Nelly Korda & Co Defeat LPGA’s Recurring Enemy Amid Back-To-Back Disasters at the Chevron Championship

Nelly Korda is sure to feel vindicated. The world no. 1, eying her fifth consecutive victory, lamented that LPGA pros are not given the right stage to showcase their talents. “I feel like when it’s tape delay or anything like that, that hurts our game. Women’s sports just needs a stage. If we have a stage, we can show up and perform and show people what we’re all about.”

Korda and her peers got one at the Chevron Championship. ESPN has 40 hours of converge, and Golf Channel has 20. A pulse check on the internet shows how right Korda was. The Chevron Championship, despite the defending champion, and Angel Yin’s withdrawal, continues to stride forward. In fact, fans demand more coverage like this every week.

Chevron Championship scored big in the coverage battle

ESPN+ is streaming live & exclusive coverage of the first major of the season. Nine of the top 10 in the world are part of the featured group.  That’s streaming from 9 am to 5 pm on the first two rounds and from 8 am to 5 pm on Saturday and Sunday. In addition, the famous podcast No Laying Up, is also sharing ‘fanalyst’ perspective.

Traditional broadcasters, such as NBC and Golf Channel, ramped up the coverage as well. The weekend broadcast will head to NBC for the initial two days on Golf Channel. Combined, there will be 20 hours of live broadcasting. Solheim Cup assistant captain, Morgan Pressel is the lead analyst. 

• Thursday, April 18: 10 a.m.–2 p.m. & 6–8 p.m. (Golf Channel/Peacock)
• Friday, April 19: 10 a.m.–2 p.m. & 6–8 p.m. (Golf Channel/Peacock)
• Saturday, April 20: 2—3 p.m. (Peacock); 3—6 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)
• Sunday, April 21: 2–3 p.m. (Peacock); 3–6 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)

Previously, the elite female circuit has faced back-handed treatment from major broadcasters. In fact, Korda’s dramatic victory at the Ford Championship was shown much later, when World No. 1 was all but settled on top. Instead, the Galleri Classic of the PGA Tour Champions was on top of the pecking order.

Moreover, last year’s US Women’s Open was snubbed in favor of QBE Shootout. The examples are plenty in history. Michelle Wie West’s first match after maternity leave, Annika Sorenstam’s LPGA ‘debut’ post-retirement, and the thrilling Pelican Championship in 2021 were not shown live. The Chevron Championship’s popularity among fans evinces why ignoring LPGA will be a costly mistake. 

Netizens demand more LPGA Coverage on a regular basis

Notably, the 40-minute coverage of the Ford Championship was trimmed further with multiple commercials and promos. After backlash from fans and analysts alike and perhaps because of Chevron’s stature, rampant commercials have taken a backseat. It couldn’t make the audience, who are used to this in the PGA Tour as well, any happier. 

One user tweeted, “Enjoying coverage of the @Chevron_Golf  so far on the @GolfChannel. Showing lots of shots, no delays in coverage. Good for us fans of women’s golf!” Another wrote, “So glad to have some @LPGA featured group coverage this week. Wish this could be the reality every week.”

There are four featured groups during the first two rounds. Nelly Korda, Minjee Lee, and Lilia Vu were part of the afternoon group on Thursday. Korda, arguably, drew all the eyeballs, given how historic a triumph here could be. She stands to become the first LPGA Tour Pro since Annika Sorenstam (2005) and Nancy Lopez (1978) as the only player to win five tournaments in a row. 

One user commented, “Nice they got LPGA featured group coverage on ESPN plus this week. Excited to see Nelly try to go for 5 in a row.” Some believe that if Nelly Korda can achieve the historic feat, “alarm bells will go off and a lot more eyes will tune into the LPGA which has pitiful TV coverage this year.”

Stacy Lewis, this year’s Solheim Cup captain said Nelly Korda must shoulder more responsibility to improve the broadcasting situation. “Continuing to play great golf though is number 1. That’s what helps out tour the most,” said the 39-year-old. Korda is doing just that. She picked six birdies and two bogeys tying for the second spot after the first round. The 25-year-old is two shots off the Thursday leader, Lauren Coughlin, at 4-under.