Team "Legally Blonde" Nelly Korda and Olivia Cowan Set to Rekindle Competitive Friendship This Week at the Dow Championship
By Elle Chavis
MIDLAND, Mich. – What did Nelly Korda and Olivia Cowan first bond over?
Coffee and croissants.
“We both have a love of coffee, so we were trying to find the best coffee spot and croissants,” Cowan said. “We just kind of bonded over that.”
The duo first played together at The Standard Portland Classic before also playing in events in Asia and Spain.
“We just had a really good time,” Cowan said. “It feels like we weren’t even concentrating on the golf, we were just chatting the whole time.”
“It’s a friendiversary,” Korda added.
For Korda, coming right off of a U.S. Women’s Open win and looking towards both the Amundi Evian Championship and the AIG Women’s Open, coming to play at the 2026 Dow Championship in Midland, Mich., brings a welcome change from the intensity of major season.
“It is really nice to switch it up,” Korda said. “It kind of gives you a little bit more of a boost where you’re maybe smiling a little bit more, having more fun on the golf course.”
The team aspect of the Dow Championship provides a unique opportunity for golfers to play with a partner, a rarity in what is usually a solitary sport. At the only official team event on the LPGA Tour, golfers face off in a mixture of foursomes (alternate shot) and four-ball (best ball) rounds. Instead of relying only on their caddie, at Dow, players can rely on each other, playing to each other’s strengths and building off of each other’s energy.
“It’s nice that you can also lean on someone for a week,” Cowan said. “You don’t really have that in this individual sport.”
In addition to the team aspect of the event, in one of the smallest markets on the LPGA Tour, the town of Midland comes out in droves to support the tournament and the players.
“I think it’s really important to hit these smaller markets as it is to hit bigger markets and medium markets,” Korda said. “It is really cool to see how the entire city comes out and supports this event.”
Still, Korda and Cowan did not spend most of their time in the first five holes they played together discussing golf strategy, though that will surely be the focus as the week goes on. Their primary concern at the moment is finalizing a walk-up song that will be played on Saturday on the par-3 18th hole.
“It’s a very serious discussion,” Cowan said. “I think it’s going to be a really fun experience, and I think we’re really trying to pick the right song that suits us both.”
While the two have not yet finalized their walk-up song, they have locked in their team name: Legally Blonde.
“I will say that Olivia is the only person that will get me to wear all pink,” Korda said.
The two blondes will look to tee-off in the 2026 Dow Championship on Thursday.
