[PHOTO: Andrew Redington]
The USGA announced that Ally Financial will become the presenting partner for the US Women’s Open and the purse for this year will be the largest in women’s golf at $US12 million. Ally also will be a founding partner of the US National Development program. The partnership comes almost a year after the USGA parted ways with ProMedica, the former US Women’s Open presenting sponsor.
Ally also announced that it reached an endorsement deal with Lilia Vu, the Californian who is the current world No.1 and captured two women’s major championships in 2023.
This is Ally’s first involvement with women’s golf, but it has been a significant financial supporter in women’s sports. It is the American National Women’s Soccer League’s second-largest sponsor and in February 2023 it struck a landmark deal with Disney to allocate 90 percent of its multi-million-dollar media investment to women’s sports on ESPN.
The USGA’s announcement follows a string of deals to significantly boost LPGA purses. In November, the LPGA said its purse for the CME Group Tour Championship would nearly double for 2024, rising by $4 million to $US11 million, with the winner earning $4 million – a figure comparable to what male major winners receive.
Overall, the LPGA’s players are competing for more money than ever. The 2023 full-season purse total grew to $US108 million, up 54 percent from two years earlier. Major championship purses were up 80 percent from 2021.
