L.P.G.A. Has an Abundance of Stars but Scarcely a Stage

I watch the LPGA as often as possible. I have learned more about the fundamentals of the game from watching the ladies than the men (I also watch them). I don't know why the LPGA and the PGA don't co-sponsor at least one mixed doubles tournament a year. I'd like to see that kind of cooperation.

I am a huge fan of the LPGA. I particuarly follow Lexi Thompson and Brooke Henderson and the Korda sisters although I like all the ladies. I am often frustrated by lack of coverage, and would like to see many more hours of LPGA tournaments.

I have followed women's golf for decades and attended several LPGA events, even following Annika Sorenstam and Donald Trump's group at his former tournament. Some of the comments here are totally wrong. The women are super competitive and very talented. Just watch the faces of the fans and how they interact with the players. It's the networks, sponsors and ad agencies that are missing out the opportunities to cultivate the lucrative audience. And oh, how good is once golden boy Jordan Spieth these days compared to Ariya Jutanugarn?

I watch the PGA on television when Tiger's in the hunt - or not at all. I don't watch the LPGA at all - because there are no Americans on the leader board. And there are certainly no superstars, American or otherwise, that are intriguing. That said, young Maria Fassi might have enough star power on the rise to draw me in. We'll see ...

I once asked my dad why the heavyweight championship fights got all the publicity and money. He said because the heavyweight champion is THE champion of boxing. The LGPA simply cannot attract the revenue, any more than can the senior champions tour. Fans pay to see towering drives, long approaches to greens, and tough short shots out of tall grass. The LPGA shortens the holes, mows the rough, and otherwise removes the conditions that create what fans want to see. This is not unique to women or the LPGA. Lots of sports can't attract sufficient revenue for men or women. This is the issue the Women's FIFA faces - lots of attention around world cup time, but not enough most of the time.

More than any other televised sport, viewers of golf are mostly limited to those who play the game. (Only Tiger Woods attracts others to watch - if he is on the leaderboard.) Women who play the game do so at golf courses and clubs, private and public, dominated by men. Guess what's on the clubhouse television? Even at home, the woman golfer probably has a husband or live-in who plays the game. And we know who controls the remote there too. Besides, women are used to watching men play sports. They know who Tom Brady is. They probably don't know a single name on the stellar US women's soccer team, a collection of elite and exciting athletes well on their way to a World Cup if they can get past France on Friday. Do young girls playing sports change that over time? It seems like we have been saying that for quite a while now. Is it the near total dominance of Asian golfers in the LPGA? (Only 4 or 5 golfers in the top 30 are American.) It shouldn't matter. It doesn't seem to in professional tennis. Who knows? One thing is for sure: because of the LPGA course layouts that match those played on by the viewers and the easy-to-understand distance LPGA women hit the ball, a golfer can learn a lot about their own game watching the way women of the LPGA play the game. With the men, not so much. Then again, maybe that's it. Viewers want the oohs and aahs of the unattainable. Not the sober excellence of an already sober game.

The author runs right past Annika and Lorena. If you don’t acknowledge major superstars, lamenting the lack of TV seems misplaced.

Not on network television???? Who cares what channel a TV show is on anymore? Ever hear of Netflix? I watch hours of sports and rarely know (and never care) what the channel is called! FS1, NBCSN, GOLF, CBS Sports, and many, many ESPNs only start the dozens of offering on my Xfinity system! If I want to watch any sport it is there!

Networks, cable and traditional, are desperate for live sports programming. I am sure that that when the PGA negotiates contracts in two years time for itself and the LPGA, the LPGA will find that its coverage will increase.

I watched much of the tournament on the weekend including the entire fourth round on Sunday. I was entertained by Hannah Green successfully holding her game together for her first win. She may be the only golfer to capture a major as a first win which intensified her challenge to control her nerves and also heightened the drama. She had to beat back two major winners (Park and Jutanugarn) and sink a five footer at the last to win. It was fun to watch. I hope the LPGA succeeds and builds a large following. It is truly an international collection of great players not dominated by US stars. This is probably the main reason an audience has not developed in the US. Interestingly, because it is a diverse collection of players from around the globe it probably needs a superstar like Tiger to emerge in order for a US audience to develop. That player does not need to be from the US. Interest builds when a higher talent emerges in any sport, from any country, and its that superstar against the rest.

Like all sports, women’s golf is different than the men’s game....like hockey or tennis, technique over power is the norm! Most sports folk don’t realize this difference and therefore don’t try and sell the LPGA as such...also, when watching women athletes one has to keep in mind their reasoning for playing the game they love...be it thru college or amateur avenues, men always see a payday in their future if they can attain the professional ranks....women, while also need money to live, always have the future for other girls and women in mind! They are always aware of leaving a legacy for future women! These women are too great not to be feted equal to Tiger or Phil!🏌️‍♀️🏌️‍♀️

Women sports have less appeal to TV audience, because it is clearly inferior technicaly to Men´s. Simple as that ! And it is not only in Golf ! Tennis, Basketball, Soccer, Surfing, you name it. In some cases, like Tennis grand slams and Surfing, they make the same money for political reasons, despite the clearly inferior performances !

The vast majority of male golfers have nothing in common with Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson or Rory McIlroy. They can’t hit the ball as far as Lydia Ko (245 yd. average drive). Not even close. They could learn so much more from watching the LPGA than the men’s professional tour. The ladies don’t spin the ball very much. Neither do most men. The ladies are least proficient, in my observation, at bunker play. But they nearly always get the ball out and on the green. Most men players can’t do that. The slower swings of the ladies (except for Lexi Thompson) is a great teacher of tempo and timing. Bottom line: most male golfers could learn much more about the proper golf swing by watching LPGA golf telecasts instead of PGA tournaments.

Recently I discovered that I enjoy watching golf on television. I prefer the women's events over the men's tournaments for the simple reason that there are fewer of them which adds some variety to the viewing experience.

I volunteered at the Kia Classic at Aviara in San Diego this year which attracts a good field because the players like the course and the southern California vibe...oh, and maybe the great spas nearby too. The most popular groupings attracted about 70 followers, I counted them. The players and caddies were appreciative of the volunteers. The quality of play was impressive. I do watch some of the LPGA tournaments on TV after my positive in-person experience. Maybe people don't have enough bandwidth for ever more sports. Whatever the reason for the lack of interest, it is too bad. I noticed the purses are very comparable to the Senior Men's tour and would much rather watch the LPGA than a bunch of old retired guys like me.

I am a long-time golfer. I love the LPGA for many reasons. Despite all the concerns voiced about young Asian women taking over, they have greatly enhanced the game with their skill, diligence and very appealing personalities. And if they don't hit it as far as the men in the LPGA, I dare you to find anyone in the PGA who can chip as well as Lydia Ko. It is a terrific tour. Hank Haney made a fool of himself and it cost him his radio career when he made a sneering remark that he could name 6 players on the LPGA. He just revealed a common snobbery among some men.

I watch more LPGA than I do PGA. One reason is that I know several of the players and like them personally. Another is that I can relate to their game. I can not relate to 300 + yard drives.

If you play golf, you know that golf is unique among sports: its playing field is adapted to accommodate all players - old, young, male, female. Many competitive possibilities happen normally on courses every day, everywhere. Men often play with and against women, often also for money. The balance is achieved by having women players hit from more forward tees to account for the ONE difference in their golf skills - distance off the tee. Men hit it farther with a driver, it's that simple. If you've ever had your butt kicked in a $100 Nassau at your club by a woman player, you are well aware of the equal skill level on the golf course when it comes to gender. So the point here: there should be a tour inside a tour in pro golf. The MLPGA. Ten tournaments a year perhaps, even ten existing ones, in which women pros and men pros play against each other (women playing from a forward tee.) I'm not talking about a one-off of a famous woman pro (eg. Annika Sorenstam) playing once of twice in a PGA event against men. 10 events, with the millions of dollars the men play for, and the big tv exposure. The women will win lots of these tournaments, I guarantee you, and the larger world will see these terrific young and veteran women star players. In this surging environment right now, that is expanding the power of women in general, pro golf could lead the way in riveting competition and sportsmanship, truly integrated regardless of gender. Only the sport of golf can do this.

I’ve read a lot of excuses for the lack of interest in women’s sports on tv but blaming the fact that the LPGA is on a cable channel called the Golf Channel takes first prize. Yea, sports on cable will never have a big audience. Can you imagine MNF on cable, the NCAA basketball tournament on cable, the first two rounds of every men’s golf major on cable, oh wait, all of that and much more has been on cable for years. The problem isn’t cable, it’s the product. That’s never going to change.

Fox recently aired an LPGA tournament without commercials. My husband and I became quickly engrossed by the great play, but the absence of commercials was a big enticement. On Saturday afternoon, we were again parked in front of the TV watching this championship. Perhaps airing a few matches sans ads is one solution to drawing new viewers to women's golf.

I would like to suggest that both women and men play together in tournaments as that would give women golfers the exposure they need to increase their visibility. Golf is probably on of the easiest sports that one could separate out the scoring by gender to keep things equal. One winner for each gender. This may have occurred in the past with select tournaments, but would be worth exploring for all major tournaments. Just a thought.

I am a serious follower of the LPGA because one one of the emerging young stars is Canada’s best athlete Brooke Henderson.To expand the audience beyond the the hardy faithful (like me) will require the players expanding their personalities and their personal narratives. The tour has excellent golfers who project a bland sameness? Where is Serena? Where is Martina? Where is Billy Jean? Who is the female Tiger or Phil? And that is the problem.

I've been watching for most of the 10 years and often wondered why there was little major coverage other than the Golf Channel.Good to see NYT piece. I love it and am hopeful.

You have it backwards. Demand creates supply, not the other way around. I’m a huge golf fan. Watching the LPGA is like watching paint dry. Part of it is the level of skill. They can hit fairways and greens all day long. But the short game of your average - heck, above average - LPGA player is embarrassing. Watching the US Women’s Open a few weeks ago, there were several instances where a player missed the green coming down the stretch, and there was absolutely zero drama to it, because you just knew they were making bogey. The one girl who was leading going into the final round needed a par to tie on 18, hit it in a greenside bunker, and didn’t get her bunker shot within 50 feet of the cup. Talk about compelling golf. It was laughable. It was like watching my club championship, the only difference being that the guy who won my club championship has a chance of getting up and down out of a bunker. I’m sorry, but it’s just boring. And if it’s boring for a golf fan, absolutely no casual sports fan is going to watch.

The LPGA has more global depth than almost any other professional sports league. But as long as Americans are only interested in home grown (mostly white) players, the LPGA will struggle to find eyeballs in the US.

Urm, I watch the LPGA every week on my television stream. These ladies are great examples of professional golf. They might not be on NBC every weekend but neither is the PGA. Get the Golf Channel and never miss another swing be it the PGA, LPGA or European Golf and more.