Nelly Korda is back in position to try to join her sister as an LPGA winner.
While Nelly plans to call Jessica before Sunday’s final round of the Swinging Skirts LPGA Taiwan Championship, she may not ask for advice.
“There’s not much you can say to a person in this position, because she’s already said it so many times,” Nelly said after posting a 3-under-par 69 to move into a tie for the 54-hole lead with the homeland favorite Wei-Ling Hsu (72). “She’s just going to tell me to stay calm and play the way I’ve been playing.”
Jessica isn’t playing in Taiwan this week.
Nelly, 20, is a second-year LPGA member seeking her first victory. Jessica, 25, is five-time tour winner.
At 9 under overall, Korda and Hsu are two shots ahead of former world No. 1 Lydia Ko (72), Jin Young Ko (69), Jodi Ewart Shadoff (73), Bronte Law (69) and Megan Khang (70).
If Korda is going to win, she’ll have to overcome the will of the Taiwanese, who have come out strong to support Hsu, who also is seeking her first LPGA title.
“I’ve never had that many people around me,” Hsu said.
Full-field scores from the Swinging Skirts LPGA Taiwan Championship
This marks the second time this year Nelly finds herself out front going into the final round. She had a one-shot lead going into Sunday at the HSBC Women’s Championship back in March and was in the mix until a final birdie chance slipped past, leaving her one shot behind the winner, Michelle Wie. Nelly’s chance at HSBC came a week after Jessica won in Thailand.
“I think I’ll definitely be a little nervous,” Nelly said. “Anyone who is in contention on a Sunday will obviously feel those types of feelings. But I’ll also be excited and just happy to be in that position.”
Nelly could make this the season of the “Sister Act.”
Earlier this year, Moriya Jutanugarn broke through to win the Hugel-JTBC LA Open, joining sister, Ariya, as LPGA winners. They were just the second sister combo to win on tour, joining Annika and Charlotta Sorenstam. Annika won 72 times and Charlotta joined her as a winner in 2000.
Moriya joined Ariya among the top 10 in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings earlier this year, making them the first sister combo to do so.
The Korda sisters have that kind of potential. Jessica is No. 13 in the world, Nelly No. 39.
Nelly and Jessica are close and spend a lot of time together, but they’re also competitive.
“We obviously have a little bit of a sibling rivalry, but everything is very friendly,” Nelly said back in March. “She does make me want to be a better player.”
Korda and Hsu aren’t the only players on the leaderboard in Taiwan looking to break through for their first victories. Shadoff, Law and Khang are also poised to do so.
“Everyone is going to want to win tomorrow,” Nelly said. “There are a lot of girls stacked up on the leaderboard. So, I’m just going to be one of those girls that’s fighting for it.”