By: Max Bechtoldt
Through two weeks of the new LPGA season, there are a couple familiar names at the top of the CME Standings, Lydia Ko and Nelly Korda.
While the two battled it out on Sunday afternoon, needing two extra holes to decide it, they would probably both agree that it feels good to be back on top. Each has a win already. A far cry from 2023 where neither of the two LPGA megastars won a tournament.
Between 2021 and 2022, Korda and Ko finished with a combined nine LPGA Tour victories, Korda with five and Ko with four. Korda also added a major and an Olympic gold medal while Ko won the 2022 CME finals and LPGA Tour Player of the Year. There is a reason neither winning in the 2023 season was such a shocker.
Now, Korda was dealing with injuries throughout much of 2022 and parts of 2023, while Ko never seemed to find a rhythm last year. Fast forward to 2024 and both look focused, healthy and back to the form we are used to seeing them in. I saw the potential in these two when I declared them strong candidates to be the comeback player of the year in 2024.
The next win for both would be a milestone victory. Another win for Ko would bring her to the LPGA Hall of Fame, while one more for Korda would mean 10 career wins.
Keep in mind also that 2024 features the Paris Olympics, where Korda will defend her gold medal win from Tokyo, while Ko is the only modern golfer to win two Olympic medals.
