USA Today via Reuters
Dec 17, 2023; Orlando, Florida, USA; Nelly Korda chips onto the 18th green during the PNC Championship at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
USA Today via Reuters
Dec 17, 2023; Orlando, Florida, USA; Nelly Korda chips onto the 18th green during the PNC Championship at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
The LPGA Tour traveled to Arizona after stopping in California for the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship. The Seville Golf and Country Club made its hosting debut on Thursday. A loaded field with all five of this year’s winners, and nine of the top ten in Rolex World Ranking headed to the Grand Canyon state for the $2.25 M purse Ford Championship.
This is also the largest purse size so far this year. The tournament headed to the final round with 12 players within two shots of the lead. Sunday will have much action as both the former world no.1 and the current world 1 are in contention for the winner’s payout.
Purse breakdown of the 2024 Ford Championship
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The purse size is the same as this week’s DP World Tour event, Hero Indian Open. Of the $2.25m, $337,500 is reserved for the winner. That’s also $37,500 more than what Nelly Korda earned last week at the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship. Here is the full purse size breakdown for the event.
| 1st | $337,500 |
| 2nd | $212,232 |
| 3rd | $153,960 |
| 4th | $119,099 |
| 5th | $95,862 |
| 6th | $78,432 |
| 7th | $65,651 |
| 8th | $57,518 |
| 9th | $51,708 |
| 10th | $47,060 |
| 11th | $43,572 |
| 12th | $40,667 |
| 13th | $38,112 |
| 14th | $35,788 |
| 15th | $33,696 |
| 16th | $31,837 |
| 17th | $30,211 |
| 18h | $28,816 |
| 19th | $27,655 |
| 20th | $26,725 |
| 21st | $25,796 |
| 22nd | $24,866 |
| 23rd | $23,937 |
| 24th | $23,006 |
| 25th | $22,194 |
| 26th | $21,381 |
| 27th | $20,566 |
| 28th | $19,753 |
| 29th | $18,940 |
| 30th | $18,242 |
| 31st | $17,546 |
| 32nd | $16,848 |
| 33rd | $16,151 |
| 34th | $15,453 |
| 35th | $14,873 |
| 36th | $14,292 |
| 37th | $13,712 |
| 38th | $13,130 |
| 39th | $12,548 |
| 40th | $12,084 |
| 41st | $11,620 |
| 42nd | $11,156 |
| 43rd | $10,689 |
| 44th | $10,225 |
| 45th | $9,877 |
| 46th | $9,528 |
| 47th | $9,179 |
| 48th | $8,830 |
| 49th | $8,482 |
| 50th | $8,133 |
| 51st | $7,902 |
| 52nd | $7,669 |
| 53rd | $7,435 |
| 54th | $7,204 |
| 55th | $6,972 |
| 56th | $6,738 |
| 57th | $6,508 |
| 58th | $6,274 |
| 59th | $6,043 |
| 60th | $5,810 |
| 61st | $5,694 |
| 62nd | $5,577 |
| 63rd | $5,461 |
| 64th | $5,345 |
| 65th | $5,228 |
Aside from the prize money, 500 Race to CME Globe points are also on offer at Gilbert. Last week, Korda received 56.00 Rolex Ranking points to reclaim her world ranking crown. Although Rolex hasn’t released the field rating of the Ford Championship, the Ford Championship leaderboard looks packed.
Storylines ahead of the final round
Solheim Cup star and Arizona State University alum, Carlota Ciganda, usurped Hannah Green from the top spot after a spectacular 66 on the moving day. The Spaniard picked two eagles and three birdies to card 15-under 201 total heading to the final round of the Ford Championship. South Korean Pro, Hyo Joo Kim is also tied for the lead. On the other hand, Arizona native, Sarah Schmelzel moved up one spot on Saturday.
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Three of LPGA’s biggest names, Lexi Thompson, Nelly Korda, and Lydia Ko are tied at the sixth spot, but only two shots away from the lead. Thompson is looking for her first victory since the 2019 ShopRite LPGA Classic. 25-year-old Korda, on the other hand, looks to become the first player to win three back-to-back titles since Ariya Jutanugarn in 2016.
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For Lydia Ko, a victory at the 2024 Ford Championship guarantees her entry into the LPGA Hall of Fame. She needs just one point to become a part of LPGA’s venerated list which includes Annika Sorenstam, Louise Saggs, Lorena Ochoa, Se Ri Pak, Juli Inkster, and the like. The final round of the Ford Championship will start at 9.08 AM local time. Golf Channel will broadcast live from 6-7.30 PM EDT.
