Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images
The LPGA announced two Rolex Award winners for the 2023 season, and Lexi Thompson will receive one of those prestigious honors.
The LPGA announced on Thursday that Lexi Thompson will receive the 2023 Founders Award. She was chosen and voted to win this honor by the LPGA membership.
Thompson will accept this award during this season’s final event, the CME Group Tour Championship. The 2023 Rolex LPGA Awards will be held on Thursday, Nov. 16 following the conclusion of the first round of the tournament.
The Founders Award is given to the player who best exemplifies the spirit, ideals and values of the LPGA through her behavior and deeds.
Inspiring others ❤️@ShrinersOpen patient ambassador, Gianna, was born with proximal femoral focal deficiency, which led to getting her leg amputated at just 16 months old.
This week, she got some tips and tricks on the range from @Lexi Thompson pic.twitter.com/n4ZR20BdVJ
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 13, 2023
Established in 1986, Thompson will join the likes of Julie Inkster, Lorena Ochoa, Karrie Webb, Lydia Ko, and many more who have won this prestigious honor in years past.
“It means the world to me, not only to receive the award but just to have the respect of my fellow players out there. And showing that there’s more to it than the golf side of things,” Thompson said in a press release. “It’s a matter of caring for the sponsors, your fellow competitors and just giving back to the game instead of all about winning and performing well. That’s what means the most to me.”
Thompson is both an LPGA USGA Girls Golf Ambassador and a PGA Jr. League Ambassador. She is always willing to sign autographs and interact with fans after her rounds. Her goal as a player is to inspire future generations on and off the golf course.
She recently became the seventh woman to make a PGA Tour start. Thompson teed it up at the Shriners Children’s Open in Las Vegas. She worked with the organization to interact with the Shriners Children’s Hospital ambassadors and patients.
Thompson just barely missed the cut, but her presence there was far more important than her play.
Shriners is just one of the many charities the 28-year-old has worked with in her career. She has also worked with The Morgan Pressel Foundation and SEAL Legacy Foundation.
It was also revealed Thursday that Jane Park will receive the 2023 Heather Farr Perseverance Award. That honor is given to the LPGA Tour player who, through her hard work, dedication, has demonstrated determination, perseverance and spirit in fulfilling her goals as a player.
During the 2021 season, Park was forced to leave the game of golf after her daughter, Grace, suffered a series epileptic seizures. Since then, Park has become Grace’s full-time caregiver and become an advocate for disability and epilepsy awareness.
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
