Mollie Marcoux Samaan, LPGA Commissioner, dpeaks to the media during the 2023 CME Group Tour Championship. | Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
The LPGA and ESPN have agreed on a streaming deal to broadcast live women’s golf, beginning with this week’s CME Group Tour Championship.
ESPN+ will expand its golf coverage by adding LPGA events to its streaming platform, ESPN and the LPGA announced Thursday.
The two-year deal will expire at the end of the 2025 season, but the service will begin airing live LPGA Tour coverage at this week’s CME Group Tour Championship, the final event of the 2023 season.
“We are excited to partner with ESPN+ to elevate women’s golf,” said Mollie Marcoux Samaan, LPGA Commissioner, in a statement.
“The LPGA represents the best of the best, and we’re thrilled to be able to offer more opportunities for fans to watch these incredible athletes perform on the biggest stage. Fans are in for a real treat as we create unique broadcasts to bring them closer to the action.”
ESPN+ will cover each day of eight LPGA Tour events throughout 2024, with one Featured Group feed covering the rounds of four groups: two during the morning wave and two more in the afternoon.
Those eight tournaments will be announced at a later date.
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Celine Boutier speaks with the media ahead of the CME Group Tour Championship.
But fans can tune in to this week’s CME Group Tour Championship, which features world-number one Lilia Vu, player of the year candidate Celine Boutier, and young phenom Rose Zhang.
This week’s event marks the second consecutive year in which ESPN aired exclusive live coverage of an LPGA Tour event on its platform. In 2022, the streaming service aired Featured Group coverage of the Kroger Queen City Championship, presented by P&G, and the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, presented by P&G.
ESPN has a long history of airing the LPGA, providing live coverage of the AIG British Open from 1982 to 2002 and 2010 to 2015. The network also broadcasted the U.S. Women’s Open from 1982 to 2014.
With Thursday’s announcement, the network appears to be leaning back into women’s professional golf more heavily.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
