Nelly Korda opened the 2026 Chevron Championship with a bogey-free seven-under-par 65 at Houston’s Memorial Park Golf Course, taking a two-shot lead after the first round of the season’s first women’s major.
The performance marked her best start to a major in four years and her lowest opening round score in a major since the second round of the 2024 AIG Women’s Open. Korda navigated early pressure on the 10th and 11th holes, saving par with two short putts before finding her rhythm with birdies on holes 12 and 16.
She then accelerated with a wedge shot inside five feet on the par-5 first hole, followed by a 5-iron to tap-in range on the par-3 second and a towering 6-iron to five feet on the par-3 seventh. A final birdie on the par-5 eighth sealed the 65, leaving her two strokes clear of Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit and South Korea’s Somi Lee, who both posted 67s.
England’s Mimi Rhodes, making her tournament debut, carded a 69 with five birdies and two bogeys to sit three under par and within a 10-way tie for eighth. Rhodes said she benefited from arriving early on Sunday to walk the course and build confidence, drawing on lessons from her six-under tie for 10th at the HSBC Women’s World Championship.
Charley Hull, ranked fourth in the world, opened with a level-par 72 and sits five shots off the pace in a tie for 26th. World number one Jeeno Thitikul struggled with a 74, leaving her nine shots behind Korda at two over par.
For more on this story, see Maja Stark’s Steady Start at The Chevron Championship Signals Mental Progress – LPGA News.
Analysts note Korda’s ability to reset after early stress highlights her mental resilience, a trait she credited to a stable support system ahead of the CME Group Tour Championship last year. She described feeling “freed up” after navigating the opening holes without incident, a shift from the anxiety that characterized her winless start to the 2025 season.
The LPGA continues to rely on Korda as its biggest star to attract new audiences, with her performance this week seen as critical to the tour’s broader outreach goals. Her bogey-free start contrasts with the inconsistency that plagued her 2025 major campaign, when she contended seriously in only one of the five majors.
How does Korda’s opening round compare to her past major performances?
It is her second-lowest opening round in a major and her first bogey-free round in a major since the second round of the 2024 AIG Women’s Open.
What did Mimi Rhodes say about her preparation for the tournament?
She said arriving early on Sunday helped her see the course more and feel comfortable, adding she took lessons from her HSBC Women’s World Championship performance where she finished six-under in a tie for 10th.
Why is Korda’s start significant for the LPGA?
As the tour’s biggest star, her strong performance is seen as vital to attracting new audiences and delivering the electricity the LPGA needs on its biggest weeks.
