World No. 1 Nelly Korda Misses Cut at U.S. Women's Open

Nelly Korda tees off on the first hole at January's LPGA Drive On Championship at the Bradenton Country Club.
Nelly Korda tees off on the first hole at January's LPGA Drive On Championship at the Bradenton Country Club. / Mike Lang / Sarasota Herald-Tribune /

The demise of World No. 1 Nelly Korda at the U.S. Women's Open was the second-most surprising thing to happen in the sport this year (just slightly behind Scottie Scheffler's arrest outside of Valhalla Country Club).

On her third hole of the tournament at Lancaster Country Club on Thursday, Korda carded a seven-over 10 on the par 3 12th en route to shooting a 10-over 80.

Korda, who tied an LPGA record with five consecutive wins earlier this season and has won six times on tour in 2024, won't be playing the weekend after carding a 70 on Friday to miss the cut by two shots. Korda's absence from contention in the U.S. Open is unexpected to say the least, with her missed cut even more shocking considering her dominant play all year long. Korda captured the first major of the year in April—the Chevron Championship—by two shots and entered the week at the U.S. Women's Open as the odds-on favorite to capture her seventh win of the season and second major of 2024.

Instead, Korda will be heading home, looking to regroup after one disastrous hole buried any hopes of contention this weekend.

Near the end of Friday's second round, American Andrea Lee and Thailand's Wichanee Meechai lead the U.S. Women's Open by two shots.


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Mike McDaniel
MIKE MCDANIEL

Mike McDaniel is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where he has worked since January 2022. His work has been featured at InsideTheACC.com, SB Nation, FanSided and more. McDaniel hosts the Hokie Hangover Podcast, covering Virginia Tech athletics, as well as Basketball Conference: The ACC Football Podcast. Outside of work, he is a husband and father, and an avid golfer.