GAINESVILLE, VIRGINIA | Interest in women’s sports has never been higher, fueled in the past nine months first by NCAA basketball and then the WNBA. The U.S. women’s soccer team continued the trend at the Paris Olympics, drawing record TV audiences on its way to gold.
In some respects, golf has been ahead of the curve, and with the growth it has experienced in the past decade, it is in position to take advantage of the surging popularity of those other sports, as well.
“All women’s sports are trending in a great direction,” said Mollie Marcoux Samaan, the LPGA commissioner since August 2021. “The mindset has really shifted to realize that these are the best athletes in the world. The product is amazing. It’s a great fan experience.”
This year, the LPGA Tour schedule consists of 33 official events, up from 23 in 2011. Those events will be held in 15 states, including a return to the Boston area for the first time in nearly 25 years, and 10 countries, highlighted by two swings in Asia. There have been at least 32 official tournaments each year since 2014.
“The 2024 LPGA Tour schedule reflects our historic growth,” Samaan said in a statement when the schedule was announced in November. “Our global reach and competitiveness have never been stronger.”
“Our team is working really hard to grow the game.”
LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan
However, since 2021, a handful of events have lost their places on the calendar, including one in Virginia. Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg – about a three-hour drive from the site of this week’s Solheim Cup at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville – had an LPGA tournament for nearly 20 years.
Prize money for LPGA tournaments is at record levels. In 2021, it was about $70 million for its 30 official events. This year, it is a record $116.55 million. Breaking it down further, 16 tournaments (again a record) feature a purse of at least $3 million. In 2023, there were four, and in 2021, just one. The season-ending CME Group Tour Championship will offer $11 million, an increase of $4 million.
“Our team is working really hard to grow the game,” Samaan said.
The growth is not just in the United States. In 2017, there were 14 tournaments on the Ladies European Tour, offering a total of €11.5 million euros in prize money. This year, those respective numbers are 31 and €37 million. The LET plays in 21 countries.
“We have 30 tournaments we play in all over the world,” said Alexandra Armas, the CEO of the Ladies European Tour since January 2020. “We have a global footprint.”
Most of the events are in Europe, where they play mostly from May through September. However, it has collaborations with the Sunshine Ladies Tour in South Africa, the Women’s PGA of Australasia, and ventures into India.
As to what’s behind the surge, Samaan said the sport is more popular than ever.
“I think 1.4 million female golfers have joined the sport in the last couple years,” she said. “The percentage of women playing has escalated over the last several years. Young girls playing golf has continued to grow.”
Armas pointed to increased TV exposure.
“The fans didn’t have the opportunity to watch women’s sports, and now that they get to watch it, they realize that it’s as entertaining as the men’s version,” she said. “They’re really connecting now with the athletes.”
That has led to players becoming household names and role models. The golfers have done their share, too, accepting their roles, and in many cases, embracing them.
Americans Nelly Korda, the top-ranked player in the world, and Lexi Thompson are perfect examples.
“I think that’s the best part of this job, that we get to inspire the next generation,” Korda said.
Thompson burst onto the scene as a 12-year-old at the US. Women’s Open in 2007 and has witnessed much of the growth.
“It’s truly amazing to see just how far the women’s game has come,” said Thompson, who turned pro in 2010 and announced in May, after 11 LPGA victories, that this will be her last season playing the tour full time, even though she’s just 29. “Seeing the amount of coverage we get, the increase in purses and all the sponsors we’ve gained and the relationships we’ve built with some of these sponsors, it’s really incredible to watch over the years.”
Paula Creamer, an assistant captain for the U.S. team this week, is 38 and has been a member of the LPGA since 2005. She pointed out something not as obvious for the increased popularity.
“The longevity of girls,” she said. “They’ve been around a lot longer than what they were in the past. I think that’s a huge part of it.”
She concedes that it didn’t come overnight and there’s work to be done, though.
“To showcase the women, it’s taken a long time, but I think we’re getting there. We still need a little bit more push, but at the same time, it is night and day from when I first came out on tour.”
Paula Creamer
The LET also has its share of talented players, including England’s Charley Hull, who is ranked 12th in the world and one of the most popular in Europe. Armas also singled out Sweden’s Linn Grant and Ireland’s Leona Maguire.
Where does the sport go from here?
Korda hopes that women’s golf continues to attract investment because the product “is amazing. There’s so many stories out here, and the personalities and the girls. They’re such amazing people.”
Armas said the sport needs to make it so those who don’t play golf recognize names.
“I think that’s kind of the next stage within the golf industry and the golf world,” she said. “We’re doing very well.”
Drawing non-golfers will drive the tours to the next level, she added, but noted it will take talent, time and luck.
“You need a few things to happen, obviously. You need a player that performs. You need the right moment that kind of triggers the attention and the imagination of people outside of the golf world,” she said. “Then when that does happen, the elements need to be in place to capitalize on it.”
They can’t afford mistakes like what happened the first day of matches at the Solheim Cup, when transportation problems resulted in thousands of fans standing in line for hours waiting to board buses to take them from parking to the course. Organizers of the event were expecting more than 130,000 fans for the week, which would be an event record.
“Yes, it was disappointing. We’re not happy with what happened,” Samaan said.
Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist, who turned pro in 2009, is playing in her ninth Solheim Cup. She dreamt of playing professionally since she was a young girl.
“I’m just excited that there’s going to be a lot more girls in the future having the same opportunity and being able to do this and live their dreams in a similar way that I’ve done,” she said. “At the end of the day, I think women’s golf wins coming Sunday afternoon.”
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Top: Nelly Korda has become one of the most recognizable golfers in the world.
Gregory Shamus, Getty Images