Daily Dad News
Golfer Jessica Korda Excels With Tennis Pro Dad’s Guidance
February 13, 2012
At just 18 years of age, teen golf sensation Jessica Korda was not yet born when her father tennis player Petr Korda won the Australian Open in 1998. The family’s wining ways have passed on to Jessica, after the Bradenton, Fl. native fittingly won the LPGA Australian Open title over the weekend, her first.
Jessica bested five other leading players in a playoff hunt for the golf title. After a rough start, the teenager nailed a 25-foot birdie putt on the second extra hole. After sinking the putt, Jessica can now share some mantle space with her father. “It is a really special place for my family," Korda said. "For my first win, I honestly could not have thought of a better place.”
The win will pay immediate dividends for the Korda, with her world ranking jumping from 285 to a projected 30th slot. Jessica said her dad was proud of her but had some critiques of her game to offer as well. Just like her father before her, she now realizes hard work will eventually be rewarded.
“All the times, I was down last year, it is all worth it," Korda shared. "It made me grow up. It made me realize that you've got to change your life to live out here and this is proof. I know that all the hard hours I put in and will keep putting in are really worth it. Every moment."
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