Nelly Korda hit the ball well during practice all week. But things did not go as smoothly when the tournament started on Thursday.

The World No. 1 golfer began the 2026 U.S. Women's Open with a 2-over 73 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California. After the first round, she was tied for 57th place, six shots behind leader and World No. 26 Jennifer Kupcho, who shot a 5-under 66.

"I honestly just hit it really poorly off the tee," the 27-year-old said after her round, as reported by Sky Sports. "Found myself in a lot of trouble on the wrong sides of a lot of these pins. I just felt like I was grinding to make safe pars. It wasn't a great day."

Korda highlighted her tee ball as an issue.

"I've just been feeling really stuck in my swing and not being able to release it," she said. "I was sending it out right in Cincinnati, too. I put in a lot of hours on the range, and I can't seem to really figure it out."

Korda started on the 10th, birdied the par-5 11th, then bogeyed 12 and 13 back-to-back. A birdie at the first brought her to level par before bogeys at the third and seventh closed out the round at two over.

"I hit it really good Monday through Wednesday, so I have honestly no idea where this came from," she said. "I'm going to go to the range."

Korda has finished tied for eighth place or better in 10 of her last 11 tournaments around the world. She also finished tied for second place behind Maja Stark at the 2025 U.S. Women's Open at Erin Hills.

Kupcho, who won the 2022 Chevron Championship, leads by one shot over South Korea's Sei Young Kim, who shot a 4-under 67 in the round.

Nelly Korda Started Round One in LeBron James' Custom Sneakers and Switched

Korda started Thursday's round wearing a custom pair of Nike Victory Pro 4 shoes gifted to her by basketball legend LeBron James. She had shared a photo of the shoes on Instagram the day before and said she would wear them in the first round.

But after six holes, her caddie asked for a different pair. Her trainer, Kim Baughman, brought replacement shoes to the 16th tee. Korda changed them to arrest the excessive room offered by James' shoes.

"I felt like I had a little too much room," Korda told ESPN. "I had that with the Jordans, too. Sometimes when I wear a different color, they're just made a little different, the spacing is a little different. It's the exact same shoe. I just wanted to wear these."

She played one over on her first six holes in the LeBrons and one over in her own Nikes over the final 12.

So, do you think the World No. 1 can recover from a difficult opening round to win her second major of 2026? Will she add to her Chevron Championship win? Let us know in the comments.

Read more at Club Golf.

Written by

Sneha Abraham

Edited by

Sijo Paul