This list is updated through the 2024 Chevron Championship.
The LPGA has three members of the $20 million club, five who have won at least $17 million in on-course earnings, 24 with $10 million or more and 81 who have earned at least $5 million.
Annika Sorenstam leads the way. Sorenstam, Karrie Webb and Cristie Kerr are the three golfers who have surpassed $20 million.
Nellly Korda, with her win the 2024 Chevron Championship, her second major, is the 23rd player in LPGA history to surpass $11 million.
Let’s take a closer look here at the top 20 of all-time.
This list is updated through the 2024 Chevron Championship.
Korda is the fifth American to win three times before April 1 and the first since 1980.
GILBERT, Ariz. — Nelly Korda’s last win was seven days ago. Lexi Thompson’s winless streak spanned 1,696 days. Korda was looking for a third win in her last three starts. Thompson was seeking to snap a winless streak of 77 tournaments, dating back to June 2019.
Thompson’s drought will continue for at least two more weeks, as she’s skipping the next event in Las Vegas with the Chevron Championship coming in two weeks.
As for Korda, her next In-N-Out celebration for winning will have to wait as well. She said she celebrated after her win a week ago in Los Angeles with a burger and some “animal style” fries but won’t enjoy the meal after her third straight win Sunday in the 2024 Ford Championship, noting that all the In-N-Outs in the Phoenix area are closed for Easter Sunday.
So how will she celebrate victory No. 11?
“With a beautiful five hour drive to Vegas,” she quipped. “Actually, I went to a coffee shop this morning and their baked goods looked really good and I got myself an almond croissant for the road. I’m thinking about that and that’s making me very happy.”
What also makes her happy is winning and Korda has put her name in the LPGA history books with her latest victory. It’s her third win in as many starts, and she’s the first to win three LPGA starts before April 1 since Yani Tseng in 2012 and she’s the first American since 1980, and just the fifth ever, to win three times before April Fool’s day.
It was quite a week for Korda, who never held the outright lead at the Ford till the back nine Sunday. Once she did, she put it in a stranglehold, finishing at 20 under and winning by two shots. She recorded 23 birdies this week, fourth most in the field, and had just five bogeys. She hit 57 of 72 greens in regulation, tied for 15th in the field.
She has a quick turnaround to the match-play event in Vegas which starts Wednesday. She’s also being careful not to look ahead to the first major of 2024, the Chevron Championship, in less than two weeks.
“Just so one at a time,” she said. “I have been a professional golfer since 2016, and when you get ahead of yourself, it’s just never going to be positive. So I’m going to take it one tournament at a time. Stay very present. It’s worked pretty well so far. Sometimes it’s much harder than others. Your self-expectations, the expectations around you, too. I’m going to try and stay in my own little bubble and see how it goes.”
The contrast in tournament success between Korda and Thompson served as the backdrop on the back nine Sunday at Seville Country Club, with the two battling each other as well as the cold and rain, After two days of bright sunny skies, the third round saw 35 mph winds. Tournament officials on Saturday night moved tee times up two hours and golfers woke up Sunday to chilly temps and a steady downpour of spring rain.
A four-way tie for the lead at 17 under gave way to Korda holding the solo lead for the first time all week after a second straight birdie on the 13th hole. Thompson would reclaim a tie for the lead at 18 under after a birdie on the par-3 14th hole. Korda would nudge out in front once again on 16, after she almost jarred her second shot on the driveable par 4, the ball bouncing three times before rolling just over the edge of the cup. A birdie would get her to 19 under.
Hira Naveed joined the party late, as she went 4 under over a six-hole stretch from No. 12 through 17. The first LPGA player of Pakistani descent, Naveed was ranked 648th in the world coming in and finished solo second at 18 under. But it wasn’t enough to threaten the lead of Korda.
Thompson’s run, meanwhile, came to an end on the short par-4 16th. With driver in hand, she pushed her tee shot right and into a lake. She took a drop in the desert and then hit her third on the green but two-putted for bogey. She then missed a short par putt on 17 for another bogey, and she was suddenly three back of Korda with one hole to go.
Lexi Thompson plays her shot from the fourth tee during the final round of the 2024 Ford Championship at Seville Golf and Country Club in Gilbert, Arizona. (Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Korda closed out her day going up-and-down from just off the green on 18 for one final birdie, this one getting her to 20 under and with few pursuers left chasing, safely in the clubhouse. She said she had some soup in an effort to warm up a bit while she waited.
Korda would later hoist the trophy to make it her 11th career victory official. She’s now tied on the all-time list with Jane Geddes, Jiyai Shin and Thompson, who has four solo seconds and four ties for second and Sunday’s tie for third since her last victory.
Lydia Ko came into the week one point away from clinching a spot in the LPGA Hall of Fame. A win at the Ford would have given the 26-year-old the 27th and final point needed for entry. Ko tied for 11th at 15 under and a pair of 70s over the weekend.
The Ladies European Tour kicked off its 2024 season earlier this month in Kenya and then moved on to Saudi Arabia followed by this week’s Lalla Meryem Cup in Morocco.
The global tour doesn’t actually land in Europe until May, and the next stop on the schedule is a new one that might surprise a few fans: Clearwater, Florida.
While the Blue Bay LPGA takes place in China, the LET will host the Aramco Team Series presented by PIF March 8-10 at Feather Sound Country Club.
Last year, Aramco hosted a stop at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach. Spain’s Carlota Ciganda, hero of last year’s Solheim Cup, won that event. Lexi Thompson and Nelly Korda are past Aramco Team Series event winners as well.
Here’s a look at the upcoming field next month, that includes two-time major winner Brittany Lincicome, who lives nearby in St. Petersburg, and British Open champion Sophia Popov, who is coming back from maternity leave.
The 12-hole event will be live on TNT, truTV, HLN and streaming on Max starting at 6:30 p.m. ET.
Capital One’s The Match is back, and it’s unlike any version before.
For the first time, the live golf series event will feature mixed golf competition between Rory McIlroy, Max Homa, Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang on Monday, Feb. 26, at “The Park” in West Palm Beach, Florida, under the lights.
The format is mixed skins, with each hole being worth a specified amount for charity.
All four golfers will utilize the same tees for the four par-3 holes in the routing, while the remaining eight holes will use varying tee boxes and yardages for the men and women. The golfer raising the most funds through the skins format at the end of the event will be declared the winner.
The 12-hole event will be live on TNT, truTV, HLN and streaming on Max starting at 6:30 p.m. ET.
On Thursday, the four golfers held a press conference with media members to discuss The Match, playing golf under the lights and what they look forward to when playing mixed competitions. Here’s what they had to say:
Lexi Thompson headlines next week’s Aramco Saudi Ladies International field on the Ladies European Tour. The event, held this year at Riyadh Golf Club Feb. 15-18, offers a purse of $5 million, the same as the payout of the men’s PIF Saudi International.
The 28-year-old Thompson, whose last worldwide victory came at the 2022 Aramco Team Series event in New York, last teed it up at the LPGA Drive On event in January where she tied for 16th. She is not listed in the fields of the LPGA’s upcoming Asian swing.
“The Aramco Saudi Ladies International signifies a significant step forward in advancing the sport,” Thompson said in a release, “not just in Saudi Arabia but on a global scale, and it’s a privilege to be part of an event that advocates for equal prize funds in golf.”
Defending champion Lydia Ko, who won the LPGA season-opening Tournament of Champions and lost the Drive On in a playoff to Nelly Korda, is not in the field in Saudi Arabia. Ko’s next event will be the HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore.
Korda, who went to Prague immediately after the Drive On to visit her grandparents, is in the midst of a seven-week break from competitive golf.
In addition to the Aramco Saudi Ladies International, the 2024 LET schedule also features the Aramco Team Series, comprised of five events staged across the globe. Winners of those events last year include LPGA players Alison Lee, Xiyu Lin, Carlota Ciganda, Pauline Roussin, and Korda.
The LET’s Saudi-backed events remain controversial given the wide-ranging human rights abuses Saudi Arabia has been accused of, especially toward women.
Here’s a list of noteworthy players in this year’s field:
“The ball fits my game extremely well, increasing my ball speed without sacrificing control.”
Lexi Thompson is the new face of Maxfli. The 11-time LPGA winner has signed an endorsement agreement with Maxfli for the 2024 season and will play the Maxfli Tour ball. She will also take part in a series of marketing campaigns for the brand.
The Maxfli Tour Series is sold exclusively at Dick’s Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy for $39.99 per dozen.
“I’ve been testing the Maxfli Tour Series for a few months now, and the Maxfli Tour ball exceeded my expectations,” Thompson said in a release. “The ball fits my game extremely well, increasing my ball speed without sacrificing control. I’m excited to be joining forces with a brand that has such a longstanding, proven reputation for high-quality and performance.
Thompson begins her 13th season on the LPGA at this week’s Drive On LPGA Championship at Bradenton Country Club in her native Florida. Last season, Thompson’s game took a nosedive as she struggled with her ball-striking.
A new swing thought from new instructor Tony Ruggiero, however, turned things around in time for the Solheim Cup in Spain. After a 3-1-0 performance for Team USA, Thompson went on to tee it up on the PGA Tour for the first time at the Shriners Children’s Open, where she carded a second-round 69. Thompson averaged 301 yards off the tee over two rounds in Las Vegas and tied for 13th in driving accuracy against the men, hitting 20 of 28 fairways.
She was back.
“Lexi is a remarkable golfer, and I can’t think of a better player to have join the Maxfli family as an exclusive partner for the Maxfli golf balls,” said Aimee Watters, VP Vertical Brand Marketing, DICK’S Sporting Goods.
“Becoming only the seventh woman to compete in a PGA event is so impressive, and we know there is more to come! We feel honored to have Maxfli be a part of her journey and are confident that she will continue to break records, while using our Tour series ball on the course.”
Lexi Thompson will wear the Maxfli logo on her visor this season on the LPGA. (Photo: Courtesy Maxfli)
Thompson told Golfweek in Bradenton that she took one week off after the Grant Thornton Invitational and then got back to work.
“It’s definitely a big year with the Olympics and Solheim Cup,” said Thompson, who has a tattoo of the Olympic rings on her left wrist. “Anytime I can represent my country I want to be on those teams.”
Thompson also hired a new full-time caddie in Colton Heisey, who worked for her four times last season. Heisey, a six-year caddie veteran of the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour, had previously worked for Thompson’s brother Curtis.
“We just make a great team,” said Thompson. “I just want somebody out here, obviously I depend on him a lot with numbers, don’t carry a yardage book, but big personality for me. To just keep me relaxed in between shots and have a good time.”
Heisey first caddied for Thompson at the Kroger Queen City Championship where she tied for 19th, her best finish of the season after eight missed cuts.
“She stripes it,” said Heisey. “It’s nice too because we’re the same age so we get along great. It’s refreshing for sure.”
For the first time in its history, “The Match” series will feature two of the biggest stars in the women’s game, Rose Zhang and Lexi Thompson. Joining them will be Rory McIlroy and Max Homa, with the event slated for Feb. 26 at The Park golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida.
The made-for-TV event will be 12 holes, and the format will be skins. For a player to win a skin, they must win the hole outright. If two or more players tie for the best score on a hole, the skin carries over to the next hole.
All four players will use the same tee boxes on par 3s, while varying tee boxes will be used for the remaining holes. This match will benefit the First Tee program.
TNT’s broadcast team will include Charles Barley, Ernie Johnson, Trevor Immelman, Kathryn Tappen, Christina Kim, Paul Bissonnette and DJ Khaled.
The event will also be available to stream on Max.
“(Lexi) has been a huge supporter of our events and always comes and clears her schedule without hesitation.”
Morgan Pressel’s competitive career on the LPGA might be over, but her impact in the game and beyond continues to flourish. The 35-year-old major champion turned lead analyst for Golf Channel’s LPGA coverage raised $900,000 this week at her annual Morgan & Friends charity event.
The event, held annually at St. Andrews Country Club in Boca Raton and Banyan Golf Club in nearby West Palm Beach, Florida, has raised a total of $12.5 million over the years in the fight against breast cancer. Pressel’s mother Kathy died of breast cancer in 2003, and her memory is at the heart of the mission.
Golfweek caught up with the former phenom to talk about her foundation, the friends who step up every year to help and the 2024 LPGA season, which gets started next week with the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions:
Thompson is hoping to carry momentum from late ’23 into the new season.
Last year was an interesting one for Lexi Thompson. In her first 10 events of 2023, Thompson missed eight cuts, including a stretch of five straight from the U.S. Women’s Open to the Portland Classic.
But something clicked after leaving the Pacific Northwest.
Thompson finished T-19 (Kroger Queen City Championship), T-8 (Walmart NW Arkansas Championship), 5th (The Ascendant LPGA) and T-7 (The Annika) over her final four official LPGA starts of the year. At the Solheim Cup, Thompson compiled a 3-1-0 record. She also teamed with Rickie Fowler at the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational in December and tied for sixth.
Well, after a successful end to 2023, Thompson has hired a new full-time caddie for the upcoming ’24 season.
The race to Paris 2024 will begin to tighten as players jockey for a spot in the 60-player field. But remember, those spots aren’t reserved for the 60 best women in the world. The Olympic qualifying criteria is designed to ensure that players from around the world are represented, even if that means a large portion of the field is ranked outside the top 200. (Currently, that’s 15 of the 60 players.)
With a cutoff date of June 24, or just after the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, players will have roughly six months to shore up a spot. The women’s event will be held Aug. 7-10, immediately after the men’s competition.
First, here’s a review of how qualifying works.
The IGF utilizes the Rolex Rankings to create its own Olympic Golf Rankings. The top 15 players in the world are eligible for Paris, with a limit of four players from any given country. Currently, the United States is the only country with four players.
The rest of the field will come straight from the rankings, with a maximum of two eligible players from each country that does not already have two or more players in the top 15.
The host country, France, is ensured at least one spot, which will go to Celine Boutier, who is currently No. 3 in the world.
With a maximum of four players from the likes of the U.S. and South Korea, a number of highly-decorated players will once again be left at home.
Here’s a look at a dozen notable names (with current Rolex Ranking) currently on the outside looking in:
