Teeing off on the lucrative growth of women’s golf

The GIST: The prize pool for this weekend’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship is an astounding $13M, the largest purse in women’s golf history. As the players, ahem, swing into action this morning, let’s tee off on the lucrative growth of the women's game.

The landscape: Turns out this grass is greener — the upcoming tournament’s purse is part of an LPGA–record $132M total season prize pool, and the influx of cash is warranted. Women’s golf viewership is surging: Look no further than the 2.2M fans who tuned into the final round of world No. 1 Nelly Korda’s U.S. Open win last month — a 78% increase YOY.

The growth: And the evolution of the women’s game isn’t limited to just the pros. Between 2020 and 2025, women’s golf participation in the U.S. grew 45%. That’s a total of 8.1M women regularly hitting the links, which shattered the previous high of 7.1M golfers set two decades ago and means women now account for nearly one-third of golfers in the U.S.

• It’s also worth noting that women golfers skew four years younger on average than their male counterparts. In fact, more than half of these participation gains are from women under 30, while just under half of women golfers are under 35. Talk about a youth movement.

Why it matters: It’s no secret golf has historically been dominated by white men. But that’s beginning to change, evidenced by more lucrative prize pools and sky-rocketing viewership numbers for the LPGA, alongside consistent growth at the grassroots level. Women’s golf is glowing up across its entire ecosystem, and brands should be on notice.

• As the women’s golf pipeline continues to evolve, there’s a valuable opportunity for brands to capitalize on the momentum at all levels. This youth-driven women’s golf boom lends itself to building brand affinity early and engaging casual and elite players alike. *golf clap*