If this year’s champions are any indication as to what the future may hold for the LPGA, it’s safe to say the Tour is in good hands going forward.
Blessed with a bevy of young stars, the LPGA is on solid footing for the future, and this year's crop of tournament winners is evidence of that. The average age of tournament winners so far this season is youthful 23.6, a number that should put golf fans at ease for the coming years.
Winners have ranged from 17-year-old Lydia Ko, now 18, to 37-year-old Cristie Kerr, but only Kerr, Suzann Pettersen (34) and Kris Tamulis (34) have won this year among the group of players over the age of 30. Ko’s closest challenger has been four-event winner Inbee Park, who turned 27 on July 12.
Ko isn’t the only teenager to win in 2015, as Brooke M. Henderson won in Portland, Ore., a few weeks before her 18th birthday, 20-year-old Hyo Joo Kim won in March as a 19-year-old and Minjee Lee was 18 when she won the Kingsmill Championship in May. In addition, In Gee Chun won the U.S. Women’s Open in July at the ripe age of 20, and Lexi Thompson has added two tournament titles to her resume after turning 20 in February.
Players are developing faster as they move up the junior ranks, and several have proven they are ready to play week-in and week-out on the professional tours far earlier than they have in the past. Rookie points leader Sei Young Kim has three tournament victories as a 22-year-old, and Jessica Korda added career win No. 4 as a 22-year-old in October.
The game is shifting fast, and junior programs and private instruction have helped fast-track players to the pro ranks. Some believe the shift is a bad thing, but one big positive is the longevity it sets the stage for when it comes to the best of the best.
Players like Ko and Sei Young Kim will be in the spotlight for decades to come, and the prevalence of a large number of exciting, marketable young stars bodes well for the game’s future. The Tour is in a great place heading into the 2016 season, and recent tournament champions will do wonders for the sport as they band together to elevate the level of play in the coming years.
Youthful and strong, the LPGA Tour can boast some grand goals for 2016 and beyond, and it definitely has the stars to take it to new heights.
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