Did LPGA capitalize on girls’s sports activities growth? Or did it fall quick?

NAPLES, Fla. — The LPGA had its Caitlin Clark second. 

With Caitlin Clark, really. 

The WNBA mega star performed final week within the pro-am for the Annika match, named for Annika Sorenstam, one in all its largest names, whom Clark joined for 9 holes. The opposite half of the spherical, she walked alongside the LPGA’s closest model of her, Nelly Korda. There have been highlights. There have been tee photographs by chance hit into crowds. Golf was performed, and, by all accounts, the proceedings had been loved by each the gamers and people watching them. 

Notably, although, the spherical in Florida additionally began at 7 a.m. ET, with Golf Channel managing to indicate some reside play, because it began its Golf At the moment present at 11 a.m., 90 minutes sooner than regular. Are pro-am rounds broadcast-worthy? Not often, even for the buzziest of names. Ought to it by some means have been performed just a little later? Perhaps. Extra social-media ideas, particularly from the Midwest, the place Clark grew up and now performs professionally, wouldn’t have harm.   

The purpose right here is for example an even bigger image, although. 

Ladies’s sports activities is probably in its largest growth. Clark has introduced tens of millions of eyes to the WNBA, together with tens of millions of {dollars}, and possibly most necessary, she’s had prolonged endurance, together with her identify being talked about for the higher a part of two years now. There have been additionally the ever-popular Olympics this 12 months. In golf, Korda has ascended into uncommon air. There are the wins — seven now, essentially the most by an LPGA participant since 2011, and essentially the most by an American lady since 1990. However there’s her celeb, too. Korda was on the Met Gala. She’ll be within the newest Sports activities Illustrated swimsuit version. She’s probably reaching the purpose the place your non-golf pal has a minimum of heard of her, and your golf friends may name her by only one phrase: Nelly.  

Query is, then, did her tour capitalize on that second, as Clark’s league did? Perhaps you noticed a WNBA recreation, possibly you didn’t. However on the very least you heard about Caitlin Clark, someplace, by some means, together with among the league’s different stars and groups. 

The subject was broached this week to a handful of the LPGA’s stars, together with its commissioner, forward of the CME Group Tour Championship, its season-ending occasion, the place its winner will acquire a file $4 million, and that unarguably sits within the win column. There’s extra excellent news there. On Wednesday, the tour launched its 2025 schedule — which can be its seventy fifth season — that’ll function 35 occasions and a prize pool of $131 million, which, in line with the tour, is a $62 million improve from 4 years in the past; all tournaments will even be broadcast on both Golf Channel, NBC, CBS or ESPN+. After all, like each sports activities league, the LPGA has made its errors, too. There was a well-documented fan transportation downside on the Solheim Cup. Cognizant, which backed the Founders Cup, isn’t among the many sponsor names on subsequent 12 months’s schedule. There have additionally been questions in regards to the job efficiency of the tour’s commissioner, Mollie Marcoux Samaan, which Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols expertfully described right here, in an article printed final week.  

In brief, issues occurred — however did issues occur in addition to they might have? Admittedly, it’s a troublesome query to ask of stakeholders. You need to consider in the place you’re employed. However you need what’s finest for it, too. That mentioned, this stuff take time, and what you see immediately or subsequent 12 months could also be constructing towards one thing extra. For readability, I’ll embrace full exchanges, and notice the place they happened — one-on-one interviews can sometimes supply completely different responses than formal press conferences, which happen underneath the lights, in entrance of tour officers and are shared on transcripts out there to anybody with web knowledge. To a couple gamers, I additionally requested what their want listing can be, and I additionally requested an identical query to Terry Duffy, the CEO of the CME Group.   

In a sentence, the solutions had been combined. 

Did the LPGA capitalize on the ladies’s sports activities growth?

Angel Yin 

With Nelly, with girls’s sports activities typically, the Caitlin Clark rise in girls’s basketball, there was a chance for the LPGA to seize that second. Do you suppose they’ve carried out job of that?

“No,” mentioned Angel Yin, chatting with me one-on-one.  

Why do you say that?

“Gosh, it simply doesn’t really feel prefer it,” she mentioned. “It’s an opinion. Like Caitlin Clark coming over to our match created a crowd, created a buzz — didn’t really feel prefer it acquired on the market sufficient. Went out to a certain quantity of individuals. However I don’t know, like I mentioned, to offer an in depth reply, I’ve to love — I need to be extra accountable with my solutions so I simply don’t need to communicate. But when you must ask how I really feel about that, I don’t actually suppose we’ve capitalized that a lot. Simply driving the wave that different persons are doing and we’re simply related to girls. Sadly, I don’t suppose we have now carried out sufficient.”

(Editor’s notice: Yin has extra to supply beneath.) 

Lexi Thompson 

This 12 months, I feel it’s protected to say that in girls’s golf and on the LPGA tour, that this might have been a turning level 12 months with the elevated curiosity in girls’s sports activities, the Caitlin Clark curiosity, with Nelly taking part in the best way she has. Me query is: Do you suppose the LPGA captured that second correctly?

“Yeah, properly, at first,” Lexi Thompson mentioned in her press convention, “I feel girls’s sports activities typically are on such a excessive proper now and transferring in the appropriate path, whether or not it’s rising in every sport or golf typically.

“You already know, I’ve at all times mentioned in any interviews since I turned professional, the sport of golf, our sponsors, tournaments, purses, they’ve all raised and our TV protection has elevated.

“I feel we may carry on enhancing. I feel there’s much more room for enchancment. I feel we’re making as many tales as we are able to and specializing in all the nice, however I feel there are such a lot of skills out right here and so many tales that we are able to actually deal with and actually usher in lots of followers and usher in an even bigger fan base than what we have now.

“I feel there’s simply extra room for enchancment. We’re enhancing proper now, however there’s much more to go.”

I assume greater query, have you ever ever considered a method that these tales could possibly be advised like that?

“That’s an awesome query as properly,” Thompson mentioned. “I feel simply displaying the personalities of the gamers out right here. After all everyone sees the expertise. I feel increasingly individuals want to appreciate how proficient the ladies are out right here and are available out and help us. As a result of I don’t suppose TV does it justice. I feel you must see it in individual.

“However, yeah, there are such a lot of nice personalities out right here. It’s only a matter of creating these tales primarily based on these individuals which can be keen to open up and actually present the world they’re extra than simply golf. There may be far more to us than that.”

(Editor’s notice: Thompson has introduced that this 12 months can be her final as a full-time LPGA member.)

Nelly Korda 

With this 12 months and the rise in curiosity in girls’s sports activities and the curiosity in clearly your success this 12 months and the curiosity in Caitlin Clark’s play within the WNBA, do you suppose the LPGA has carried out job capturing that second and selling that?

“I imply, clearly I’m the one hitting a golf ball, however on the finish of the day I don’t know the logistics behind every thing,” Nelly Korda mentioned throughout her press convention. “I deal with my profession and what I’m doing, so I don’t actually know if I can reply that query.”

(Editor’s notice: Korda has been requested in regards to the comparisons to Clark earlier than, and one of many tales on the topic may be learn right here.) 

Lydia Ko 

This 12 months, there’s been rise in curiosity in girls’s sports activities, with Caitlin Clark, along with your success, with Nelly Korda’s success, much more broadcasts. My query is, do you suppose the LPGA tour did job of capturing that second?

“I feel it’s going to be a solution that’s completely different for everybody, to be sincere,” Lydia Ko mentioned throughout a one-on-one interview after her press convention. “I don’t activate and watch the protection once I’m not taking part in, however I’m at all times taking a look at highlights. I clearly comply with the LPGA social media so I see it with that, however I do consider that we’re getting higher, and clearly inside our tour, there’s simply been so many nice tales which were proven. Yeah, I feel with something, nothing is ideal. We are able to at all times get higher and enhance. However I’d by no means say that they did a nasty job.”

Ally Ewing 

“This 12 months, with Nelly taking part in properly, with an elevated curiosity in girls’s sports activities, Caitlin Clark, you could possibly say there was a chance for the LPGA to possibly grasp that second and journey that wave and go previous that even. Do you suppose the Tour did that?”

“Nicely, I do know I’ve by no means seen — when it comes to Caitlin Clark final week taking part in the pro-am, I’ve by no means seen that many individuals round one group in a pro-am,” Ally Ewing mentioned in her press convention. “So the thrill, I feel, simply to see a present dominant feminine basketball participant who performs golf once in a while are available and play our pro-am, that was enormous for a turnout.

“I ran out onto the 18th fairway to get an image together with her myself as a result of I performed basketball in highschool. I feel there’s at all times alternative to succeed in just a little bit larger. I feel the LPGA has carried out an awesome job in progress.

“So when it comes to simply doing higher and higher, I feel we’re doing higher. I feel there are tons of alternatives that we are able to look to make use of as we transfer ahead.”

(Editor’s notice: Ewing is retiring after this week.) 

Mollie Marcoux Samaan 

With the eye on Caitlin Clark, with the Olympics this 12 months, with Nelly’s play this 12 months, curiosity in girls’s sports activities has by no means been larger. With that being mentioned, my query is, do you suppose the LPGA correctly captured that second?

“I imply, I feel the numbers present that we captured that second, proper?” Marcoux Samaan mentioned in her formal press convention. “In case you have a look at what — our job is to ensure that our gamers have alternatives to make a residing commensurate with their expertise.

“Are we carried out but? No. Ought to this be extra? Ought to they be making as a lot as the boys? Sure, we need to get to that time once we can. Yeah, I feel we’ve carried out superb work. I feel our workforce has carried out superb work. I feel our companions have stepped up on many alternative ranges and have actually elevated what we’re doing.

“Are we carried out with that progress? Completely not. Are we targeted on getting — persevering with to get extra followers underneath our tent and persevering with to get extra publicity for our gamers? Positively. I imply, we’re a growth-minded group.

“However I don’t suppose anyone may say that the expansion hasn’t been outstanding over the past three years.”

(Editor’s notice: Marcoux Samaan is in her fourth 12 months as LPGA commissioner.) 

Terry Duffy, CME Group CEO 

In case you had the possibility to inform one other enterprise to sponsor like you might have, to assist the LPGA comply with the ladies’s sports activities growth, what would you inform these companies?

“I wouldn’t inform them something,” mentioned Terry Duffy, the CEO of the CME Group, which simply signed a two-year settlement to proceed its sponsorship of this week’s match. [Duffy spoke to a handful of reporters on Wednesday afternoon.]

“Right here’s what I’m a giant believer in: Generally visuals are rather more necessary than phrases. I’d been requested when Mike Whan was nonetheless the commissioner of the LPGA — and I talked to Mike yesterday; he’s an awesome pal — he requested me, he had a sponsor that was enthusiastic about dipping their toes in. And he mentioned, will you speak to them? And I mentioned, no, however I’ll inform you what I’ll do: I’ll host them. And I introduced them right here and I confirmed them what we had. And typically whenever you have a look at it and see it and have a touchy-feely versus simply somebody telling you, that is actually good, your consumer goes to like it, and also you go, it seems like I’m being pitched by everybody else. That’s not what that is all about. I feel that is one in all these occasions that you must expertise. 

“I inform individuals how it’s. I inform individuals how thrilling it’s for my purchasers when requested. I inform how good of a profit it’s to my model. I cherish my model. I spent years constructing this model. … Having it partnered with the LPGA is essential to me. So whenever you ask about others, I like them to come back see that as a result of my model is that necessary to me, I simply can’t even clarify to them. I’ve to indicate them.”

Curious: Whenever you introduced that individual down, what was the response?

“They liked it,” mentioned Duffy, including that they went on to sponsor an occasion.  

(Editor’s notice: The CME Group continues to again the LPGA, although a second in 2022 examined that. In a narrative additionally written by Golfweek’s Nichols — which you’ll learn in full right here — the CME Group had requested gamers to attend a dinner, however none got here, main Duffy to query LPGA management.) 

What would you modify, if given the possibility? 

Angel Yin 

I feel this 12 months, in professional golf typically, it looks as if there are lots of recommendations, lots of concepts on the desk. There’s change. There are changes on the boys’s tour, the ladies’s tour. In case you had been accountable for the LPGA, what’s a big-ticket merchandise you’d change? 

“That’s a reasonably loaded query,” Yin mentioned, “as a result of I don’t know if there’s a big-ticket merchandise I’d change as a result of I feel the path we’re in proper now’s good. We’ve got a giant wave of ladies’s sports activities that’s on the rise. Most likely my primary deal with all of it isn’t getting extra sponsors however getting us recognized. As girls’s sports activities are on the rise, for those who don’t surf it, it simply dies out and it’s worthwhile to catch that wave.” 

Have you considered a method that may occur? 

“Oh, I don’t know,” Yin mentioned. “I feel stuff like that, to enter element, to have the ability to give an sincere reply, is somebody with the ability to have a look at all of the numbers and all of the methods within the final 5, six years and see the place we are able to progress and evaluate to what different organizations are doing. If I needed to give a solution proper now, it might be investing into gamers. For instance, Nelly. Nelly’s doing rather a lot. Nelly received her seventh match, she acquired her Sports activities Illustrated swimsuit, she went to the Met Gala — she’s doing rather a lot. And she or he’s placing her identify on the market. Whether or not she is aware of, she’s additionally representing all of us and so we respect what she does rather a lot and she or he’s doing good. And so yeah, simply put money into gamers.” 

Lexi Thompson 

With seemingly lots of change in professional golf, women and men, what can be — and lots of concepts on the desk — what can be one big-ticket merchandise you’d need to see modified?

“One massive factor that I wish to see change,” Thompson mentioned, “I wish to see higher TV protection for us and carry on rising the purses each week. I feel we’ve moved in the appropriate path on a couple of of our occasions, however to maintain on rising on that, displaying how proficient we actually are.

“And the appreciation — in fact we’re grateful for all of the partnerships we have now. We’re so grateful for what we have now. So I feel simply maintain enhancing on that, the TV protection. I wish to have extra reside LPGA golf on the Golf Channel or on common NBC or community.”

What’s one thing low-key that possibly solely you’d know? Something particular to the tournaments, setups, no matter? One thing that has simply itched you just a little bit and is like, man, I actually want we may clear up it?

“Aside from the sluggish play — I feel everyone is aware of that one,” Thompson mentioned. “I don’t suppose there’s actually a lot. Generally course setup is a little bit of a problem and never as thought via as typically possibly needs to be. It’s robust when you might have all of the completely different circumstances going into every day.”

Nelly Korda  

With lots of change in males’s golf and ladies’s golf, there are lots of concepts on the desk. I assume for those who had a pitch to make, what’s a big-ticket change you’d make?

“Nicely, one, I’d deal with tempo of play,” Korda mentioned. “I’d circle again to tempo of play.

I feel we’d like primetime TV. We’d like extra hours on TV. I imply, we have now an awesome product out right here. We’ve got so many superb tales. We simply should be on primetime TV.”

Is there a lower-ticket merchandise that possibly is barely particular to you, one thing that bothers you that you just had been like, man, I want they’d repair that?

“Nothing is absolutely coming to thoughts proper now, no,” Korda mentioned. 

“>