Kai Trump made headlines in her LPGA debut, but not for the reasons she’d have hoped.
Her first round was tough. She shot an 83 at The Annika and found herself at the bottom of the leaderboard. Even though she steadied things a bit with a second-round 75, it still left her finishing last at 18-over par.
Despite holding a +0.5 handicap, nerves played a part, and even after steadying things slightly in round two, she was still well off the pace.
Kessler’s response was clear: “She did not ask for anything special. She’s still incredibly young, learning the game like so many others in this country.”
Craig Kessler weighs in on whether giving Kai Trump a sponsor exemption was the wrong call
What’s clear is that Trump’s appearance had a significant impact on The ANNIKA. According to SportsDataIO, her involvement led to a 38% rise in Golf Channel viewership compared to the previous year and sparked a 600% increase in social media activity.
That’s largely what sponsor exemptions are meant to achieve, and Kessler certainly helped boost interest, further aided by WNBA star Caitlin Clark’s presence during the pro-am.
Asked by The Athletic whether he had any regrets about granting Trump her spot, Kessler stood by the decision: “We actually do have established criteria on what it takes to be granted a sponsor exemption, and Kai met those criteria.” LPGA rules state that exemptions are only given to amateurs who hold a handicap of -2 or better.
LPGA Tour broadcast deal brings ‘number one request’ to fans
The LPGA has announced that tournaments in North America will now be broadcast live on TV, a major change that is expected to have a positive impact on the viewing experience for fans.
Kessler mentioned that raising the overall quality of coverage had been his main goal since taking over as commissioner and noted it was also the “number one request” from fans.
He added: “The quality of the broadcast is table stakes. If we went out and ran a fan acquisition strategy and tried to get people to watch, and they tune in and they don’t like what they see, we may never get a second bite at the apple.”
“So that’s why we’ve started there. Now that we’ve got a product that will be better than ever before, your question is the perfect question to ask. Our team is now working on the detailed plans to bring new fans into the fold.”
“From my own personal experience, what I would say is, as I’ve watched people get their first exposure to the LPGA and specifically to our athletes, they fall in love. And now the task in front of us is figuring out how to create that exposure for as many people as fast as we possibly can.”
No matter where you stand on Trump’s participation, it brought more attention to women’s golf. Coupled with this new broadcast agreement, it’s clear steps are being taken to build momentum around women’s golf at every level.
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