They’re not, though. Korn Ferry players are playing 72-holes events too. Should their purses be the same as the PGA Tour? It’s not the same job or provided value. It’s not being an accountant.
Why should the networks broadcast the LPGA? What’s the reason?
@LPondgolf, he may have yes. But how can the LPGA Tour get there? Co-sponsored dual events is one way, if the PGA Tour will go for it (or the PGA, USGA, etc.).
Corporate hospitality only exists because senior execs aren’t spending their own money…the ROI is almost zero on those dollars
Korn Ferry events ALSO aren’t on network TV, and barely on Golf Channel, which again means not the same money. While their purses aren’t the same, the commitment and investment from club manufacturers/companies in terms of sponsorships are more than LPGA players get (minus the Korean/Asian players because they are seen as rockstars in their countries)
Right, yes, but the point I was trying to make is that just as they (KF Tour players) aren’t doing the “same job” as PGA Tour players, the LPGA Tour players like yourself aren’t doing the “same job” as a PGA Tour player, and a no-name actor isn’t doing the “same job” as Tom Cruise or whomever else is a hot-shot highly-paid actor these days.
This forum is full of lawyers. Public defenders aren’t paid the same as high-profile attorneys. Same “job” in some respects, but not, really.
I suspect that club manufacturers are trying to get in on the KF Tour more than the LPGA Tour because a chunk of those guys will be on the PGA Tour at some point.
Spectator counts, media coverage… that’s the horse. The cart is increased purse sizes. Whan has done a good job. The next commissioner can hopefully continue that trend.
And why do you keep wanting to make this point?
If people didn’t keep saying “they’re doing the exact same job” I wouldn’t have to.
I wanted to discuss Mike Whan’s “feeling” (for lack of a better word) that we’re closer to equal sized purses than I think is realistic. I think it’s a ways off. I don’t think it’s five years off, probably not ten.
And ways to accelerate that, because it might not be 20 years away, either.
Maybe you should quit while you’re ahead. It doesn’t seem like you have a constructive point to make. It’s coming across like you’re dragging female golfers and trying to justify why they don’t earn as much.
I’m out. You’re awful.
I’m not trying to “make a point.” I’m trying to have a discussion.
I would like to understand how we aren’t doing the same job?
It’s crazy how different people see things. I didn’t see @iacas coming across like this at all. He raises valid questions.
Bottom line is this, if the interest and eyeballs are not there, the dollars won’t be there. Regardless of whether or not the LPGA gets more network TV coverage or not (by they way, I think that would definitely help, but it might take a while before the marketing dollars make it worth it to sponsors).
This isn’t a male v female thing. The women 100% deserve equal purses but the trick is getting the money over there. It just can’t happen because we think that’s how it should be. Nothing works like that.
But right now this is a real chicken or the egg situation. The networks tell the LPGA that they can’t have prime spots and extended coverage because they don’t bring in the ratings like the men. But they can’t bring in the same ratings as the men because they get the shit coverage times/places.
But there is only so much air time. Men sports across the board get more air time no doubt to the dollars associated with it for sponsors and the like. Obviously more air time for women gets more eyes which equals more dollars but where do those TV hours come from? Less men’s golf, NBC and CBS just show nothing but golf? I am not smart enough to have the answer but until people are begging for women’s golf over men on network TV I don’t see much of a shift.
They could start by prioritizing a Women’s major over a men’s off-season hit and giggle with almost no household names in the field.
Yeah, no doubt about that. That’s why it’s not an easy solution.
A major championship with both men and women is foolish. If you did it to a women’s major you would actually take one of the weeks where the focus is on women’s golf and dilute it with the men.
Now mixed team events could create excitement. A coed international crown style event could be good as well.
Nobody:
Iacas: lpga players shouldn’t get paid as much as pga players
He can’t defend that. The LPGA is the top level of the women’s game as the PGA Tour is for the men. The difference in purses between those two tours is bad, but if you looked at the Korn Ferry tour vs the Symetra tour its significantly worse for two second level tours. Has a Symetra tour event ever been shown on GC? How many hours of the KF tour get shown in a given year vs Symetra? Women aren’t treated equitably by the vast majority of the golf media let alone those outside.
It’s not something that’s going to be overcome by just pointing out the inequality. The LPGA needs an innovative broadcast partner who is interested in creating a completely new golf viewing experience. And when that happens it can do for the LPGA what women’s tennis did to men’s. It’ll be a better game to watch, the players are more approachable and will become more well known, and they will bring in more money.
I can and have.
If you want to define “job” completely independent of the circumstances, then mini tour players are doing the same job and deserve to make millions, too.
It’s not really about “treatment.”
I agree with the second paragraph about what may be needed. But will it happen? Can it?
And @sarah, Mike Whan isn’t nobody. He seems to think we are close. Are we? 8% said within five years.
It’s tough to think that if Mike Whan couldn’t get it done in at least one event during his tenure that the next person will in the next 10.
That’s just not true. You comparing a mini tour player to a PGA Tour pro is like comparing a first year resident to a fellow (idk much about doctors but that’s my basic knowledge thanks to Greys Anatomy lol). They are at different stages of their career. Still doing the SAME JOB but one is an entry level position and one is a higher up. They worked their way to get to make millions of dollars. The thing is, women don’t get the same opportunity by doing the EXACT SAME THING. You still haven’t told me how we are doing a different job.