“Get rid of the Champions Tour”! Not the first time you must have read that in the past few days. Only a few days ago, Jay Monahan & Co. were criticized for their choice of exemption in the Seniors Tour. While this conversation doesn’t happen every day, fans were particularly triggered by the scenes at the 2025 Chubb Classic. The PGA Tour Champions event had an unusually absurd scorecard that raised concerns about the individual’s eligibility for exemption.
Mike Balliet stepped onto the Tiburon Golf Club on Valentine’s Day this year hoping his love affair with golf will help him make par in the three-day event. What he didn’t know is that he would need a lot more than love to win over golf. Unfortunately, he lacked the skills that are required to flirt with the professional course in Florida. Within three days of the tee, it turned from a beautiful story into a heartbreaking tragedy.
Balliet ended the 54-hole quest with a 65-over par 258. It included 18 bogeys, 6 double bogeys, 2 triple bogeys, and 2 quadruple bogeys. Fans gathered on Monday Q Info’s tweet to throw shade at the exempted player’s “embarrassing” display. But it was not only the 55-year-old who faced the heat. One comment that resonated with the audience was “The champions tour shouldn’t exist”. While the disastrous performance was deserving of criticism, the analysts at Drop Zone Golf Podcast had an entirely different reason to say “Get rid of the Champions Tour”.
James Colgan, Dylan Dethier, and Sean Zak had a lot to discuss on the podcast a few hours ago. Topics ranged from Ludvig Auberg’s win to the state of LIV Golf. However, when the trio of experts landed on the Champions Tour, they agreed that Jay Monahan & Co. could rather invest in another league. Colgan asked his peers how the world of golf could be enhanced through better management in the current scene. To that, Zak replied that everyone would benefit from “getting rid of the entire Champions Tour”.
The analyst understood that he would get criticized for this statement. However, he explains that after thorough research, he has learned that the LPGA Tour and the Champions Tour have nearly the same amount in their purses for their events. Zak emphasized how “people who have already made a ton of money” during their peak years are still earning as much as the LPGA Tour stars like Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko, and Jeeno Thitikul. He believes that the senior players don’t need to make more money “playing easier courses, less competition, less days than the best female golfers on the planet who are playing 4 day competitions and who; unless you’re in the top 100 of the world, are struggling financially.”
The influx of investment will certainly help boost the quality and marketability of the LPGA Tour. Zak concluded his opinion with, “Get rid of the Champions Tour. Push all that sponsorship money to the women’s game and the people who really deserve it, the best in the world gonna eat a little bit better”. To add to his statement, making the LPGA Tour events more lucrative will encourage the stars to have longer professional careers in the game. This has been a major concern recently. Many of the biggest names in women’s golf are not considering playing professionally far beyond their 30s. Lydia Ko recently spoke about the same a few weeks ago when she revealed that she is also closing into that stage as she nears 30.
Apr 21, 2024; The Woodlands, Texas, USA; Nelly Korda (USA) waits to putt on the ninth green during the final round of The Chevron Championship golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports
Having said that, does the purse value for the LPGA Tour match the Champions Tour? Let’s take a deeper dive into the schedule of the leagues.
The LPGA Tour vs. the Champions Tour event sponsorship
Back in November 2024, the LPGA Tour announced that the 2025 season will have the biggest purse in the history of the league. Celebrating the 75th season, the LPGA Tour schedule will be worth $131 million in total. This will include the major $12 million pot for the U.S. Women’s Open and the $11 million purse of the CME Group Tour Championship. Additionally, the LPGA Tour 2025 season is spread across 33 events. This means that each tournament averages nearly $4 million in purse value.
Comparatively, the Champions Tour 2025 season will be played for a total of $69 million. The 2025 U.S. Senior Open Championship will be played for $4 million. The seniors can play a total of 28 events this season; excluding the PNC Championship. That means, on average, each event is played for $2.46 million. That’s a difference of over $1.5 million from what Nelly Korda & Co. is getting. But the LPGA Tour also draws more viewership than the Seniors League.
Sean Zak might have overshot his claims a bit. But that still doesn’t mean that the LPGA Tour won’t benefit from getting the extra $69 million in investment.
Do you think the Champions Tour should be shut down to boost the investment in the LPGA Tour and its stars like Nelly Korda & Charley Hull? Share your views in the comments section.
The post ‘Get Rid of PGA Tour Champions’: Nelly Korda & Co’s Money Problems Lead to a Heartfelt Plea appeared first on EssentiallySports.
