How LPGA No. 1 Nelly Korda stays fresh, from sleep data to axe throwing

Nelly Korda talks often about prioritizing rest and recovery. Her parents, former world-class tennis players, make sure she stays on track in the rest department.

Winning is exhausting. And Korda, 26, was honest about what it took to maintain her form in 2024. For example, Korda won four consecutive events in the spring and enjoyed a week off ahead of the Chevron Championship.

I don’t think I’ve ever been that tired,” Korda said early week at the Chevron. “I would wake up and I was ready to go back to bed but I couldn’t. It’s almost to the point where you just can’t sleep; you’re just overly tired.

“Made sure to prioritize my rest. My parents are on top of me to not overdo it. I always want to practice more, do more to be better. So made sure to prioritize my rest and making sure to go to sleep early and sleeping a lot, too. That’s the number one thing for recovery.”

Korda, of course, went on to win that week at the Chevron for her fifth consecutive victory.

The World No. 1 wears a Whoop band and has been an ambassador of the wearable health tracker since 2021, though she wore it for several years prior to the formal relationship.

At the end of 2024, Whoop released recovery data from Korda’s historic seven-win season, noting that good sleep boosted her recovery up to 14 percent. The night before each tournament victory, she averaged 7.7 hours of sleep.

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Because Korda played in the PNC Championship with her father in late December, she has a short offseason of five weeks. After Christmas, Korda headed to Park City, Utah, for some wintery fun that included snowmobiling and a snowy hike. She even tried her hand at axe throwing.