There’s a noticeable tone shift in how people discuss women’s sports today. Gone are the days when applause and highlights were enough. Now, fans, critics, and golf analysts are more interested in stats, rivalries, and deeper storylines. While other sports like the WNBA and tennis have already gained significant traction, women’s golf is still in its early days, and LPGA legend Michelle Wie West might know why.

The veteran golfer thinks that one reason for this is that many people still see the LPGA and women’s golf as charity. The host of Portfolio Players asked the 5x LPGA winner about her thoughts on these movements happening across women’s sports and where she sees golf in all that. “I think a lot of times women’s sports was seen as charity. That’s why I like the phrase. I mean, I’m guilty of saying it too, like, we got to show up for women’s sports. We got to support women’s sports. And I, just to me, it feels like a charity aspect. You would never say that. Like, I need to support the NFL. Just sounds ridiculous saying it, right? I think the movement is all about shifting that mindset,” Michelle Wie West said on Portfolio Players.

Her comments speak volumes about the rise of women’s sports. The movement she is talking about is certainly gaining traction. A recent McKinsey & Company article from August 2025 states that there is a $2.5 billion opportunity in women’s sports. This shows the growing interest in sports and the economy, which can take the market to new heights. There are many celebrities across sports, such as Caitlin Clark, Coco Gauff, and Simone Biles, who have millions of fans. Golf has several such stars, too, including West herself. Besides West, Nelly Korda, Paige Spiranac, Charley Hull, and many others have millions of fans.

The growing media attention and criticism are proof that interest in the LPGA is rising. “I think it’s amazing, the chatter, the debates, the critics. I think that’s all part of it, right? I mean, you see male athletes, you see sports teams just get ripped apart in the media. I think that’s good,” West said, acknowledging the same. “It feels less of a charity aspect versus like a real thing that people want to talk about.”

West also referenced the Golden State Valkyries as the prime example of how profitable women’s sports can be. The WNBA team is valued at an estimated $500 million. This makes them the most valuable franchise in WNBA history and likely across American women’s professional sports. This valuation is approximately 10 times the $50 million expansion fee the ownership group paid in 2023 for the franchise rights. The Valkyries sold out all 22 regular-season home games at Chase Center, averaging over 18,000 fans per game, which is a WNBA single-season record.

Such cross-sport references and athlete meets can serve as a trampoline, taking women’s sports to new heights. We have already witnessed it at The ANNIKA 2024, when WNBA star Caitlin Clark played at the Pro-Am with Nelly Korda. She will play The ANNIKA Pro-Am in 2025, too. Such events can bring fans of multiple sports together to help boost interest, especially from young fans.

Thanks to such efforts, interest in women’s golf is already increasing. For instance, the FM Championship debut in Boston saw ticket sales surge 34% above weekly LPGA averages. Early sales were 8 times higher than in other tournaments. The biennial Solheim Cup also continues to attract record-high fans and viewership. There were 130,000 fans on the course during the 2021 Solheim Cup. The numbers reduced to 65,000 in 2023 because the event was in Europe. But still, 14% of the 65,000 fans were from the USA. And over 100,000 were expected to be there on the course for the 2024 Solheim Cup.

This rise in LPGA is thanks to the efforts of women golfers and the LPGA team.

The LPGA’s strategies to increase fan engagement

The LPGA has invested heavily in digital content production. Their small team has now grown to have a dedicated social media and video production unit. They use AI-powered platforms like WSC Sports to automate content creation and distribution across social media, apps, and their website. This enables fans to connect with players through highlight reels, vertical videos, and behind-the-scenes clips.

The LPGA has also partnered with consulting firms like KPMG to plan long-term growth. They plan to focus on marketing, sponsorship acquisition, capital needs analysis, and media rights expansion. Besides that, the LPA understands the importance of personal branding. Therefore, they teamed with Naomi Osaka’s production company, Hana Kuma, to elevate player profiles. This program targets building stronger player narratives to attract non-traditional golf audiences and create identifiable sports heroes.

Thanks to such efforts, the interest and investment in women’s golf are increasing. The prize pool has already increased by around 70% since 2021. There was a whopping $118 million online across all tournaments in 2024, and the number is expected to be around $133 million in 2025. Similarly, media rights are up by 25% since 2021, and corporate partnership money is up 33%.

Although these numbers may still be small compared to men’s golf, it’s certainly a step in the right direction to make the LPGA look less like a charity and more like a competitive sport that not only golfers but also the public are interested in.