The new Jessica Korda is an awful lot like the old Jessica Korda, just with 27 screws in her face.
The 24-year-old Florida native beat a world-class field at the Honda LPGA Thailand only months removed from having major reconstructive jaw surgery that she is still recovering from.
So @Thejessicakorda shot 25 under and won on the LPGA today with numbness and 27 screws in her face after offseason double jaw surgery. Beyond impressive.
— Ryan Lavner (@RyanLavnerGC) February 25, 2018
GolfChannel.com’s Will Gray had the crazy story behind Korda’s visible transformation.
Korda’s world-class talent was on full display this week in Asia, where she won by four shots, but so too was her new-look face. The 24-year-old underwent serious jaw surgery in December, a final attempt to address a significant overbite that led to ailments ranging from facial cramping to headaches to sleep apnea.
Jessica Korda’s physical appearance has transformed due to her jaw surgery. (GolfChannel.com)
The procedure was intense. Doctors first broke her nose, then broke her jaw in five different places – three on the top, and two on the bottom. She now has 27 screws in her face, and the physical result still requires some adjustment for a woman who now has five career LPGA wins.
“I look at pictures of myself and I don’t feel like I look like that person,” Korda told Golfweek. “I don’t know who that is. And then I look at pictures of my old self and that doesn’t look like me either.”
The Dec. 7 surgery left Korda unable to eat, with her mother reportedly feeding her through a syringe for “weeks.” Korda’s facial structure before the surgery was such that she was only using 20 percent of her teeth when chewing food.
But despite returning to practice only six weeks ago and still dealing with lingering numbness in her face, Korda promptly dusted a world-class field in her first start back. She shot 25 under for the week, highlighted by a second-round 62, leaving the likes of Lexi Thompson and Ariya Jutanugarn in her wake.
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