April 27, 2026 – Nelly Korda opened the Chevron Championship 2026 with a dominant first round lead and never looked back en route to securing her third Major championship title. The win also marks her second win at the Chevron.

After back-to-back rounds of 65, Nelly stayed steady going 70-70 on the weekend to win by five. With the win, Nelly is also projected to move back to World No. 1.

STATS TELL THE STORY

• In the final round Nelly missed just one fairway and only missed 12 for the entire tournament.
• Her average driving distance with Qi4D was 262 yards.
• She hit 16-of-18 greens in regulation in the final round and missed only 13 greens for the week.
• Nelly is the first player in LPGA history to win multiple majors with a score of 18-under or better.
• She is just the third player in the last 50 years to win an LPGA major wire-to-wire leading by multiple shots after each round.
• The win makes Nelly the first American to reach three LPGA major wins since 2000.
• Since 2011, she is the first player to win an LPGA major wire-to-wire with a margin of victory of five-or-more shots.

NELLY’S QI4D DRIVER SET UP

For Nelly, the move into the Qi4D driver was the result of months of testing, trust in performance, and—most importantly—a driver shape that delivered more speed and more control. That win has paid off in dividends in 2026 with two wins and five top-two finishes in her five starts.

“Immediately when I put this thing in the bag I loved it. It’s doing exactly what I want… having it under pressure on the golf course is what’s most important,” said Nelly Korda.

For elite players like Nelly, how a driver looks at address isn’t cosmetic—it’s a foundational aspect to getting a new driver into the bag.

“The most important thing is the comfort I have over the ball when I look down at the driver,” she said. “After that, it’s just if it performs the way I want to.”

In the past, a more compact head shape didn’t allow Nelly to turn it over and produce the draw she must see off the tee. But, with the ball speed gains Team TaylorMade athletes had seen during testing combined with the advanced adjustability of Qi4D, our tour team felt it was time to re-introduce this driver profile to Nelly.

Within just 20 shots, she made a rather unexpected comment that changed the direction of the entire fitting. She stopped and said, “I actually like this shape better”.

From there, it was game on.

NELLY’S Qi4D DRIVER SPEC

• HEAD: Qi4D 10.5°
• FRONT WEIGHTS: 5g Heel, 3g Toe
• BACK WEIGHTS: 3g Heel, 3g Toe
• LOFT SLEEVE: Upright 1 Towards Higher
• SHAFT: TOUR AD FI 6-S
• LENGTH: 44 3/4’’ CUT
• GRIP: Tour Velvet 58 RD
• WRAPS: 1

During initial testing, the Qi4D delivered a 3 MPH increase in ball speed in just a few swings. Continued testing pushed that even further.

For a player already optimizing every element of her swing, increased ball speed is massive—especially when it comes without sacrificing control.

“Watching her on the range, she was reaching parts of the driving range at her home course she had never seen before. We saw even more of those speed gains on the golf course when she started cranking it up,” said Ryan Ressa, Senior Tour Manager. 

Qi4D didn’t stop at the clubhead.

During testing, the tour team leaned into TaylorMade’s shaft recommendation system to evaluate potential options. The R&D team analyzed Nelly’s swing mechanics and delivery numbers and inserted them into the recommender which matched Nelly to Graphite Design’s Tour AD FI 6-S shaft.

The slightly stiffer tip compared to her previous gamer aids in producing and controlling her draw while helping maximize ball speed.

THE SWITCH TO TP5X

Nelly’s switch to TP5x came from a different—but equally important—performance need.

During the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship prep in September of 2025, Nelly approached Senior Tour Manager Ryan Ressa about how she felt her iron shots were launching low and spinning less than desired, especially into firm major championship greens.

“The new TP5x is a game changer for her. When I walked with her after first putting it in play, the ball was noticeably better with her irons. She was playing more aggressively and felt like she could attack pins more freely. She can be way more aggressive with her scoring clubs, which is something she felt like she couldn’t do toward the end of last season,” said Ryan Ressa.

 

Around the greens, the new TP5x has also changed Nelly’s chipping approach. With more check and predictability, she’s able to be more assertive through impact, adding spin rather than guiding shots.

WHY NELLY PLAYS P·7CB IRONS

“I need a little bit more height when it comes to my irons because when we play major championship golf courses the greens tend to get firmer and faster,” Nelly Korda said of her switch to P·770 and P·7CB. “(P·770 and P·7CB) give me that so I know that even if I hit a controlled shot it’s not going to shoot on the green.”

“When it comes to my scoring clubs, I like the look of the CB’s from the top,” she said. “It’s a little bit thinner visually and I can hit some really good controlled shots with them. For me, I never go after a shot at 95 percent. I’m always at that 90 percent area or even less. Hitting the controlled shots with P·7CB’s makes it a lot easier for me to execute what I’m visually wanting.”

NELLY’S WINNING WITB

• Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D (10.5°)
• Fairway Woods: TaylorMade Stealth 2 3 & 7 (15.0° & 21.0°)
• Irons: TaylorMade P·770 (5); TaylorMade P·7CB (6-PW)
• Wedges: TaylorMade MG4 (50°SB); TaylorMade MG5 Proto 54° HB
• Putter: TaylorMade NK Proto
• Golf Ball: TaylorMade TP5x

Por REDACCIÓN