Nelly Korda pulls off 'dream' win to become back-to-back major champion
American holds off Charley Hull and Gaby Lopez in dramatic finish at Riviera County Club in Los Angeles
World No 1 Nelly Korda is a back-to-back major winner after adding the US Women’s Open to her Chevron Championship victory earlier this year.
The 27-year-old took her overall major tally to four after coming out on top in the 81st edition of the USGA event at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles.
Signing off with a two-under-par 69 for an eight-under 276 total, she won by a shot from England’s Charley Hull and Mexican Gaby Lopez.
“I feel like I'm in a dream,” admitted Korda, who is back dominating the women’s game, with this being her fourth triumph of the 2026 season. “Gosh, I just can't even explain how much this means to me.
“Just a dream to win here. You know, the golf course holds so much history, and to have my name alongside so many great champions is a dream come true.”
On a dramatic final day, Korda took the outright lead for the first time with a nine-foot birdie on the par-5 17th then holed a three-foot par putt on the 72nd hole to pip both Hull (67) and Lopez (68). The victory was the 19th of Korda's LPGA career.
“This week was definitely a grind,” added Korda. “I don't even feel like I had my B game (laughing). I was just grinding out there. And that's what I guess major championships are all about, right? It doesn't matter if you have your B or C game, you have to be there mentally.”
Korda, who first played in the US Women’s Open as a 14-year-old in 2013, went through a frustrating spell of missing three cuts in five years before coming close to landing the coveted crown when finishing joint-second last year.
“I always felt like I emphasise the Women's Open so much like that's where my dream started of playing on the LPGA,” she admitted. “Every year I never played well. I was always over par or I made a mess of a hole at Lancaster, and I just felt like that dream was almost kind of like slipping away. But it was still keeping me very much so motivated.
“Being in the chase at Erin Hills, I kind of turned the corner of, okay, like can I be in the hunt, I can do this, I can play and I can contend at a U.S. Women's Open. I can put the dream aside and focus on what's right in front of me. I really tried to focus on that today.”
Hull, seeking her first major, closed with a weekend 132 (65-67). The runner-up effort was the fifth of her major career - the second-most by any player without a title.
Scottish-born Karis Davidson, who now represents Australia, finished joint-22nd on two over.
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