Nelly Korda’s 27th 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡day was not a lavish party, but a serious practice session at Royal Porthcawl, where she was preparing to enter the final leg of the AIG Women’s British Open major. The world No. 1 golfer brought with her confidence and determination to end her long title drought.

Last year, Korda won seven times and dominated the LPGA, but 2025 is a different story. Through the first 12 tournaments of the year, she has not won a single title, despite her scoring average and playing efficiency being better than last year, according to statistics from KPMG Performance Insights.

This time, Royal Porthcawl was hosting the British Open for the first time, and Korda decided to try something new by playing the Scottish Open a week earlier. The result was a fifth-place finish at Dundonald Links, a solid start despite the windy weather and unforgiving links terrain.

“Normally my body doesn’t like playing two weeks in a row in windy conditions. But this time the schedule just clicked,” Korda said. “I feel like everything is falling into place.”

During her 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡day pro-am, Korda took time to get a feel for the course. She described the first four holes as “spectacular,” but warned that the course would be “extremely challenging” with winds reaching 25 mph on Thursday and 30 mph on Friday.

“Here, you can’t just hit driver. There are times when you have to hit irons because the wind and bunkers make it too risky,” she said. “If you get caught in a bunker, you can only save it with a chip shot.”

Alongside Korda, another name that caught the eye was rookie Lottie Woad. In July, Woad won the Irish Open as an amateur, earned an LPGA berth from the Evian Championship, and won the Scottish Open on her professional debut.

“I was really impressed with her composure and maturity,” Korda commented. “She always stuck to the process even in the most pressured moments.”

For Korda, this is her 10th appearance at the AIG Women’s British Open. She has five top-15 finishes in her previous nine, including a runner-up finish last year at the Old Course. Since 2019, she has eight top-5s at majors, the most of anyone on tour, including two wins.

However, when asked about the pressure to prove himself at a major tournament like the British Open, Korda calmly replied: “I don’t think I have anything to prove to anyone. I play for passion, for the love of golf, because I want to challenge myself in the most difficult conditions and compete with the best golfers in the world.”

A gentle, yet emphatic statement from a champion. And who knows, Royal Porthcawl could be the place where Korda marks his return to the top.