Even with a place near the top of the leaderboard after 36 holes in Cincinnati, Nelly Korda felt her game had not completely come together during the opening two rounds of the 2026 Kroger Queen City Championship.

“There have definitely been some loose shots. Not really happy with the way I'm hitting it right now, but overall, I mean, I'm not complaining with the position I'm in. Hopefully, I can go figure something out again on the range after today,” Korda said on Friday during her media interaction at Maketewah Country Club.

At Maketewah Country Club, Nelly Korda began the week with a 1-under 69 that included 15 pars, two birdies, and one bogey. She then added a 3-under 67 in the second round, taking her to 4-under overall and into a share of fifth place heading into the weekend.

A large number of the LPGA Tour’s top-ranked players are competing this week in Cincinnati, including 20 players from the top 25 in the world rankings. Charley Hull also returned to the tournament as the defending champion after winning last year’s edition at TPC River’s Bend.

The 2026 Kroger Queen City Championship carries a total purse of $2 million and is being played at Maketewah Country Club. The winner will receive $300,000 along with 500 CME Globe points in one of the stronger LPGA Tour fields of the season.

While Korda has set her eyes on the winning prize, the changing weather conditions are making the task a bit easier for her.

Nelly Korda explains how weather conditions affected scoring at Maketewah Country Club

Nelly Korda also pointed to calmer weather conditions as one of the reasons players produced lower scores during the second round. With limited wind and softer morning conditions, she said the course became more manageable as the day progressed.

“There was no wind in the morning. It was nice. It was kind of warming up,” Korda said during her Friday media interaction. “As the day went on with no wind, almost zero, I mean, the course is pretty gettable. Any course is gettable at that point.”

The second round at Maketewah Country Club saw several players move up the leaderboard under calmer conditions, including Korda, who improved from an opening-round 69 to a 3-under 67 on Friday.

The World No. 1 trailed co-leaders Jin Young Ko and Amanda Doherty by three shots heading into the weekend. 

So, do you think Korda will be able to fix her game in time to chase another LPGA Tour victory this weekend?

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Written by

Aditi Singh

Edited by

Souvik Roy