By: Max Bechtoldt
The field has been narrowed to two at the T-Mobile Match Play at Shadow Creek, and the LPGA Tour could not have asked for a better finals matchup than Nelly Korda and Leona Maguire.
World No. 1 Nelly Korda is riding a three-tournament win streak and Leona Maguire is the only player standing in her way to make it four. Maguire, though not having the same resumé, ranked No. 30 and with only two career wins, may be the toughest test Korda could possibly face.
Maguire is a terrific match play competitor. In her Solheim Cup career, Maguire is 7-2-1 and 2-0-0 in singles matches. Last year, at the match play event she made it all the way to the semifinals. Keep in mind, there was no stroke play element in 2023.
It shouldn’t be any surprise that these two are the last players standing, especially with the conditions in Las Vegas this week. Maguire, from Ireland, is great in heavy winds, and Korda has excelled in bad weather the last two weeks.
Korda will hold a significant distance advantage, which cannot be overstated. She will be hitting second into all greens, and her higher ball flight works to her advantage on the tricky Shadow Creek greens. In the semifinals against Narin An, Korda’s length played a major role. She’s also putting well, especially on comebackers for par.
What the LPGA has on its hands here is simply the best potential matchup. The best player in the world against the best match play competitor in the world. The show begins on Golf Channel and Peacock at 6:00 est.
