Though Scottie Scheffler actively sits atop the men’s Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), the 27-year-old conceded that there’s another golfer who’s currently outperforming him.
That player is Nelly Korda, the women’s world No. 1 whose recent streak of dominance is rivalled by few others in golf. The 25-year-old tied an LPGA record by winning her fifth consecutive start - the most recent of which came over the weekend at The Chevron Championship.
Scheffler has achieved similar success as of late. The American golfer has won four of his last five PGA Tour starts, including a first-place finish at The Masters earlier this month, earning him a second green jacket in three years.
Despite being the first player since Tiger Woods in 2007-2008 to amass five straight top-two PGA Tour finishes, Scheffler insisted his stretch of strong performances pales in comparison to what Korda is accomplishing.
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“One of the people here asked me, like, ‘Is this turning into a competition between you and Nelly?’ and I was like, I don't know, man, I think if it's a competition, she's got me pretty beat right now,” he said on Monday, per pgatour.com.
“Five wins in a row … it's pretty special stuff. To win four times in a row and then show up at a major championship and win is extremely impressive. So I'm extremely happy for her.”
With Sunday’s win at the first major championship of the 2024 LPGA season, Korda joined Annika Sorenstam and Nancy Lopez as the only three female players to win five consecutive starts. Prior to placing first at the LPGA Drive On Championship, Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship, Ford Championship, T-Mobile Match Play and The Chevron Championship, however, Korda began the season with a meagre showing at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions.
“She had that T16 at the beginning of the year, which was just terrible,” Scheffler joked. “I can't believe she did that.”
Korda’s impressive streak additionally places her among good company on the PGA Tour. Woods, Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan are the only three players to win in 5+ straight starts, with Woods winning five straight in 2007-2008, six straight in 1999-2000 and seven straight in 2006-07. Hogan emerged victorious in six consecutive starts in 1948, while Nelson won 11 straight in 1945.
Nelly Korda won The Chevron Championship on Sunday (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)Several golfers on the Tour have been quick to give Korda her due praise. Wyndham Clark described her recent success as “amazing,” while J.T. Poston said it was “hard to fathom.”
While playing alongside Korda at the mixed-team Grant Thornton Invitational last year, Tony Finau recognised his teammate’s greatness.
"In a sense, to me, I look up to Nelly," he said at the time. "Even though she’s younger than me, she’s an incredible golfer. She’s been the No. 1 player in the world in the women’s game, and she’s someone that I think quite frankly a lot of us can still even learn from, even on the men’s side."
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