The last few months have been quite the whirlwind for Chiara Horder, and the grind is not slowing down any time soon.
In early April, Horder competed at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, then later that month the junior helped Mississippi State win its first-ever Southeastern Conference title. She then helped the Bulldogs advance through the NCAA regionals and into the national championship event, where MSU placed 15th.
Now, as spring turns to summer, Horder is heading to her first U.S. Women’s Open at the Lancaster Country Club in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The native of Munich, Germany, played in two majors last year — the Evian Championship and the Women’s British Open — and qualified for the U.S. Open by winning The Women’s Amateur Championship last June in Kent, England.
“I’m really excited. It’s such a pleasure, it’s so nice being here,” Horder said. “Obviously the U.S. Open is something big and something very special.”
Horder began playing golf in Germany from a young age and followed her older brother, Nico Horder, to the American collegiate ranks. Nico, who is two years older than Chiara, played at Arkansas-Little Rock after spending his freshman year at Rogers State University in Oklahoma.
The younger Horder initially chose Texas Tech, where she competed for two years before transferring to MSU in 2023. Her boyfriend, Alejandro Pedryc, had also played his first two collegiate seasons with the Red Raiders and then joined the Bulldogs in 2022, and Horder followed him to Starkville a year later.
“It was quite a hard time just because I wanted something new,” Horder said. “I wanted a new environment. I just needed something new in my life. Coming to Mississippi State was very nice. I really liked both coaches (Charlie Ewing and Lauren Whyte). They’ve been helping me a lot.”
Prior to her victory at The Women’s Amateur last year, Horder’s best finish in a college tournament was sixth place at the 2022 Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invitational, although she did finish in the top 20 at the 2022 Women’s Amateur Championship. But she was dialed in for the 36-hole final round at Prince’s Golf Club, defeating Annabelle Pancake with four birdies on par-3s.
Horder carried that success into her first season at MSU, with a top-10 finish at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational in October that helped set the stage for the Bulldogs’ historic spring season.
“We hadn’t really started the spring semester too well,” Horder said. “I always believed in the team, but then ending up being the conference champion, that was always one of our goals. I’m very happy, very proud to be on that team, and then going to regionals, going to nationals and finishing (in the) top 15 was quite good.”
In Lancaster, Horder will compete against some of the golfers she admired most growing up, like Nelly Korda and Anna Nordqvist, and she is one of just 21 amateurs in the field. She will tee off Thursday for the first round at 1:14 p.m. local time (12:14 p.m. CT) along with Emily Kristine Pedersen of Denmark and Kokona Sakurai of Japan, starting with the back nine.
“I’ve been playing the course the last two days, and it’s very hard. It was quite windy the last few days as well,” Horder said. “The greens are firm (and) fast, the rough was so much thicker. All components which you don’t really experience in college golf, I would say. The courses are just not as tough as what you get here, not as long as what you get here. It’s definitely a big challenge, just staying mentally present and enjoying the moment.”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
