The LPGA, in full the Ladies Professional Golf Association, is an American organization for female professional golfers. The organization, whose headquarters is in Daytona Beach, Florida, is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that runs from February to December each year.
Other "LPGA"s exist in other countries, each with a geographical designation in its name, but the U.S. organization is the largest and best known. The LPGA is also an organization for female club and teaching professionals. This is different from the PGA Tour, which runs the main professional tours in the U.S. and, since 1968, has been independent of the club and teaching professionals' organization, the PGA of America.
The LPGA was founded in 1950 by a group of 13 golfers: Alice Bauer, Patty Berg, Bettye Danoff, Helen Dettweiler, Marlene Bauer Hagge, Helen Hicks, Opal Hill, Betty Jameson, Sally Sessions, Marilynn Smith, Shirley Spork, Louise Suggs, and Babe Zaharias. It is now the oldest ongoing women's professional sports organization in the United States.[3][4]
Since 2010 Michael Whan has been the commissioner of the LPGA.[5] He is the eighth commissioner in the history of the LPGA.[6]
In addition to the main LPGA Tour, the LPGA also owns and operates the LPGA Futures Tour, the official developmental tour of the LPGA. Top finishers at the end of each season on that tour receive playing privileges on the main LPGA Tour for the following year.
The LPGA also administers an annual Qualifying School similar to that conducted by the PGA Tour. Depending on a golfer's finish in the Qualifying School tournament, she may receive full or partial playing privileges on the LPGA Tour.
In 2001, Jane Blalock's JBC Marketing established the Women's Senior Golf Tour, now called The Legends Tour, for women professionals aged 45 and older. This is affiliated with the LPGA, but is not owned by the LPGA.
In 2010, total official prize money on the LPGA Tour was $41.4 million. This represented a decrease of over $6 million from 2009. In 2010 there were 24 official tournaments, down from 28 in 2009 and 34 in 2008. Despite the loss in total tournaments, in 2010, the number of tournaments hosted outside of the United States stayed the same. All four lost tournaments had been hosted in the United States.
In its early decades, the LPGA Tour was dominated by American players. Sandra Post of Canada became the first player living outside the United States to gain an LPGA tour card in 1968. The non-U.S. contingent is now very large. The last time an American player topped the money list was in 1993, the last time an American led the tour in tournaments won was in 1996, and from 2000 through 2009, non-Americans won 31 of 40 major championships.
Particularly, one of the notable trends seen in the early 21st century in the LPGA is the rise and dominance of Korean golfers.[7] Se Ri Pak's early success in the LPGA sparked the boom in Korean women golfers on the LPGA Tour.[8] In 2009, there were 122 non-Americans from 27 countries on the tour, including 47 from South Korea, 14 from Sweden, 10 from Australia, eight from the United Kingdom (four from England, three from Scotland and one from Wales), seven from Canada, five from Taiwan, and four from Japan.[9] Of the 33 events in 2006, a total of 11were won by Koreans and only seven were won by Americans. (See 2006 LPGA Tour for more details on the 2006 season.) In 2007, Americans saw a relative resurgence, winning 12 events. For the first time since 2000, two Americans won majors (See 2007 LPGA Tour for more details on the 2007 season.) In 2008, Americans grew in dominance, winning 9 of 34 events, tied with Koreans, but no majors, one of which was won by a Mexican player, one by Taiwanese, and the other two by teenage Korean players (See 2008 LPGA Tour for more details on the 2008 season.) In 2009, Americans won 5 of 28 official events, including one major, the Kraft Nabisco Championship while Koreans won 11 events (See 2009 LPGA Tour for more details on the 2009 season.)
Most of the LPGA Tour's events are held in the United States. In 2010, two tournaments were played in Mexico and one each in Singapore, Canada, France, England, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand, and Japan. Unofficial events were also held in Brazil and Jamaica. In 2011, the unofficial Jamaica event drops from the schedule, and the tournament that was held in England rotates to Scotland; all other countries will retain their tournaments. In addition, events will be added in China and Taiwan, while the biennial USA–Europe team competition, the Solheim Cup. will be played in Ireland.
Four of the tournaments held outside North America are co-sanctioned with other professional tours. The Ladies European Tour co-sanctions the Evian Masters in France and the Women's British Open, held the following week. The other two co-sanctioned events—the LPGA Hana Bank Championship (LPGA of Korea Tour) and Mizuno Classic (LPGA of Japan Tour)—are held during the tour's autumn swing to Asia.
The LPGA's annual major championships are:
Since 2006, the LPGA has played a season-ending championship tournament. Through the 2008 season, it was known as the LPGA Playoffs at The ADT; in 2009 and 2010, it was known as the LPGA Tour Championship; and in 2011, the event will be known as the CME Group Titleholders. The tournament is held in November.
From 2006 through 2008 the LPGA schedule was divided into two halves, with 15 players from each half qualifying for the Championship based on their performance. Two wild-card selections were also included for a final field of 21 players. The winner of the LPGA Tour Championship, which features three days of “playoffs” plus the final championship round, earns $1 million.
In 2009, the Tour Championship field was increased to 120 players, with entry open to all Tour members in the top 120 on the money list as of three weeks prior to the start of the tournament. The total purse was $1.5 million with $225,000 going to the winner.
The CME Group Titleholders, which resurrects the name of a former LPGA major championship (the Titleholders Championship), will be launched in 2011. Its field will be made up of three qualifiers from each official tour event during the season, specifically the top three finishers who have not already qualified for the Titleholders. The 2011 purse will remain $1.5 million, but the winner will receive $500,000.
The number in parentheses after winners' names show the player's total number wins in official money individual events on the LPGA Tour, including that event.
Tournaments in bold are majors.
1Unofficial tournament.
2 Ryu and Thompson were not LPGA members at the time their wins. The win is not counted as an official LPGA win.
Top ten official money leaders
Through the end of the season on November 20, 2011
| Rank | Change | Player | Country | Events | Prize money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yani Tseng | Taiwan | 22 | 2,921,713 | |
| 2 | Cristie Kerr | United States | 22 | 1,470,979 | |
| 3 | 1 | Na Yeon Choi | South Korea | 21 | 1,357,382 |
| 4 | 1 | Stacy Lewis | United States | 23 | 1,356,211 |
| 5 | Suzann Pettersen | Norway | 20 | 1,322,770 | |
| 6 | Brittany Lincicome | United States | 21 | 1,154,234 | |
| 7 | Angela Stanford | United States | 21 | 1,017,196 | |
| 8 | Ai Miyazato | Japan | 19 | 1,007,633 | |
| 9 | 2 | Paula Creamer | United States | 21 | 926,338 |
| 10 | 1 | Amy Yang | South Korea | 22 | 912,160 |
Change=change from previous ranking.
Source and complete list: LPGA official website.
Total includes earnings in the R.R. Donnelley Founders Cup that were in the form of money list credits only.
Also see: Women's World Golf Rankings
| Year | Number of official tournaments |
Countries hosting tournaments |
Tournaments in United States |
Tournaments in other countries |
Total prize money |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 23 | 11 | 13 | 10 | $41,500,000 |
| 2010 | 24 | 10 | 14 | 10 | $41,400,000 |
| 2009 | 28 | 9 | 18 | 10 | $47,600,000 |
| 2008 | 34 | 8 | 24 | 10 | $60,300,000 |
| 2007 | 31 | 8 | 23 | 8 | $54,285,000 |
| 2006 | 33 | 8 | 25 | 8 | $50,275,000 |
| 2005 | 32 | 7 | 25 | 7 | $45,100,000 |
| 2004 | 32 | 6 | 27 | 5 | $42,875,000 |
The LPGA established the Hall of Fame of Women's Golf in 1951, with four charter members: Patty Berg, Betty Jameson, Louise Suggs, and Babe Zaharias. After being inactive for several years, the Hall of Fame moved in 1967 to its first physical premises, in Augusta, Georgia, and was renamed the LPGA Tour Hall of Fame. In 1998 it merged into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
The LPGA Tour presents several annual awards. Three are awarded in competitive contests, based on scoring over the course of the year.
| Year | Player | Country | Earnings ($) | Most wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Yani Tseng | Taiwan | 2,921,713 | 7 – Yani Tseng |
| 2010 | Na Yeon Choi | South Korea | 1,871,166 | 5 – Ai Miyazato |
| 2009 | Jiyai Shin | South Korea | 1,807,334 | 3 – Jiyai Shin, Lorena Ochoa |
| 2008 | Lorena Ochoa | Mexico | 2,754,660 | 7 – Lorena Ochoa |
| 2007 | Lorena Ochoa | Mexico | 4,364,994 | 8 – Lorena Ochoa |
| 2006 | Lorena Ochoa | Mexico | 2,592,872 | 6 – Lorena Ochoa |
| 2005 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 2,588,240 | 10 – Annika Sörenstam |
| 2004 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 2,544,707 | 8 – Annika Sörenstam |
| 2003 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 2,029,506 | 6 – Annika Sörenstam |
| 2002 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 2,863,904 | 11 – Annika Sörenstam |
| 2001 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 2,105,868 | 8 – Annika Sörenstam |
| 2000 | Karrie Webb | Australia | 1,876,853 | 7 – Karrie Webb |
| 1999 | Karrie Webb | Australia | 1,591,959 | 6 – Karrie Webb |
| 1998 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 1,092,748 | 4 – Annika Sörenstam, Se Ri Pak |
| 1997 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 1,236,789 | 6 – Annika Sörenstam |
| 1996 | Karrie Webb | Australia | 1,002,000 | 4 – Laura Davies, Dottie Pepper, Karrie Webb |
| 1995 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 666,533 | 3 – Annika Sörenstam |
| 1994 | Laura Davies | England | 687,201 | 4 – Beth Daniel |
| 1993 | Betsy King | United States | 595,992 | 3 – Brandie Burton |
| 1992 | Dottie Mochrie | United States | 693,335 | 4 – Dottie Mochrie |
| 1991 | Pat Bradley | United States | 763,118 | 4 – Pat Bradley, Meg Mallon |
| 1990 | Beth Daniel | United States | 863,578 | 7 – Beth Daniel |
| 1989 | Betsy King | United States | 654,132 | 6 – Betsy King |
| 1988 | Sherri Turner | United States | 350,851 | 3 – 5 players (see 1) |
| 1987 | Ayako Okamoto | Japan | 466,034 | 5 – Jane Geddes |
| 1986 | Pat Bradley | United States | 492,021 | 5 – Pat Bradley |
| 1985 | Nancy Lopez | United States | 416,472 | 5 – Nancy Lopez |
| 1984 | Betsy King | United States | 266,771 | 4 – Patty Sheehan, Amy Alcott |
| 1983 | JoAnne Carner | United States | 291,404 | 4 – Pat Bradley, Patty Sheehan |
| 1982 | JoAnne Carner | United States | 310,400 | 5 – JoAnne Carner, Beth Daniel |
| 1981 | Beth Daniel | United States | 206,998 | 5 – Donna Caponi |
| 1980 | Beth Daniel | United States | 231,000 | 5 – Donna Caponi, JoAnne Carner |
| 1979 | Nancy Lopez | United States | 197,489 | 8 – Nancy Lopez |
| 1978 | Nancy Lopez | United States | 189,814 | 9 – Nancy Lopez |
| 1977 | Judy Rankin | United States | 122,890 | 5 – Judy Rankin, Debbie Austin |
| 1976 | Judy Rankin | United States | 150,734 | 6 – Judy Rankin |
| 1975 | Sandra Palmer | United States | 76,374 | 4 – Carol Mann, Sandra Haynie |
| 1974 | JoAnne Carner | United States | 87,094 | 6 – JoAnne Carner, Sandra Haynie |
| 1973 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 82,864 | 7 – Kathy Whitworth |
| 1972 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 65,063 | 5 – Kathy Whitworth, Jane Blalock |
| 1971 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 41,181 | 5 – Kathy Whitworth |
| 1970 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 30,235 | 4 – Shirley Englehorn |
| 1969 | Carol Mann | United States | 49,152 | 8 – Carol Mann |
| 1968 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 48,379 | 10 – Carol Mann, Kathy Whitworth |
| 1967 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 32,937 | 8 – Kathy Whitworth |
| 1966 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 33,517 | 9 – Kathy Whitworth |
| 1965 | Kathy Whitworth | United States | 28,658 | 8 – Kathy Whitworth |
| 1964 | Mickey Wright | United States | 29,800 | 11 – Mickey Wright |
| 1963 | Mickey Wright | United States | 31,269 | 13 – Mickey Wright |
| 1962 | Mickey Wright | United States | 21,641 | 10 – Mickey Wright |
| 1961 | Mickey Wright | United States | 22,236 | 10 – Mickey Wright |
| 1960 | Louise Suggs | United States | 16,892 | 6 – Mickey Wright |
| 1959 | Betsy Rawls | United States | 26,774 | 10 – Betsy Rawls |
| 1958 | Beverly Hanson | United States | 12,639 | 5 – Mickey Wright |
| 1957 | Patty Berg | United States | 16,272 | 5 – Betsy Rawls, Patty Berg |
| 1956 | Marlene Hagge | United States | 20,235 | 8 – Marlene Hagge |
| 1955 | Patty Berg | United States | 16,492 | 6 – Patty Berg |
| 1954 | Patty Berg | United States | 16,011 | 5 – Louise Suggs, Babe Zaharias |
| 1953 | Louise Suggs | United States | 19,816 | 8 – Louise Suggs |
| 1952 | Betsy Rawls | United States | 14,505 | 6 – Betsy Rawls, Louise Suggs |
| 1951 | Babe Zaharias | United States | 15,087 | 7 – Babe Zaharias |
| 1950 | Babe Zaharias | United States | 14,800 | 6 – Babe Zaharias |
1 The five players with who won three titles in 1988 were Juli Inkster, Rosie Jones, Betsy King, Nancy Lopez, and Ayako Okamoto.
The table below shows the top 20 career money leaders on the LPGA Tour at the end of the 2010 season. There is a more complete list, updated weekly during the Tour season, on the LPGA's official site.
| Position | Player | Country | Earned | Prize money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Annika Sörenstam | Sweden | 1993–2008 | 22,573,192 |
| 2 | Karrie Webb | Australia | 1995–2010 | 15,759,574 |
| 3 | Lorena Ochoa | Mexico | 2003–2010 | 14,863,331 |
| 4 | Juli Inkster | United States | 1983–2010 | 13,095,987 |
| 5 | Cristie Kerr | United States | 1997–2010 | 12,060,164 |
| 6 | Se Ri Pak | South Korea | 1997–2010 | 10,969,742 |
| 7 | Meg Mallon | United States | 1987–2009 | 9,044,059 |
| 8 | Beth Daniel | United States | 1979–2010 | 8,786,563 |
| 9 | Laura Davies | England | 1986–2010 | 8,707,542 |
| 10 | Mi Hyun Kim | South Korea | 1999–2010 | 8,455,207 |
| 11 | Rosie Jones | United States | 1982–2006 | 8,355,068 |
| 12 | Paula Creamer | United States | 2005–2010 | 7,852,467 |
| 13 | Betsy King | United States | 1977–2005 | 7,637,622 |
| 14 | Suzann Pettersen | Norway | 2000–2010 | 6,862,710 |
| 15 | Dottie Pepper | United States | 1988–2004 | 6,827,284 |
| 16 | Lorie Kane | Canada | 1996–2010 | 6,780,230 |
| 17 | Pat Hurst | United States | 1991–2010 | 6,708,943 |
| 18 | Jeong Jang | South Korea | 2000–2010 | 6,437,583 |
| 19 | Hee-Won Han | South Korea | 1998–2010 | 6,344,742 |
| 20 | Catriona Matthew | Scotland | 1995–2010 | 6,239,944 |
| 2010 | $41,400,000 |
| 2000 | $38,500,000 |
| 1990 | $17,100,000 |
| 1980 | $5,150,000 |
| 1970 | $435,040 |
| 1960 | $186,700 |
| 1950 | $50,000 |
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