World No 1 Nelly Korda has been crowned the 2024 Rolex Player of the Year with three events to spare after a dominant season on the LPGA Tour.
The Rolex Player of the Year award was introduced in 1966 and sees players awarded points at each official LPGA Tour tournament, based on top-10 finishes, with double points on offer for the five women’s majors.
Korda won six times in a seven-tournament stretch and added three more top-10s during the LPGA Tour campaign, giving her an unassailable lead over closest challenger Ayaka Furue in the season-long race.
The 26-year-old also has a commanding lead at the top of the world rankings and had already wrapped up the Rolex Annika Major Award for her performances in the majors, with Korda now following Lilia Vu as back-to-back American winners of the Player of the Year award.
“Winning the Rolex Player of the Year means so much to me,” Korda said. “This season has had its highs and challenges, and I’m just really grateful for the people around me who have helped me get here.
“It’s been a team effort, and I’m proud to share this moment with them.”
Korda opened her eighth LPGA Tour season with a tie for 16th at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions before winning each of her next five starts, equalling the record for most consecutive LPGA Tour titles.
She won the LPGA Drive On Championship, the FIR HILLS SERI PAK Championship, the Ford Championship presented by KCC and the T-Mobile Match Play presented by MGM Rewards, ahead of securing her second major title at the Chevron Championship.
Korda’s winning streak temporarily halted with a tied-seventh finish at the Congnizant Founders Cup, only for her to return to the winner’s circle at the Mizuho Americas Open in her next start.
The American experienced a drop in form over the summer, missing three consecutive cuts and failing to content at both the Amundi Evian Championship and the Olympics, before narrowly losing out to Lydia Ko and claiming tied-second at the AIG Women’s Open.
She added a top-five finish at the Kroger Queen City Championship ahead of representing Team USA at the Solheim Cup, where she helped the hosts to their first win since 2017 and a three-point victory over Team Europe at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club.
Furue had the potential to catch Korda by ending the LPGA Tour season with four consecutive victories, although her unlikely bid ended when she failed to win the Toto Japan Classic on Sunday.
Korda will accept the Rolex Annika Major Award and the Rolex LPGA Awards on Wednesday November 20 ahead of the CME Group Tour Championship, starting the following day and live on Sky Sports Golf.
Who will win the LPGA Tour’s Race to CME Globe? Watch the conclusion of the 2024 season live on Sky Sports. The CME Group Tour Championship is live from November 21-24 on Sky Sports Golf.
