LYTHAM ST ANNES, ENGLAND | On Tuesday, it was revealed that the field at this year’s AIG Women’s Open, hosted by Royal Lytham & St Annes, will share a record-high prize fund of $10 million.
It is a rise of more than $9,999,000 from the first edition of the championship 50 years ago.
Yes, the 1976 Women’s British Open had a total purse of just £500.
Even allowing for the currency conversion and the hyper-inflation of the late 1970s, it is an astounding financial leap and it is not the only aspect of the championship that has been completely transformed in the last half century.
In that inaugural tournament, two of the five competing professionals – Vivien Saunders and Gwen Brandom – contributed £200 to the prize purse from, believe it or not, their own purses.
The second event was no less remarkable, being decided on countback.
Imagine the faces of those trailblazers if they were to encounter the modern version of the championship. True, the money on offer would delight them, but surely the stature of the tournament, and the treatment of the players, would utterly bewilder them.
At the media day to launch this year’s championship, the R&A highlighted that the player experience is one of its key tenets (the others being quality venues and growth of in-person, digital and broadcast audience).
Those golfers of 1976 would have been happy with a locker room and a bar that offered soup and sandwiches given that most of their golf was played under all manner of petty restrictions and obscure barriers.
They’d be shocked by the dedicated, free-standing player clubhouse of this summer, with a catering team preparing performance nutrition and cuisine from around the world to reflect the field’s diversity.
They’d be surprised by a performance and recovery area, plus the specialised women’s and mental-health services.
They’d be tickled by the presence of an enhanced sauna, but surely downright astounded by not one but two cold plunge pools.
That said, the modern-day players are very appreciative of the facilities available to them.
“We’re very proud to have won the LPGA’s Gold Driver Award for the best player experience for two consecutive years.” – Mark Darbon
Charley Hull has described the off-course experience at the championship as “the best on the LPGA Tour schedule” and her peers have backed her up.
“We’re very proud to have won the LPGA’s Gold Driver Award for the best player experience for two consecutive years,” R&A CEO Mark Darbon said at Royal Lytham. “We pride ourselves on offering all of the players present at our championship the best experience possible and we will continue to make strides in this area into the future.
“It reflects a clear ambition to continue to build the AIG Women’s Open as one of the leading women’s sporting events in the world. As we celebrate 50 years, we’re proud of what’s been achieved but even more excited about what’s to come.”
As complete as the transformation of the championship has been since 1976, the real change has come more recently. Gaining major championship status in 2001 was one leap. The sponsorship of Ricoh from 2007 to 2018 was another, since it promoted the championship among Asian audiences.
The R&A taking over the event’s organisation in 2017 was another key step and AIG has now tripled the prize money over its seven-year sponsorship.
After admitting that the championship is not making a profit, Darbon noted that it could straightforwardly be put in the black, but at the expense of many aims and objectives.
“If profitability was our No. 1 ambition for this event, we could achieve that result,” he said. “But it is not a principal target for us.
“We treat the Women’s Open as an investment into the game. We think it’s incredibly important to provide a platform for the best athletes to perform, and we believe that that translates into inspiring and exciting millions of young people to pick up a club all around the world.
“Our focus is audience growth. In sport, if you grow the audience, the commercial side will take care of itself. So our focus is telling stories alongside our partners to grow and elevate the women’s game more broadly. It is about getting more eyeballs on this wonderful championship.”
In addition to news of this year’s championship there was also the opportunity to learn of future venues. Royal St George’s, in Sandwich, had already been confirmed as the 2027 host, but Sunningdale was announced as the 2028 venue.
More intriguingly, Darbon hinted at a possible venture across the Irish Sea. “We’re also looking at Portmarnock,” he said. “We’re in dialogue with the Irish government and with the club. There’s a great opportunity to stage an AIG Women’s Open in Ireland at some point.”
This summer there will be high hopes for the home contingent.
Since the championship gained major status in 2001 only three Brits have lifted the trophy and two of them – Catriona Matthew in 2009 and Georgia Hall in 2018 – triumphed at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
Leading this year’s challenge will be Hull (runner-up in the event twice in the last three years), Lottie Woad (T8 last year at Royal Porthcawl) and Mimi Rhodes (who made a hole-in-one last year on her way to a top-20 finish).
They will all be presented with a new task since the course’s par-5 11th hole has been rebuilt and is something of a triumph.
What was previously a rather bland and flat dogleg is now a fine adventure through the bunker-dotted dunes that were previously dormant on the inside of the dogleg.
The green remains, but the journey to it is greatly enhanced and the land where the old fairway sat is now part of a new practice ground.
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