
Welcome to this week’s Golf Insider, everyone!
Nelly Korda has won again on the LPGA Tour, this time on Sunday, May 3 at the 2026 Riviera Maya Open in Mexico. Her 18th career LPGA Tour victory comes just a week after she claimed her third major title at The Chevron Championship in Houston on April 26. This was Korda’s debut at El Camaleón Golf Course at Mayakoba, as she didn’t play Riviera Maya in its inaugural edition last season.
Korda signed for a final-round 69 (-3) to finish at 17-under-par, four shots ahead of Arpichaya Yubol. Korda was the only player in the field to record four rounds in the 60s, with rounds of 68-67-67-69. She also led the field in eagles, pars and least number of bogeys for the tournament.
“I mean, I just made two mistakes all week,” Korda said during her post-win press conference on May 3.
“With how tight the fairways are and how hard this golf course is, I played some really good golf.”
The 27-year-old American’s 271 total set a new 72-hole tournament scoring record, five strokes better than Chizzy Iwai’s 276 in 2025. It’s no surprise, then, that Korda continues to lead the Vare Trophy standings for scoring average after this tournament.
Nelly will take a well-deserved rest this week as the LPGA Tour heads to New Jersey for the Mizuho Americas Open. But never fear! Just because Nelly Korda isn’t in the field doesn’t mean we’re without a story.
One of the headlines going into this week is the host of the tournament, Michelle Wie West, will be teeing it up. Mountain Ridge Country Club in West Caldwell, N.J. will test the five-time LPGA Tour winner and the rest of the field.
Accepting this invitation is special, and vital, for Wie West; she’s gearing up to compete in this year’s U.S. Women’s Open after a bit of a playing drought. She has also committed to playing in the WTGL when that fires up this winter. It’ll be good to see Wie West get back into her swing and do some prep work here at the Mizuho.
The Mizuho Americas Open has a unique format, as 24 AJGA top-ranked juniors will tee it up in a stableford format. It’s special for Wie West to see the mentorship mentality she’s created blossom over four years of this tournament.
“The juniors are a huge part of this event,” Wie West said in a pre-tournament press conference on May 6.
“You know, me being involved with it, my genesis of my career, it just really allows these 24 top girls, our next generation, to kind of play in an LPGA event, live the life of a pro. We match a pro with a junior and the mentorship part of it is a big deal of this week.”
On the pro side, Jeeno Thitikul is returning to defend her 2025 title. Thitikul is looking to get back on track after losing out on the World No. 1 spot to Nelly Korda. She’s coming into the Mizuho with one win this season, the Honda LPGA Thailand in her home country.
But Thitikul and the field will have a new challenge, as Mountain Ridge Country Club hosts the tournament for the first time. The Donald Ross design will play around 6,600 yards this week, give or take. Players will only have this year and next to adjust until the Mizuho returns to Liberty National in 2028.
You can catch the 2026 Mizuho Americas Open from May 7-10 on Golf Channel and CBS.
See you next week, golf fans.
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This week in women’s golf
LPGA News
Field breakdown: 2026 Mizuho Americas Open
Five things to know about the 2026 Mizuho Americas Open
How to watch the 2026 Mizuho Americas Open
WTGL announces six additional LPGA stars; unveils brand identity for women’s team golf platform
Korda countdown: Nelly now within four points of LPGA Hall of Fame qualification
Major champions and past champions headline early commitments for the 2026 ShopRite LPGA
Arpichaya Yubol finishes runner-up, Yu Liu claims third in Mexico
Nelly Korda crushes another LPGA field and wins by four shots in Mexico
Cindy Miller named the 2026 Ellen Griffin Rolex Award recipient
Nicole Weller named the 2026 Nancy Lopez Golf Achievement Award winner
LET News
adidas becomes event supporter and official footwear supplier of the 2026 Solheim Cup
Hamilton wins Player of the Month for April 2026
La Cala Resort named official venue of 2026 Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España
Watch: LET Unfiltered with Brianna Navarrosa
Soenderby wins inaugural MCB Ladies Classic—Mauritius
The Amundi Evian Championship announces increased prize fund
Epson Tour News
Field breakdown: 2026 Reliance Matrix Championship
Megan Schofill claims first Epson Tour title at the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic
Melanie Green makes ace in first round of the Riviera Maya Open
Amateur/NCAA News
Texas golf’s O’Keefe and Kim selected to Arnold Palmer Cup teams
2026 NCAA Division I women’s golf regionals full fields, seeds announced
Who’s going to win the Annika Award?
Wichita State eliminating men’s and women’s golf programs
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Five at The IX: Megan Schofill outlasts Amari Avery to win first Epson Tour title
On Sunday, May 3, Megan Schofill and Amari Avery battled it out in the final pairing of the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic at TPC Scottsdale. But it was the 2023 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Schofill that overcame a shaky start and a valiant opponent to win her first Epson Tour title.
Schofill, after watching Avery go out on the front nine with a blistering 6-under-par 30, did quite a job of compartmentalizing her game versus her playing partner’s. She went out on the front with an even-par 36 but settled in on the back nine.
That back nine proved to be a battle, both physically and mentally, for both players. Schofill carded a solid 2-under-par 33 while Avery came in with a 3-over-par 38. Schofill hung in there to claim the crown. Here are some snippets from Schofill’s post-win press conference on Sunday, May 3.
Q: You just won your first Epson Tour tournament. How does that feel to hear out loud?
MEGAN SCHOFILL: It feels great. I definitely did not start out how I wanted to, and Amari was playing really, really well. So it kind of flipped quick. But I felt like I really hung in there the whole time, and especially on the back nine. But, no, it feels really good, like boost of confidence for the rest of the season, kind of get the monkey off my back.
Q: How much do you think it is difficulty wise to stay so mentally strong when you see your playing partner have a really great start?
SCHOFILL: It’s definitely really hard. And I kept just reminding myself yesterday. I had that hot start. I made a lot of putts. And to be honest, I wasn’t hitting that great of golf shots. So I felt like I was making some really nice pars. So kind of was building off of that. But no, I mean, you just gotta kind of tip your hat. Like Amari was playing really good. It would have been really hard to top that or even match that. So no, I was really just trying to stay focused on my game. Not worry about what she was doing.
Q: What hole would you say for you was the mental switch, where you were like, okay, you know what, I can win this.
SCHOFILL: I would say either 11 or 12. I made a really nice par, finally had hit a good approach shot on 11 and then made a great birdie on 12 and that kind of put the momentum in my favor. I felt like a little bit and then started hitting some nice golf shots and made a long putt on the 15th hole really propelled me. But no, I felt honestly after the 11th hole I felt okay if I kept playing well I would have a chance to win.
Q: I heard that you had a meters yardage book this week. How was it dealing with that?
SCHOFILL: Honestly, I didn’t realize it till after the first round. Had no idea. Thought my yardage book was just a misprint. Clearly it wasn’t. It was in meters. But I’m really superstitious, so I wasn’t going to change it because I shot 4-under the first day. But, I mean, I was just doing the calculations in my head after I realized that it was not in yards. But it’s just kind of golf, like. I just knew I couldn’t really trust it.
Q: What are you most proud of yourself for accomplishing this week and taking into the rest of the season?
SCHOFILL: I feel like the whole week really scored well. I don’t feel like I hit the best shots. I mean, I don’t even know if I hit 10 greens today, but I really scrambled. I never got down on myself. I felt like I just managed my game, played one shot at a time, and whatever happened, happened. And I felt, like, leading up to this and maybe I hadn’t been doing as great of a job of that. But I switched putters this week on Monday, and so I had, my new putter was really hot this week, so that was a huge boost of confidence for me and kind of took pressure off everything else in my game.
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Mondays: Soccer
By: Annie Peterson, @AnnieMPeterson, AP Women’s Soccer
Tuesdays: Tennis
By: Joey Dillon, @JoeyDillon, Freelance Tennis Writer
Wednesdays: Basketball
By: Howard Megdal, @HowardMegdal, The IX Sports
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By: Marin Dremock, @MDremock, The IX Sports
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