play a little bit firmer,” Korda said.
“So in the mornings the greens are definitely a little bit more receptive so you can be bit more aggressive. Then once the round and the heat kind of starts to play a factor, you have to be a little bit more timid.”
However, when answering a specific question on playing alongside Jeeno Thitikiul, Korda was complimentary of her playing partner despite the competition.
“Yeah, it was great. I think Patty actually said on the last hole, she was like, I love this group. It was like a great tempo; we kept our rhythm really nicely. When everyone is playing nicely you kind of feed off each other as well.”
The player tipped to challenge Nelly Korda the most in 2025
Much like Scottie Scheffler on the PGA Tour, there’s a feeling within some at the LPGA that if you beat Nelly Korda, then you’ve a big chance of winning tournaments.
Korda is very much the superstar of the LPGA Tour and while others are big time players and superstars in their own rights, Korda is the big name.
However, interestingly, at the start of the year, it was indeed Jeeno Thitikul who was picked out as Korda’s biggest challenger.
“The first five tournaments this year have been won by all players under the age of 30, which is pretty remarkable. You look at it and Angel Yin and Yealimi Noh are two people who can build on their success.
“I think we got the early favourite for rookie of the year, Rio Takeda, of Japan. She is 21 years old and has already won eight times on the JLPGA last year. She now has two LPGA wins. She was ninth in the US Women’s Open last year. And somebody I think could be a dark horse and not much of a dark horse to contender with Nelly for player of the year honours is Jeeno Thitikul,” Golf Channel analyst Ron Sirak said at the time.
With both Korda and Thitikul already neck and neck, it feels like that’s a prediction that might just come true.
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