Czech golfer Jessica Korda to be U.S. player

9/4/2008

Prague (CTK) - Czech 15-year-old golf player Jessica Korda, who finished 19th at the U.S. Women's Open tournament in June, will not represent her homeland anymore.

She will represent the United States where she is based with her family, she told the latest Czech issue of Golf Digest.

"I come to the Czech Republic with my parents only once a year for a few weeks," said Korda who has both Czech and U.S. citizenship.

"It seems logical for me to play for the United States. And I would like to become a member of the U.S. team - it is more difficult and people notice it more," she added.

Her father Petr Korda, once a successful tennis player, said he did not want to influence his daughter's decision.

He said he promised the Czech Golf Federation that his daughter would play for her the Czech Republic until the age of 15.

The hope that the Czech Republic will finally have its representative in top international golf will not be fulfilled, the magazine writes.

Korda's golf career therefore might be similar to that of Alex Cejka, a Czech-born professional golfer who now represents Germany.

Cejka's parents moved to Germany when he was a child. However, Czechs still consider Cejka "their" player, the magazine says.

Source: ČTK