After 2-year absence, Jessica Korda returns to LPGA

For the first time in years, two Kordas are back in action on the LPGA Tour.

Six-time LPGA Tour winner Jessica Korda is teeing it up at this week’s Grant Thornton Invitational in Naples, Fla., joining her sister, Nelly Korda, in a field that consists of 16 PGA Tour players and 16 LPGA members. The two-person teams compete in three different formats and for a $4 million purse Friday to Sunday at Tiburon Golf Club.

Jessica Korda, who at 32 is five years older than her sister, is making her first start since May 2023, when she withdrew following the first round of the Founders Cup due to injury. She took time to rehabilitate her back and then gave birth to her son, Greyson, in February 2024.

Now she’s teamed up with Bud Cauley in her return. She said she asked Cauley, a longtime friend, if he wanted to team up with her in this event about four months ago. Since then she’s slowly tried to get back into golf shape for this event and more — although she said her return wouldn’t be full time — by building up her stamina and playing more rounds.

“I’m still taking it very much slowly because if I were to come back out on tour, it wouldn’t be until mid-March, so I have plenty of time,” she said Wednesday at Tiburon. “It was more just the buildup to this event and we’ll see what we need to work on going forward. But I can’t kind of make a tournament out at home because we’ll never get those competitive juices. Playing with the guys definitely makes me a little bit nervous, which is fun, and like I said, it’s just been a lot of fun to be out there. I feel like myself and it’s a little bit of a break from being a mom and wiping butts.”

Interestingly, Cauley is also familiar with returning to golf after a long layoff. He was in a serious car accident in 2018, missed several months and faced starts and stops in the years that followed.

“We have spoke about it a little bit, but really the only thing you can do is get out there and get your feet wet again.,” Cauley said. “Obviously I know she’s been putting in a lot of time at home to prepare and get ready. When we have talked about it, I guess I’m not very much help because really there’s no substitute just for coming back out playing, competing and going out there and trying to shoot a score.”

Friday’s format is a scramble, Saturday is alternate shot and Sunday’s final round will be a modified four-ball.

Cauley and Jessica Korda, along with Nelly Korda and her partner Denny McCarthy, played a practice round together on Tuesday.

“[Jessica’s] been out a couple times here and there and throughout the years, but I’m excited for her to tee it up this week and to kind of feel the nerves back,” Nelly Korda said. “It’s going to be a fun week. It’s always so nice to have family around. I hope she just has fun and keeps it kind of light.”

Last year, Jessica Korda had a spot in the booth during the Grant Thornton telecast. That, plus other random broadcasting gigs over the years, made her miss playing even more.

“When we were kind of talking about what I could possibly test my body out in, this was almost a no-brainer,” she said. “So yeah, I love this event. I loved the idea of it when it was first brought to us. And then just being behind the scenes of it and seeing how much fun everybody had, I felt like I had major FOMO, so I needed to play.”

The first round of the Grant Thornton will be broadcast 1-4 p.m. ET on Friday on Golf Channel. Jessica Korda and Cauley are paired with Rose Zhang and Michael Kim and tee off at 9:30 a.m.