When a Cheerful Nelly Korda Became the Villainess in This European Pro’s Solheim Cup Story! A Look Back into the Controversial Solheim Cup Moment from 2021
With less than a day to go, fans and players get ready to witness the Solheim Cup again after two years. So we thought it might be nice to revisit an incident that colored the previous edition of the tournament. The incident involves Nelly Korda, and it happened right on the opening day of Solheim Cup 2021.
The sweet soul who usually throws smiles and hopes around her ended up being the reason for someone’s major disappointment. In case you have not heard this story before, or perhaps forgot it, hop in.
On the opening day of Solheim Cup 2021, Nelly Korda and Ally Ewing from the US team faced Europe’s Nanna Koerstz Madsen and Madelene Sagstrom for the afternoon four-ball. At the thirteenth hole, Korda’s ball approached the hole and stopped above it.
Madelene Sagstrom, however, tried to speed up the pace of the round and picked up the ball. Apparently, she was three seconds too early, and it was an illegal move. As compensation, Nelly Korda received one stroke less on her score.
The rule for this situation is that an opponent can’t intentionally pick the ball until ten seconds have passed. This is to ensure the opponent doesn’t stop the ball from falling, in case it does after a few seconds. Sagstrom only allowed seven seconds, apparently.
