Ten million reasons women’s game has gone to next level
Eye-catching US Open field will play for a prize purse hiked by 80 per cent as gap closes on male counterparts
In terms of being a game changer, this week’s US Women’s Open fits the bill to a tee. With a $10million (£8million) purse, the Pine Needles tournament highlights that the game is indeed changing, as inroads are at last made into the outrageous deficit between prize money on the male and female circuits.
It says so much about the US Golf Association’s decision to hike the purse by almost 80 per cent from last year’s $5.5million bounty that it dominates the narrative going into the major despite so many other intoxicating themes.
There is Nelly Korda, the darling of US golf, blessedly returning to competition after a three-month absence enforced by the alarming necessity to remove a blood clot in her left arm. There is Michelle Wie West, long billed as the female Tiger Woods, playing in her last professional event after announcing her retirement, aged 32. And then there is 51-year-old Annika Sorenstam, the 10-time major champion widely regarded as the greatest woman golfer of the modern age, appearing in her first major in 14 years.
All these storylines – not to mention subplots, such as Georgia Hall possibly winning Britain’s first US Women’s Open in 25 years, or Solheim Cup hero Leona Maguire lifting Ireland’s first women’s major title – could normally take centre stage at the event regarded as the most important on the calendar.
But not this week. “The thought of a $10million purse just absolutely blows my mind,” said Karen Stupples, the 2004 Women’s British Open champion. “I don’t even know how to think about money in those terms and what it means going into your bank account – even for, like, a 30th or 40th place. I can’t even wrap my head around it.
“When I was in my first year on [the LPGA] Tour and I was just trying to keep my card, I had my first top 10 and earned $22,000. I felt like I had won the lottery, like I was the richest person alive. And the total purse for that was $750,000. So, to think about $10million? My goodness, what a move this is.”
The USGA announced the dramatic increase in January after signing a partnership with the notfor-profit healthcare system Promedica, and vowed a further increase to $12million in the next five years. The USGA also organises the men’s US Open, which last year featured a $12.5million purse.
With the R&A raising the Women’s Open prize fund from £2.6million in 2018 to £4.6 million last year, with another £800,000 increase promised for August’s tournament
at Muirfield, the race is on for parity – in the majors at least.
While thrilled at these sudden climbs, Stupples remains sceptical. “It [equal prize money] would be the right thing to do from an Open’s standpoint with the two governing body’s taking the lead,” she said. “But it seems just as women make some huge strides towards it, the men make some big moves of their own. As much as I would love to say I can see it happening, I think perhaps we are a generation away from it. I hope they prove me wrong.”
Stupples points out it would present a false image anyway. Week to week there is a huge discrepancy, despite the LPGA Tour pros enjoying record payouts. This year, the US circuit boasts 34 tournaments with combined prize money of almost $90million. They are impressive figures until put alongside the men’s bonanza, 49 events for $427 million. In Europe, the contrast is starker still. Men’s tour: £159million across 47 events. Women’s tour: £20.9million across 31.
The battle goes on to bridge the gap, but as Stupples says, this week in North Carolina is “a massive step forwards”. The winner will strut away with $1.8 million, with even those missing the cut collecting $8,000. “It’s hard to contemplate how this could change the lives of some of these players, not all of whom are on the LPGA. A top 20, or 30, could set them up for the next year or so,” said Stupples, now an analyst for the Golf Channel. “lt’s added so many more layers to the competition.”