Jessica Korda didn’t have an ideal off-season. Instead of spending her time traveling, or working out, or working on her game like most LPGA players, she had to undergo jaw surgery in December, an elaborate procedure that required her nose and jaw to be broken and 27 screws placed to reset all the bones. The goal was to fix chronic, painful headaches that Korda has been trying to manage for years, but it meant being unable to pick up a club until mid-January.
Of course, you wouldn't have known it from her play this past week at the Honda LPGA Thailand, Korda's first start of the 2018 season. Despite feeling somewhat underprepared, and still having numbness in the face, the 24-year-old was finally headache-free and anxious to see how it might effect her on the course.
“This is the most holes I've played in a row since CME [Tour Championship],” Korda said. “I didn't know how I was going to do. I was just coming in here just happy to be able to play and be able to be back out. I've missed it. It was hard sitting home watching everyone on TV.”