Why Nelly Korda’s ‘unbelievable miss’ opinion is valuable

Welcome! Where are you, you ask. I’m calling this the Weekend 9. Think of it as a spot to warm up for Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We’ll have thoughts. We’ll have tips. We’ll have tweets. But just nine in all, though sometimes maybe more and sometimes maybe less. As for who I am? The paragraphs below tell some of the story. I can be reached at nick.piastowski@golf.com.

Nelly Korda spoke up.

And I can’t help but think that’ll be one of the LPGA’s moments of the year. 

Korda’s thought had come in a story this week from meticulous Golfweek writer Beth Ann Nichols, and you can read the entire story here. Earlier this month, a women’s indoor simulator league was announced — the WTGL, which will be played much like TGL, the men’s simulator league that kicked off a year ago. And folks were excited. There’d be golf. There’d be exposure. All good things. 

But Korda, in talking with Nichols this week, was upset. 

The women, she said, should be playing with the men. 

“I have mixed feelings on it, if I’m being very honest,” Korda said, “and I’m surprised no other girls have, or no one’s really spoken out about it. 

“I think it’s a huge and unbelievable miss that we’re not playing alongside the men. There’s no greater way to grow the game, and it would have been revolutionary. It would have been the first time, I think, that men and women are on the same playing field, playing for the same exact amount of money. 

“But I also think it’s great that we are getting this opportunity, so that’s my mixed feelings.”

For what it’s worth, I agree, and I’ve previously thought that there should be a mixed Ryder Cup-style event. But for now, let’s put aside our opinions on her opinion. 

Because it’s the thought that counts. 

A sincere thought. And expressing it. 

That’s not from me, though. That’s from LPGA commish Craig Kessler. It was just a couple of months ago, at the LPGA’s season-ending event, where, amidst a series of questions about the LPGA’s growth, star building and attention creation, he said this:

“We compete in the attention economy. It’s not just against other sports. It’s: Should I put on Netflix, should I go out to dinner, should I hang out with friends, should I play in the backyard, should I go play a round of golf? 

“Anything that has the potential to capture a fan’s attention, we are competing against that, so it’s our job to be differentiated, to be interesting, and capture fans’ minds in every way we possibly can.”

Now, should Korda and other pros go all Talking Head or have their own Friday opinion piece on a golf website? No, of course not (though I’d happily take a week off). And there’s also the chance that Kessler and his team will meet every need of every LPGA pro. But probably not.  

Think of the pros who have let you into their thinking the way Korda did. You notice. You saw the headline on Nichols’ story and you clicked. (A friendly reminder to do so, if you haven’t.) And you look for more. Maybe you stick around. Maybe while you’re there, you find something else that’s interesting. 

And, all of a sudden, folks are talking about the LPGA like they do, say, the WNBA.  

None of this is all that painful, either. 

The truth doesn’t hurt, right? 

“Again, no silver bullets to creating stars, and this is where it takes an ecosystem,” Kessler said last November. “Yesterday we had our partner meeting, and at the end they graciously asked, what can we do to help. We said two things: Raise your hand if you have ideas or a megaphone that you’re willing to share; and, two, make introductions to those who can also lean in and help.

“There are so many examples we can point to, whether it’s what Nelly did by going to the Met Gala or with Sports Illustrated or Charley [Hull] going to a state banquet in the UK or some of the recent things she’s done on social. I could take you through a variety of players and things that they have done to show up in culture, not just inside the ropes. Those things make a difference.

“We have done a massive piece of work on our fans. What do fans love and what do fans want to see more of. And one of the pieces of feedback we’re getting is that they want to see our LPGA athletes and stars show up outside the ropes.”

Let’s see if we can find eight more items for the Weekend 9. 

2. The video below was good, too. 

One takeaway from the week that was 

3. Brooks Koepka returned to the PGA Tour this week, and Tuesday we heard from him for the first time publicly since the four-time major winner and LIV parted ways — and I thought what he did say about the separation and the comeback was interesting, along with what he didn’t say. 

His family played the biggest part, he said. He’ll now be able to play more events closer to home since the Tour plays almost all of its schedule in the U.S. 

Koepka also said he had no regrets. 

“I don’t regret anything I do. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve always enjoyed the ride no matter where I’m at. I think that’s one thing that’s — you also learn from anything, anything you’re doing, so I have no regrets.”

And he kept things friendly when talking about LIV. Is that surprising? Maybe a little. Divorces can get messy, and golf’s civil war has been ugly. But the parties involved are playing nice, at least publicly.  

“Brooks and I — I talked to Brooks Friday just to put things in perspective,” LIV CEO Scott O’Neil said earlier this month. “There is no holy war, at least from our side. It’s like, we are about LIV Golf and growing the game globally. Actually I love Brooks. I root for Brooks. I am hoping the best for him and his family.

“If this is what he wants, there will be no better cheerleader for him than me. I’ll tell you what, good for him if he’s getting what he wants and we get what we want. I’m absolutely — I couldn’t be happier for him and for us.”

One takeaway for the weekend 

4. Speaking of LIV, the circuit starts its schedule next week. 

And the deadline for Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Smith to rejoin the PGA Tour under the program Koepka used is Monday. 

A good read for your weekend 

5. This story here was good. Written by Hugo Lindgren of the New York Times Magazine, it profiles Max Greyserman — and how he’s using lessons from his dad’s time on Wall Street. 

I enjoyed this part:

That’s why the Greysermans framed their presentation with the language of behavioral economics, listing the cognitive biases that disrupt good decision-making. Because bogeys hurt more than birdies feel good, you get timid on the green and leave your putts short. That’s loss aversion. When a great shot sends your confidence soaring, that’s recency bias. Or when you convince yourself that a string of bad shots is sure to end with the next one, that’s the gambler’s fallacy at work.

Merely learning the terminology is hardly a solution to anything. Behavioral economics is, at best, a science of educated guesses; at worst, it’s an academic sleight of hand. In real life, cognitive biases distort our thinking as we confabulate narratives out of randomness. Subduing your cognitive biases means digging deep, changing how your mind works. 

An instruction tip for your weekend 

6. This story here was good. Written by the University of Kansas, it says that athletes with better jumping ability have faster clubhead speed.  

Another instruction tip for your weekend 

7. Below is 40-plus minutes of GOLF’s Dylan Dethier talking golf swing with Jordan Spieth. Enjoy. 

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A story that interests me

8. This story here was good. Written by Barron’s, it says that a British tour agency is hosting an event this year — in North Korea.  

9. Question is, have any GOLF writers played in the tournament?

Yes, Josh Sens has, and that story can be read here. Here’s a preview of what he wrote:

In 2011, the year I was there, I gained entry to North Korea by fudging the facts on my visa application. (I said I was a golf-tour operator.) I flew to Beijing, hopped a train to eastern China, then winged into Pyongyang on a groaning Soviet-built jet that I felt pretty certain was going to crash. I was met at the airport by a North Korean government minder, who remained glued to me throughout my week-plus stay. He was part sidekick, part enforcer — Stevie Williams in disguise.

A video that interests me 

10. Let’s do 10 items! The video below was, well, interesting.