LPGA makes headway on the back of new tournaments
With new players emerging in women’s golf just about every day, avid fans think that there should be an increase in the number of tournaments each year — and it is becoming increasingly crucial for the LPGA
(Ladies Professional Golf Association) officials to step up efforts in that direction.
The LPGA Tour has been pretty successful in introducing golf beyond the United States — the hotspot for golf — and Europe. With a flurry of new tournaments introduced in Asian countries such as Japan, Thailand
and other, the women’s golf is making headway and has managed to attract a large number of fans across the globe.
In the hope of expanding the influence of the Tour, the LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan has been making serious efforts since the start of the 2012 season. Whan reportedly visited several Asian countries in order
to get an idea how the sport can flourish in the regions beyond its traditional stronghold, the United States.
During Whan’s trip to Asia, the most important question on the agenda was whether it would be fruitful to increase the number of LPGA tournaments. Thanks to rigorous effort and sincerity, the Tour has been
able to revamp the LPGA Futures Tour, which now goes by the name of Symetra Tour.
The Tour made it to the headlines at the start of the 2012 season after it announced to unveil four new tournaments. The news caught everyone by surprise, as golf crazy fans hailed the decision, saying it would
prove beneficial for both players and the sport’s followers.
The three of the four new tournaments were introduced in the United States — a country already enjoying the commanding position in terms of sponsorship and the number of tournaments.
One of the newly launched tournaments was Jamie Farr Toledo Classic, which was highly appreciated by golf crazy fans.
The LPGA also stunned the golf followers worldwide last year when it unveiled the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup — an event that has come into prominence in just one year.
The tournament has made a name for itself, as all the top-ranked LPGA contenders love to find a spot in its roster. The first edition of the tournament saw Aussie Karrie Webb racked up the title, while this
year’s event was won by current world number one Yani Tseng.
Analysts say that the launch of new tournaments is a step in the right direction, as the fan following has improved in all the major countries. They said that a new development in women’s golf, which has seen
most of the Asian players grab the top spots in the Women’s World Golf Rankings, can help the officials introduce more professional events.
The Asia is ripe for golf these days. As the region boasts densely populated countries, unveiling a flurry of new tournaments can lure more new players to the sport.
Whan, who seems more eager to introduce new tournaments than anyone else on the Tour, said in one of his interviews that he does not oppose the idea of flooding the schedule with new tournaments, but the key
to success is quality.
He said that unless the Tour introduces quality events, the efforts to promote women’s golf will go down the drain.
“We have a strategy inside and one of the things is called TNT, which stands for Tournaments 'N Titles. You're not going to have more tournaments without more titles and you can't have titles unless your tournaments
are quality. So TNT is our first strategy,” the LPGA Commissioner said.
“We added five new events last year, four of which were in North America, which was kind of the idea”.
Tags: