Carolyn Bivens (born December 29, 1952, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma ) was the commissioner of the LPGA from 2005 until her resignation on July 13, 2009. She was the seventh person and the first woman to hold the position of commissioner since the LPGA was founded in 1950.
34-600: The MasterCard Classic Honoring Alejo Peralta was a golf tournament for professional female golfers, played on the LPGA Tour . It was played each year between 2005 and 2009 at Bosque Real Country Club in Mexico City , Mexico . * Championship won in sudden-death playoff. This article about sports in Mexico is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . LPGA Tour The Ladies Professional Golf Association ( LPGA )
68-712: A group in 2023 though six had already been inducted individually. The first LPGA tournament was the 1950 Tampa Women's Open , held at Palma Ceia Golf and Country Club in Tampa, Florida. Ironically, the winner was amateur Polly Riley , who beat the stellar field of professional founders. In 1956, the LPGA hosted its first tournament outside the United States at the Havana Open in Havana, Cuba. In 2001, Jane Blalock 's JBC Marketing established
102-432: A round." Bloomberg removed the original interview without explanation, making it impossible to contextualize the remark, or to objectively evaluate the merits of the criticisms which followed. The article put in the place of the original interview focuses upon the reactions of two highly ranked players, Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel , who used Twitter itself to inform their fans that they would not be tweeting while on
136-458: A stalemate with certain members of the press while negotiating media rights. Two Honolulu newspapers, the Associated Press, Sports Illustrated , Golf World and other unnamed publications refused to cover the first round of the tournament. Golf World continued to withhold coverage of the event for two subsequent rounds, before returning after reaching an agreement with the LPGA. Details of
170-454: Is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida , and is best known for running the LPGA Tour , a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite women professional golfers from around the world. Other "LPGAs" exist in other countries, each with a geographical designation in its name, but the U.S. organization
204-576: Is the first, largest, and most prestigious. The LPGA is also an organization for female club and teaching professionals. This is different from the PGA Tour , which runs the main professional tours in the U.S. and, since 1968, has been independent of the club and teaching professionals' organization, the Professional Golfers' Association of America (or PGA of America). The LPGA also administers an annual qualifying school similar to that conducted by
238-564: The Women's Australian Open (also co-sanctioned with the ALPG Tour ). The other two co-sanctioned events—the BMW Ladies Championship ( LPGA of Korea Tour ) and Toto Japan Classic ( LPGA of Japan Tour )—are held during the tour's autumn swing to Asia. The LPGA's annual major championships are: Source: Since 2006 , the LPGA has played a season-ending championship tournament. Through
272-731: The 2008 season, it was known as the LPGA Playoffs at The ADT ; in 2009 and 2010 , it was known as the LPGA Tour Championship . In 2011 , the event became the CME Group Titleholders , held in November; since 2014, it has been known as the CME Group Tour Championship, and that name is used as of 2024 . From 2006 through 2008 the LPGA schedule was divided into two halves, with 15 players from each half qualifying for
306-530: The CME Globe champions include Lydia Ko (2014, 2015), Ariya Jutanugarn (2016, 2018) and Lexi Thompson (2017). In 2010, total official prize money on the LPGA Tour was $ 41.4 million, a decrease of over $ 6 million from 2009 . In 2010 there were 24 official tournaments, down from 28 in 2009 and 34 in 2008. Despite the loss in total tournaments, the number of tournaments hosted outside of the United States in 2010 stayed
340-606: The Championship based on their performance. Two wild-card selections were also included for a final field of 21 players. The winner of the LPGA Tour Championship, which features three days of "playoffs" plus the final championship round, earns $ 1 million. In 2009, the Tour Championship field was increased to 120 players, with entry open to all Tour members in the top 120 on the money list as of three weeks prior to
374-731: The Hall of Fame of Women's Golf in 1951, with four charter members: Patty Berg , Betty Jameson , Louise Suggs , and Babe Zaharias . After being inactive for several years, the Hall of Fame moved in 1967 to its first physical premises, in Augusta, Georgia , and was renamed the LPGA Tour Hall of Fame. In 1998 it merged into the World Golf Hall of Fame . The LPGA Tour presents several annual awards. Three are awarded in competitive contests, based on scoring over
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#1733084730027408-408: The LPGA's official Korean media rights partner starting in 2010. JBC also will underwrite an event in the greater Los Angeles area on the 2010-2014 LPGA Tour schedules. J Golf's overall media rights investment in the LPGA over five years is the largest in LPGA history. On May 28, 2009, Bivens is purported to have said in an interview that she would, "love it if players Twittered during the middle of
442-570: The PGA Tour. Depending on a golfer's finish in the final qualifying tournament, she may receive full or partial playing privileges on the LPGA Tour. In addition to the main LPGA Tour, the LPGA also owns and operates the Epson Tour , formerly the Futures Tour, the official developmental tour of the LPGA. Top finishers at the end of each season on that tour receive playing privileges on the main LPGA Tour for
476-590: The U.S. and North America. Initially called the LPGA Women Who Play, the amateur organization was rebranded as the LPGA Amateur Golf Association. The LPGA Amateur Golf Association has member-operated chapters throughout North America and the Caribbean. As a United States–based tour, most of the LPGA Tour's events are held in the United States. In 1956, the LPGA hosted its first tournament outside
510-712: The United States at the Havana Open in Havana, Cuba . In 2020, fourteen tournaments are held outside of the United States, seven events in Asia, four in Europe, two events in Australia, and one in Canada. Five of the tournaments held outside North America are co-sanctioned with other professional tours. The Ladies European Tour co-sanctions the Women's British Open , The Evian Championship in France, and
544-551: The Women's Senior Golf Tour, now called the Legends Tour , for women professionals aged 45 and older. This is affiliated with the LPGA, but is not owned by the LPGA. Michael Whan , a former marketing executive in the sporting goods industry, became the eighth commissioner of the LPGA in October 2009, succeeding the ousted Carolyn Bivens . After a lawsuit filed by golfer Lana Lawless ,
578-420: The brand value of the LPGA's deepening talent pool. At the time of her hire, the LPGA was experiencing an unprecedented influx of new potential superstars, many of whom fell into demographics new to the traditional LPGA audience. Bivens's strategy has been described by several writers as an attempt to re-align the business model of the LPGA with that of other professional sports organizations. Primary objectives of
612-485: The complaint had been Bivens' insistence that all Tour players become English-proficient. Bivens had proposed the change as being out of a concern for the foreign-speaking players' welfare: "If these players don't take this step [and learn English], their ability to earn a living is reduced. They will be cut out of corporate and endorsement opportunities. I can't imagine that someone who has thought this through does not realize that in opposing this measure they are penalizing
646-446: The course of the year. American golfer Nancy Lopez , in 1978, is the only player to win all three awards in the same season. Lopez was also the Tour's top money earner that season. 1 The five players with three titles in 1988 were Juli Inkster , Rosie Jones , Betsy King , Nancy Lopez , and Ayako Okamoto . The table below shows the top-10 career money leaders on the LPGA Tour (from
680-481: The dispute were never released by either side, despite frequent references to the dispute by the press. A year later, the LPGA made its media rights credential available to the public at LPGAMediaCredential.com. In July 2007, the LPGA acquired the Duramed Futures Tour , incorporating it more closely with the LPGA and formally making it the official development tour of the LPGA. In 2008, the LPGA constitution
714-446: The field is determined by a season-long points race, the Race to the CME Globe. Points conferred to players on tour depend on whether the tournament is major or not, and placement. From 2014 to 2018, the top 72 players in the Race to the CME Globe competed in the CME Group Tour Championship, with the top 12 players mathematically eligible to win a $ 1 million bonus in 2017 and 2018. Past Race to
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#1733084730027748-405: The first player living outside the United States to gain an LPGA tour card in 1968 . The non-U.S. contingent is now very large. The last time an American player topped the money list was in 2014 ( Stacy Lewis ), the last time an American led the tour in tournaments won was in 2020 ( Danielle Kang ), and from 2000 through 2009, non-Americans won 31 of 40 major championships. Particularly, one of
782-506: The following year. The LPGA is the oldest continuing women's professional sports organization in the United States. It succeeded the WPGA (Women's Professional Golf Association), which was founded in 1944 but stopped its limited tour after the 1948 season and officially ceased operations in December 1949. The WPGA had been founded by Ellen Griffin , Betty Hicks , and Hope Seignious . The LPGA
816-496: The green. On June 5, 2009, eight days after Bivens's original statement in the media, Bivens commented on the LPGA website that her remarks had been taken out of context, emphasizing that players would not be tweeting during rounds. In early July 2009, the Board of Directors of the LPGA received a letter from a group of top players on the Tour calling for Bivens' resignation with two years remaining in her contract. The overriding cause of
850-472: The most powerful women in television. Bivens served as commissioner of the LPGA from late 2005 until her resignation in July 2009. The LPGA commissioner serves as chief executive and administrative officer of the LPGA and is responsible for its day-to-day operations. The LPGA search committee selected Bivens to serve in that capacity on the basis of her media and sales experience, with the intention of capitalizing on
884-637: The notable trends seen in the early 21st century in the LPGA is the rise and dominance of Korean golfers. Se Ri Pak 's early success in the LPGA sparked the boom in Korean women golfers on the LPGA Tour. In 2009, there were 122 non-Americans from 27 countries on the tour, including 47 from South Korea, 14 from Sweden , 10 from Australia , eight from the United Kingdom (four from England , three from Scotland and one from Wales ), seven from Canada, five from Taiwan , and four from Japan . The LPGA established
918-462: The plan included increasing tournament purse sizes, establishing greater control over event venues and LPGA-associated media rights, and the provision of viable pension and health care plans. In 2006, Bivens announced the first formal drug testing program in professional golf. The program was introduced in the 2008 season. At the second tournament of 2006, The Fields Open in Hawaii , the LPGA reached
952-581: The rules were changed in 2010 to allow transgender competitors. In 2013, trans woman Bobbi Lancaster faced local scorn for attempting to play in Arizona's Cactus Tour in hopes of getting a spot for the LPGA Qualifying Tournament . In 2018, the LPGA acquired an amateur golf association, the Executive Women's Golf Association (EWGA), and expanded its emphasis to include amateur golfers in
986-423: The same, as all four lost tournaments had been hosted in the United States. By 2016, the number of tournaments had risen to 33 with a record-high total prize money in excess of $ 63 million. In 2019, a new record was set with total prize money amounting to $ 70.5 million (a rise of over $ 5 million in one year). In its first four decades, the LPGA Tour was dominated by American players. Sandra Post of Canada became
1020-510: The start of the tournament. The total purse was $ 1.5 million with $ 225,000 going to the winner. The CME Group Titleholders , which resurrects the name of a former LPGA major championship (the Titleholders Championship ), was first played in 2011. From 2011 to 2013, its field was made up of three qualifiers from each official tour event during the season, specifically the top three finishers not previously qualified. After 2014,
1054-596: The start of their rookie seasons) as of the 2024 season. Active players on the Tour are shown in bold . Carolyn Bivens Bivens was previously president and chief operating officer of Initiative Media North America, the largest media services agency in the United States and part of the Interpublic Group of Companies . She also worked at USA Today , where she led the worldwide advertising operations for USA Today and USA Today ’s international edition. In 2002, Electronic Media magazine named Bivens one of
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1088-455: The very people they are trying to help." (ESPN Golf, Sep 1, 2008). This insistence drew a strong public backlash from foreign and domestic Tour players alike. The letter followed the announcement that several long-time tournaments would not be returning in 2010 and amidst complaints from tournament directors that Bivens's management style and approach was counterproductive. In the letter it was stated that "the majority" of LPGA members supported
1122-429: Was amended to require the inclusion of an international player on the board of directors. In February 2009, Bivens unveiled two major television rights deals. On the domestic front, the LPGA agreed to a 10-year partnership with cable network Golf Channel, making it the exclusive home of the LPGA Tour. Internationally, the LPGA and JoongAng Broadcasting Corporation (JBC) agreed to a five-year partnership that names J Golf
1156-470: Was founded in 1950 at Rolling Hills Country Club in Wichita, Kansas . Its 13 founders were: Alice Bauer , Patty Berg , Bettye Danoff , Helen Dettweiler , Marlene Hagge , Helen Hicks , Opal Hill , Betty Jameson , Sally Sessions , Marilynn Smith , Shirley Spork , Louise Suggs , and Babe Zaharias . Patty Berg served as its first president. The founders were elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame as
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