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KAWAGOE, JAPAN – AUGUST 06: Nelly Korda of Team United States plays her shot from the 11th tee during the third round of the Women’s Individual Stroke Play on day fourteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Kasumigaseki Country Club on August 06, 2021 in Kawagoe, Japan. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
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KAWAGOE, JAPAN – AUGUST 06: Nelly Korda of Team United States plays her shot from the 11th tee during the third round of the Women’s Individual Stroke Play on day fourteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Kasumigaseki Country Club on August 06, 2021 in Kawagoe, Japan. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Champions are not born, they are made. The phrase has exemplary specimens in sports history, with golf not proving any different. A contemporary golfer who abides by the idiom is Nelly Korda, a former World No. 1 and an Olympic Gold medallist. Though only 24, the younger of the Korda sisters has already reached unscaled heights in women’s golf. But it wouldn’t have been possible without the draconian training from her father, Petr Korda. And it was only expected, with the latter being a former tennis player and a major champion himself.
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Nelly Korda’s arduous drill with father, Petr Korda
The middle child of the sport-elusive Korda household was born on 28th July 1998. With sister Jessica already holding clubs, Nelly Korda took to golf from a young age. She started playing the game seriously at the tender age of 6, with frequent lessons around three-to-four times a week.
But her first real coach was her father, Petr Korda. The former Czech tennis player was an admired professional in his time. His work ethic certainly translated to Nelly, whose best performances came at the most explosive moments.
“When I used to play against my dad when I was younger, he would always try to pi*s me off because he always said that I step it up a notch when I’m pis*ed,” Korda once said. It enraged her multiple times during her lessons with her father, but it worked out like a charm for her career.
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JOHNS CREEK, GEORGIA – JUNE 27: Nelly Korda poses with the trophy after putting in to win on the 18th green during the final round of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club on June 27, 2021 in Johns Creek, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
“He would just be a smart a**,” Korda said of her father. “Because he was good (at golf) and (our matches) were always so close. And I would always pay. We would play for money and he would always try to tick me off. It worked a lot.”
Who is Petr Korda?
Now 54, Petr is a former major championship winner in tennis, having won the 1998 Australian Open. He was also close to adding another, finishing runner-up at the 1992 French Open.
Korda played his best tennis in the 90s, when he secured the bulk of his titles. He reached a career-high ranking of World No. 2 on February 1998, a month after his major victory. The father of two LPGA golfers, Korda, has caddied for his daughters at the U.S. Women’s Open in the past.
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Ajinkya Aswale