Drove It Further, Holed More Putts, Scored Better... Then How On Earth Did Nelly Korda Go Winless In 2025?

When Nelly Korda lifted her seventh individual title of 2024 at The Annika, very few would have predicted the then-World No.1 would strike out over the following year.

Sure, most felt she would be unlikely to replicate that septet of successes again, but the odds on Korda failing to lift a trophy at all were extremely slim at the start of 2025.

Then, when she finished second by two strokes to A Lim Kim at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions - following a blistering charge towards the end - to start the season, Korda's play suggested it was only a matter of time until professional win number 21 arrived on the scene.

However, as difficult as it is to believe, Korda did in fact go winless at individual events throughout 2025.

Twice a runner-up from 19 starts, the 27-year-old populated the top-10 at tournaments on seven other occasions and was inside the top-25 six times. She also didn't miss a single cut, but there was never a trophy at the end of the week.

HOW DID NELLY KORDA NOT WIN IN 2025?

How Korda went from winning what felt like every week to not triumphing at all is even more difficult to explain when some of her game's statistics are taken into account.

In 2024, the Bradenton, Florida-born pro gained 0.87 strokes off the tee while enjoying an average driving distance of 269.79 yards - ranked 20th on the LPGA Tour. Fast forward a year and Korda had gained 0.94 strokes off the tee, mainly as a result of adding almost five yards on to her average driving distance (274.58 yards) which put her eighth.

Similarly, at the other end of each hole, Korda noticeably improved on the greens. In terms of SG: Putting, she increased her numbers from 0.41 last year to 0.60 this term while Korda managed to take half a stroke off in the 'average putts per round' category, moving from 30.02 in 2024 to 29.54 in 2025.

Overall, her scoring average dropped marginally, too, from 69.56 to 69.44. That was arguably even more impressive given Korda played 14 more rounds this season compared to last (60 - 2024, 74 - 2025).

Fuelling the drop in scoring average was 335 occasions of birdie or better compared to just 258 during her seven-win campaign.

THE STATS DON'T LIE...

However, there were also multiple areas where Korda regressed in 2025 which go a long way to at least partially explaining why she wasn't able to cross the finish line first.

While her driving distance increased, Korda's accuracy off the tee did not. She found the fairway 75.75% of the time last season, but that fell to 72.22% in the subsequent campaign.

Other statistical categories that saw a dip included GIR % (76.02 - 74.49), greens-hit-from-the-rough % (59.28 - 53.82) - which in turn had wider knock-on effects as Korda's driving accuracy was down - and ball striking (4 - 15).

But, arguably the most obvious indicator of Korda's struggles relate to the key Strokes Gained categories. She sank from 1.88 to 1.63 in terms of 'Tee To Green', from 0.59 to 0.56 on 'Approach' and plummeted from 0.42 to just 0.13 'Around The Green.'

All told, Korda's SG: Total dropped from a circuit-leading 2.84 in 2024 to 2.28 in 2025 - still enough to place her third out of all LPGA Tour pros.

THE RISE OF JEENO THITIKUL

And away from the cold, hard statistics involving Korda, there was the form of the woman who replaced her as World No.1, Jeeno Thitikul, to take into account.

The 22-year-old was often right behind her American rival in 2024, but the Thai star took her own game to new heights this year and won four times worldwide as a result of a sharper and leaner style of play.

Although Thitikul's putting held steady overall, she improved in all other areas tee to green and consequently set a new all-time LPGA Tour scoring record to win the Vare Trophy.

Ultimately, it wasn't as though Korda's lack of success was down to a complete loss of form and confidence in 2025 - far from it. She improved in certain areas while dipping marginally in others. It may well be argued that she was simply out played...

ANALYSIS

Alison Root

I’m as surprised as anyone else that Nelly Korda is winless this season. When asked at the end of last year for my predictions for 2025, I strongly believed she would continue her dominant run. While I didn't expect the same amazing fashion as 2024, I was certain she would retain her World No. 1 title.

Naturally, nine top-10 finishes cannot be overlooked, and her stats confirm that certain areas of her game have actually improved since last season. In my view, it’s the accuracy of her approach and short game shots that previously set her up for a sure-bet birdie or easy par that has been inconsistent. Plus, she has definitely struggled at times to convert putts.

Then there’s the mindset factor. Korda is renowned for her laid-back swing and personality, but she’s only human, and no one would want to win more than her.

I suspect that as the season wore on and the victories weren't materialising, she subconsciously felt the increasing pressure to lift a trophy.