It’s not every day that a top LPGA golfer gets a shoutout from an NBA superstar. But after Nelly Korda‘s immaculate play on the second day at the 2025 CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, she found herself in the spotlight. And it was all because of LeBron James.

In a press conference after Saturday’s third round, Nelly Korda was asked if she had checked her phone as LeBron James posted another highlight of Korda on his Instagram. LeBron James shared the LPGA’s Instagram post highlighting Nelly Korda’s impressive Friday round, which featured nine birdies and was her career-best round.

The original post, captioned “Swipe to watch all NINE of @nellykorda’s Friday birdies ➡️,” was reposted by James on his Instagram Stories. And, well, Korda was ecstatic.

“He loves golf, and I love that he loves golf. I love how golf and sports brings so many people together, so it’s fun to see. And hopefully one day we hit the links together,” she responded.

Korda’s words weren’t just a casual gesture towards the NBA superstar, but they came with a cheeky invitation of hoping to play a friendly round of golf with him.

Yes, she has never met him, but this wasn’t the first time he had posted of her. Just last week at the ANNIKA, he tweeted about her clutch putt on the 18th hole in Round 2 — “Helluva put Nelly! ⛳️”

Korda shared her excitement, saying, “I mean, it’s so cool, especially playing on Wednesday with Caitlin. I actually did see he tweeted about my shoes, too, so it’s cool to see all these legends get into the game of golf.”

Many might wonder why a basketball icon is so invested in women’s golf. James himself explained his enthusiasm for the game and for watching the women on the LPGA. “I love watching YouTube golf ⛳️ videos!! Random I know. lol. SO COOL!” But his admiration for the sport is more than just casually watching it.

Golf has been a consistent hobby for LeBron James, even amid a busy schedule. In September, hours before his Hall of Fame induction, he was spotted at GreatHorse in Hampden for a round of golf. However, this offseason passion may have been costing him as James has battled sciatica, a nerve-related pain along his lower back, since mid-summer. Orthopedic physician Dr. Alan Beyer suggested that James’ increased golf activity could be a factor.

Still, while he has been suggested to cut down on playing golf a bit, that does not stop him from following and staying up to date with what Nelly Korda is up to on the course.

She is currently tied for second after three rounds. And Nelly Korda is making a strong case for herself at the event. She shot a bogey-free 7-under par on Saturday, bringing her total to 16-under, but she remains six shots behind leader Jeeno Thitikul, who is currently leading the way at 22-under.

As the leaderboard heats up with just one round to go, Korda knows that the key to closing the gap won’t be rushing or taking risks. It will be all about sticking to her process.

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Nelly Korda Focuses on Process Over Pressure for Final Round

As the final round of the season approaches, Korda isn’t planning to push the accelerator too hard. When asked if she might tweak her process to go after the win, she kept her strategy and response grounded.

“No, because I feel like when you start to push a little harder, sometimes the mistakes do start to creep in a little bit. You just have to be focused on your process and yourself,” she stated.

Her focus is on staying in the moment rather than getting ahead of herself. She hasn’t won a single title this year, despite having 8-top 10 finishes and coming close to a win several times, including the U.S. Women’s Open. But she does not want to push too hard to chase a win.

“If it happens, it happens. You know, just know that you are out there competing hard and you’re trying to win, but you also have to not get too ahead of yourself and play the game. Because if you start to get a little too ahead of yourself and push a little too hard those mistakes do start to creep in and it’s not going to be beneficial,” Korda admitted during the press conference.

Not far behind Nelly Korda is Pajaree Anannarukarn, who is tied with her at 16-under. And the leaderboard gets tighter further down with Sei Young Kim and Somi Lee following closely behind. With the leaderboard tighter than ever, Korda’s focus on her process over pressure could be the key as she heads into the final round, proving that staying in the moment might be her best shot at ending the season strong and maybe finally earning that win.