This was exactly the thrilling finish the LPGA needed in its season-opening event.
A Lim Kim drained a dramatic 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole to ignite a fist-pumping, champagne-popping celebration after holding off World No. 1 Nelly Korda to win the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club in Orlando on Sunday. Kim won by two shots, so a birdie wasn’t necessary but it made for a spectacular finish.
Kim shot a five-under 67 and Korda a seven-under 65 to finish second. Korda briefly pulled into a tie with Kim on the back nine, but trailed by two at the 18th hole, where she holed a 35-foot birdie putt to pull within one and rachet up the drama. But Kim had the answer.
“Not bad,” Korda said. “I’m never going to complain about finishing second in a tournament and giving it a run, especially on a Sunday. There are definitely a couple putts I would like to have back, but overall I think I’m very happy with this week and excited for next week.”
Minjee Lee, meanwhile, shot a career-best 10-under 62 with a new long putter to tie for fourth, contributing to a blockbuster start to the LPGA’s 75th season.
After her victory, Kim had a playful response to winning the first tournament of the year. “Honestly, so good, and I’m hungry,” she said. Kim, who won the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open, played memorably in December that year in the wake of the COVID pandemic, has earned a unique nickname, too: Queen Kong. But she only likes half of it.
“I wish to just be Queen,” Kim, 29, said with a laugh. “I don’t like that. Just Queen please.”
You can also just call her champion for the second consecutive year. She qualified for this event by virtue of her win at the Lotte Championship, one of 32-players in this week’s field. With Korda making a run up the leaderboard, Kim’s resolve and ultimate victory was that much more impressive as she earned a $300,000 first-place prize money payout from a $2 million purse.
Asked if she was scoreboard watching when Korda made her run and pulled into a tie, Kim said: “I watch the scoreboard and [we] enjoy together who made birdie, and then focus on my game.”
Then when Korda, who was playing in the group in front of Kim, birdied the final hole, Kim was undeterred. “I feel really good,” Kim said. “I have one more hole, so I have one more chance.”
This put the LPGA’s focus back on engaging personalities and great golf. It all played out in front of a nationally televised audience on NBC, which surely was a relief after a turbulent offseason that saw commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan resign and a tour event—the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship—cancelled due to non-payment by an underwriter.
The focus is back on excellent golf in the competitive field of tournament winners from the last two seasons, as well as celebrities.
Korda won seven times last year, including a record-tying five consecutive, and the biggest star in the game threatened to pull off yet another win. She came in armed with a renewed confidence and a new driver. Putting that in play and having the same success was a good omen for her for the season ahead.
“It’s super important,” Korda said. “Even if you made some subtle changes to your golf swing and testing it out under pressure, it’s just so different. You can go on the range and stripe it, but it’s a different ballgame when you come out and play under pressure. Obviously playing in a tournament like this it’s a little bit more easy-going with the celebrities and former athletes, but it’s a great week to test where your game is at.”
Korda was eight shots back at one point Saturday and after 54 holes she was still four behind. Still, she tied Kim at 17 under with a tap-in birdie on 15. Kim, however, responded with long birdie putts on two of the last three holes—at 16 and 18—to close the door.
Asked about her clutch putts and if she’s putting better this year, Kim said: “This is the first tournament, right? Let me see.”
Korda, meanwhile, did not win, but she put pressure on Kim, showing her Rolex Player of the Year form. She, too, might have put the rest of the tour on notice that she’s got the same mojo from last season. She has one more event—the Founders Cup—before she takes an extended break while the LPGA heads to Asia for three events.
