Nelly Korda comes into the Olympic women’s golf tournament as the favorite to leave Tokyo with a gold medal. But she’ll have to contend with a slew of top players from South Korea, Thailand, and other nations – not the least of which is her own sister, Jessica Korda.
The Korda sisters are part of a four-player contingent in women’s golf for the Americans, who hold strong medal chances heading into the event.
Korda leads stacked field in women’s golf tournament
Unlike in men’s golf, where 15 players opted out of the Olympics, only two top women’s golfers withdrew from the tournament: Charley Hull of Great Britain and Lee Anne Pace of South Africa. That’s left the women’s field largely intact and as strong as possible for the Tokyo Olympics.
Nelly Korda comes in as the +700 pick to win gold in the Olympic women’s golf tournament. Korda won the 2021 Women’s PGA Championship and currently holds the No. 1 ranking in the world. She has a total of three wins on tour this season and six in her career.
| Olympic Women’s Golf Odds (via FanDuel Sportsbook) | |
| Nella Korda (USA): +700 | Inbee Park (South Korea): +1000 |
| Jin Young Ko (South Korea): +1000 | Sei Young Kim (South Korea): +1200 |
| Danielle Kang (USA): +1400 | Ariya Jutanugarn (Thailand): +1600 |
| Hyo-Joo Kim (South Korea): +1600 | Lydia Ko (New Zealand): +1600 |
| Patt Tavatanakit (Thailand): +1600 | Brooke Henderson (Canada): +1800 |
| Lexi Thompson (USA): +1800 | Shanshan Feng: +1800 |
| Hannah Green (Australia): +2000 | Nasa Hataoka (Japan): +2000 |
That puts Korda just ahead of Inbee Park (+1000), who won gold in 2016. Park leads a contingent of four South Korean golfers, all of whom rank among the top medal contenders. Also playing are Jin Young Ko (+1000), Sei Young Kim (+1200), and Hyo-Joo Kim (+1600). The four women rank between second (Ko) and fifth (Hyo-Joo Kim) in the women’s world golf rankings.
Team USA also brings a formidable squad of four players to Tokyo. Along with Korda, world No. 6 Danielle Kang (+1400) figures to be a top contender for a medal. Both Lexi Thompson (+1800) and Jessica Korda (+2700) are also serious contenders, as both rank inside the top 15 in the world.
All three medalists from Rio return
While those two teams might generate the most attention, athletes from several other countries should factor into the Olympic women’s golf podium race.
For starters, all three medalists from 2016 are back to try and repeat those performances in Tokyo. Lydia Ko (+1600) of New Zealand won silver in Rio, while China’s Shanshan Feng (+1800) took the bronze five years ago. Ko still ranks No. 10 in the world, while Feng sits inside the top 20.
Thailand’s squad may slip slightly under the radar compared to the Americans and Koreans, but shouldn’t be underestimated. Both Ariya Jutanugarn (+1600) and Patty Tavatanakit (+1600) represent serious threats to bring home Thailand’s first Olympic golf medal.
The hosts may struggle to come home with any hardware in women’s golf, but Japan does have a reasonable hope in Nasa Hataoka (+2000). She’s earned four LPGA wins in her career, and finished second at the US Women’s Open earlier this year.