Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu Welcome Setbacks at Chevron Championship—Because They Know How to Fight Back

Bogey-free scorecards, controlled tee shots, perfectly judged approaches—those are the trends that come to mind when one envisions a major championship winning performance. 

But according to two top contenders at this year’s Chevron Championship—Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu—such an image is simply unattainable. And accepting that fact is the first step in adopting a winning mentality. 

Korda, who fired off a second-round 70 (two under) at the Nicklaus course at The Club at Carlton Woods—the major’s new venue—turned in quite a colorful scorecard on Friday. The 24-year-old fired off five birdies, but also sprinkled in three bogeys. 

When asked about the back-and-forth nature of her round, the current world No. 2 shared her expectations going into the first major of the year. 

“Just know that there are bogeys out there and you try to minimize your mistakes as much as possible. I was punching the air a couple times after my two three-putts, which those are kind of stupid mistakes, but you just kind of have to stay mentally stiff and know that there are some birdie opportunities, as well,” Korda said. 

Vu—who captured her first LPGA victory in Thailand earlier this year—sits one shot ahead of Korda on the stacked leaderboard, at seven under. She posted a three-under 69 to take the early clubhouse lead after tee times were delayed two hours due to overnight rain. 

With six birdies and three bogeys on her card, Vu echoed Korda’s statement about setbacks during major championships—especially at such a difficult and unfamiliar venue. 

“I try to remind myself that it's a really tough week. Everybody is going to make mistakes,” Vu said. “It's just how I come back from it, and then just try and make birdie the next hole and just let it go. It takes a lot out of me. I think Cole [Vu’s caddie] does a good job of trying to get me back into a better mood, but yeah, I'm just trying to be nice to myself this week.”

The UCLA product and former Curtis Cup team member wasn’t always able to be so kind to herself on the golf course. 

During her rookie year on the LPGA, Vu made just one cut in nine starts and her mental game was suffering. 

“I was in such a bad mindset my rookie year. Everything was life or death,” Vu said. 

The California native wasn’t used to seeing poor results on the golf course. Before turning pro, Vu spent 31 weeks as the No. 1 amateur in the world. As her struggles continued, the onset of COVID-19 in 2020 turned out to be the break that Vu needed. 

Vu says she dove into “self-help and personal development books” during her downtime from competition and completely shifted her mindset on the course. 

“That's not how I see things anymore,” Vu said. “I feel like there's always a solution to any problem, so I just try to stay positive, even though I get really angry sometimes when I make a mistake. I just try to look up and be positive.”

Korda and Vu’s Round 2 scorecards might have included a few too many blemishes for their liking, but it was how both players responded to those imperfections that kept them charging into contention.