ST ANDREWS: Nelly Korda said on Wednesday that winning a Women’s British Open at St Andrews would be a “dream come true”. The final major of the year is being staged on the Old Course at the Scottish venue for only the third time and first since 2013.

Victory for Korda, the 26-year-old daughter of former Australian Open tennis champion Petr Korda, would cap off a memorable 2024 after she won the season’s first major, the Chevron Championship. That success in April was part of a superb run of six tournament wins in seven starts but a triumph at St Andrews, the venue for many a memorable men’s British Open, would rate highly even in Korda’s illustrious career.

“There’s so much rich history out here — it’s been really exciting,” said Korda during a pre-tournament press conference. “Coming down 18, the views there are spectacular. It’s going to be such an amazing week.

“It would obviously be a dream come true to have my name etched into the history.” The American added: “But, at the end of the day, I’m just going to focus that one shot at a time and not think of Sunday. I’m just going to think of my first tee shot on Thursday.”

Korda is one of several contenders who could win on the renowned coastal course. New Zealand’s Lydia Ko has arrived in Scotland on the back of her recent Olympic gold medal in Paris, with Japan’s Ayaka Furue looking to follow up her Evian Championship success.

Amy Yang, the Women’s PGA Championship winner and world number three Ko Jin-young feature among a strong South Korean contingent and Lilia Vu of the United States is back to defend her title. British hopes largely rest with 2018 champion Georgia Hall and last year’s runner-up and world number 10 Charley Hull.

Meanwhile, former champion Catriona Matthew has confirmed this will be her last Women’s Open. The 54-year-old Scot first appeared in the tournament in 1993 and won the title in 2009. “It just felt that being in St Andrews in Scotland, the home of golf, what better place to play my last one,” said Matthew. “I’ve realized that at 55 (next year), I’m not going to be as competitive as I want to be, so everything comes to an end.” — AFP