Prize money keeps going up at the women’s majors.
The Chevron Championship bumped its purse an additional $1 million two days before the opening round to a record $9 million, and Nelly Korda went wire-to-wire to claim the $1.35 million top prize.
Two days later, the R&A and title sponsor AIG announced Tuesday yet another increase for the AIG Women’s Open to $10 million. That makes it the third LPGA major to have an eight-figure prize fund, trailing the U.S. Women’s Open and KPMG Women’s PGA at $12 million each.
It’s only a $250,000 bump from last year at the AIG Women’s Open, but the partnership between the R&A and AIG is startling because it’s the sixth consecutive year with a purse increase.
The AIG Women’s Open is July 29 through Aug. 2 at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. The last time it was held on those Lancashire links was in 2018, when Georgia Hall won and the purse was $3.25 million. The partnership began the next year, and the purse has more than tripled.
“These consistent and sustainable investments in the prize fund clearly demonstrate the R&A and AIG’s commitment to elevating the championship on the global stage,” said Mark Darbon, the CEO of the R&A.
Along with more money, the R&A said the broadcast is being expanded to provide the most viewing (34 hours) of any of the women’s majors.
Three extra hours are being added for the weekday round. The AIG Women’s Open will be shown live for seven hours (5 a.m. to 2 p.m. EDT) for the final two rounds — on Sky Sports and the R&A TV in the U.K., and a combination of Golf Channel, USA Network and NBC in the United States.