Jessica Korda is a classic embodiment of the 21st century international golfer. Her parents are retired Czech Republic tennis professionals Petr Korda (winner of the 1998 Australian Open – a Grand Slam event) and Regina Rajchrtová (who represented her native country at the 1998 Summer Olympics in Seoul), and Jessica was born in Florida where they had settled.

In 2006 she represented the Czech Republic in the World Amateur Championship, and four years later teed up for the United States in the same tournament (she holds dual nationality).

Korda, who started playing golf at eight years of age, was a member of the 2009 U.S. Junior Solheim Cup and 2010 U.S. Curtis Cup teams, won the 2010 South Atlantic Amateur and was runner-up at the 2010 U.S. Women’s Amateur. While still an amateur, she finished joint ninth in her U.S. Women’s Open debut in 2008, carding the only round in the 60s on Sunday (69); and she also made the cut in the following year’s edition.

A runner-up finish at the 2010 LPGA Qualifying School earned her membership of the 2011 Tour, she turned 18 in her second event and she went on to compete in 15 tournaments in her rookie season, with a best finish of 19th and a final ranking position of 92nd.

Her breakthrough victory as a pro came in the first event of the 2012 season, appropriately (bearing in mind her father’s background) the Women’s Australian Open at Royal Melbourne, where she prevailed on the second hole of a six-player play-off.

Two years later, after a 2013 season when her best finish was a tie for second and she finished 25th in the rankings (after 42nd in 2012), she was again quick out of the blocks, securing a second LPGA Tour in the 2014 season-opening Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic. Four months later she won a third title, the Airbus LPGA Classic in Alabama, and went on to achieve her highest final ranking to date (16th).

The next year, she once again displayed her globetrotting credentials, winning the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia four shots ahead of three of the Tour’s main stars, runners-up Shanshan Feng, Lydia Ko and Stacy Lewis, and finished 27th on the money list.

Two relatively lean years followed – 24th and 26th, respectively, on the 2016 and 2017 money lists – albeit with best finishes of second both seasons.

Jaw-Dropping Comeback

At the conclusion of the 2017 season Jessica also faced a major health challenge, undergoing jaw surgery in early-December to solve the frequent headaches that had been plaguing her for a couple of years. 

Remarkably, on her return to the tour, at the Honda LPGA Thailand on another international stage in February, she led wire-to-wire, shattered the tournament record with a 25-under total and won by four shots.   

"I can't believe it, today was such a blur, I was just trying to make birdies. I tried to relax, but I was nervous," said Korda, who had headed into the week with no expectations, just wanting to knock off the rust.

The Czech-American still hasn’t been able to convert her stellar amateur performances and solid LPGA career into success in the majors. Her best result so far has been a share of fourth in this year’s ANA Inspiration one month after her victory in Thailand; with just two other top-10 finishes, in the 2013 U.S. Women’s Open (joint seventh) and 2014 Women’s British Open (tied for fifth). The second major of the year, the U.S. Open, is held at the end of May.

At the time of going to press, after six 2018 LPGA events, Korda was sixth on both the Race to GME Globe and official money list and 10th In the Rolex World Rankings, having finished 10th, 26nd, 24th and third in her other four starts.

Family Success

Jessica Korda’s younger sister Nelly (born 28 July 1998) began her own professional career on the second-tier Symetra Tour in 2016, won her first event at that year’s Sioux Falls GreatLIFE Challenge, finished ninth on the money list to earn her 2017 LPGA Tour card, and completed her rookie year in 47th place on the money list, with a best finish of joint fifth.

Their brother Sebastian (born 5 July 2000) is the reigning Australian Open junior tennis champion, a victory which helped him rise to world number one in the ITF junior rankings.

Caddie Sacked Mid-Round

During the third round of the 2013 U.S. Women’s Open, Jessica Korda and caddy Jason Gilroyed had several disagreements and she sacked him after carding five-over-par for the front nine. She then asked her boyfriend, professional golfer Johnny DelPrete, who was in the gallery, to caddy for her for the rest of the round. She shot one-under with DelPrete on her bag, and maintained him on the “payroll” for the final round, closing with a one-over on a high-scoring last day to finish joint seventh.