Nelly Korda and Co. Find an Ally as Retired LPGA Legend Sends Strong 6-Word Message

Does the LPGA Tour have a viewership problem? If you’re looking at the numbers, then the answer is likely a “yes.” A notable example is the 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. Following a series of heavy setup criticisms by Nelly Korda and other LPGA pros, the final round saw a 50% drop in viewership compared to last year, with only 428,000 tuning in on NBC versus 867,000 for Amy Yang’s win last year. So, given these numbers, is the LPGA circuit failing to provide the pros what they deserve?

Yes. At least that’s what the legendary LPGA pro, Michelle Wie West, thinks of the current situation at the LPGA. During a recent appearance for Bloomberg‘s The Deal podcast, Wie West shared both optimism and worry for the LPGA circuit (and the pros). She kicked off the conversation by saying she is “extremely excited about the new leadership [Craig Kessler],” and then followed it with her more expressive opinions on the LPGA.

“Our purses are getting bigger on our tour, we’re getting better viewership. I still think there’s a lot that needs to be done to give these girls what they deserve in terms of media attention and viewership on broadcast,” said Wie West. She also pointed out that the quality of LPGA tournament broadcasts “needs to get a lot better. And that means more cameras on site, more on screen technology.”

The LPGA faces a pressing challenge: getting its events in front of a larger audience. Critics argue that airing tournaments on tape delay or limiting live access to NBC’s Peacock streaming service hinders visibility. And as per The Athletic, sources close to the discussions reveal that the LPGA Tour often secures sponsorships and finalizes events later, leading to delayed schedule proposals to networks. As a result, networks may air LPGA events on tape delay when their coverage windows are already booked and can’t be easily adjusted.

On the other hand, the LPGA lacks its own TV rights contract, instead partnering with the PGA Tour in 2020 on a $700 million deal with CBS, NBC, and ESPN, set to run until 2030. This joint agreement gave the PGA Tour a 70% revenue boost, with over 95% of revenue historically going to men’s events. However, the LPGA does have a separate live streaming deal with ESPN+ until 2025.

So, what’s the solution? Michelle Wie West proposes two additions: more cameras during the events and “sports betting.” She says, “It is a fact that sports betting does drive viewership in terms of people who watch sports.” And then she adds that the men have “more than tripled amount of cameras that are on site, so they cut to a lot of places.” So, the burden lies with the LPGA circuit.

Although the LPGA is likely to take some time to implement significant efforts to boost viewership, the circuit did attempt to drive change during the 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

The 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship tried to tackle issues with AI

Last month, KPMG utilized technology to enhance the viewing experience for fans and players alike. Over the past quarter century, advanced analytics have transformed much of the sports world. Although the LPGA was late to adopt analytics compared to other sports leagues, it made significant strides with the 2021 introduction of KPMG Performance Insights.

This platform generated the advanced analytics and performance data that had been lacking in the women’s game for years, providing LPGA athletes with valuable information to make small adjustments in their practice routines or tournament play, leading to significant performance gains.

For the 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, KPMG introduced new features, including an AI-generated daily recap. This recap provided hole-by-hole AI course analytics to help players strategize their approach to the challenging Fields Ranch East layout at PGA Frisco, offering insights on the best ways to play each hole and which trouble spots to avoid.

Additional insights from the recap highlighted the relative difficulty of each hole from the first round. For example, hole 6, a 446-yard par 4 with bunkers protecting the green, had a birdie or better percentage of just 2% and a bogey or worse percentage of nearly 50%. As players prepared for their second round, they understood that scoring par on the sixth hole would actually help them gain strokes on the field.

So, changes can be made on the LPGA Tour — now what remains to be seen is whether the LPGA will include such features during regular events as well.