Total prize money in women’s golf has largely doubled every decade since the LPGA was first founded in 1950 (with the exception of a minuscule increase from 2000-2010) and hit an all-time high this year of $76.45 million. As we head into the final tournament of the year at this weekend’s CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, FL, the largest single purse in the history of women’s golf is on the line with $1.5M designated for the tournament winner. It’s an amount that would nearly double the year-to-date prize money of the year’s top two golfers, Nelly Korda and Jin Young Ko. 

The LPGA has been a tale of two flames in 2021 with Korda and Ko trading off dominant stints atop the rankings. For the first seven months of the season, it was all Korda. Between January and July, the 23-year-old from Bradenton, Florida won three LPGA tournaments, including her first major at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, and finished in the top ten in eight of the eleven tournaments she entered. 

To cap off her barnstorming summer, she won the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo by a thrilling one stroke margin earned on the final round’s 18th hole over Japan’s Mone Inami. Sharing that moment with her older sister and pro golfer, Jessica Korda, was extra special for the sisters who hail from Czech professional tennis player parents who are still highly involved in all their kids’ sporting careers (Korda’s younger brother competes on the ATP Tour).         

After cementing her name on the list of top women’s golfer to watch for years to come, things cooled off a bit for Korda. After winning the major, her best finish in the next four tournaments was a tie for 13th at the AIG Women’s Open. She also took some well-earned time off the course as well, opting to play in only two of the past six events.

In the meantime, the spark passed to Jin Young Ko, who caught fire at the end of summer, winning three of five tournaments in September and October. The 26-year-old from Seoul, South Korea has rarely been far from the spotlight since joining the tour in 2018. Out of the gate, she became only the second player in history to win her inaugural LPGA tournament and capped off the year with Rookie of Year honors. In just her second year on tour she won two majors, topped the list for official prize money earned, won the Vare Trophy for lowest scoring average (69.06), and was named the Rolex Player of the Year. Not a bad sophomore season.

After an abbreviated 2020, Ko maintained her number one world ranking and now finds herself neck and neck with Korda for that coveted title to close out 2021.

Momentum was behind Ko heading into the Pelican Women’s Championship last weekend with a 15-point lead ahead of Korda in Player of the Year standings. (Points are awarded to the top 10 finishers of each tournament, with 30 pts for 1st place, 12 pts for 2nd, 9 pts for 3rd, and so on.) But Korda proved she’s not done with 2021 yet by winning a thrilling four-way play-off to clinch her fourth victory of the year and put her 10 points ahead of Ko, who finished T6.

Now Korda is once again sitting at number one in several categories: Player of the Year points, official money earned, percentage of rounds in the 60’s, and lowest scoring average (68.84). Ko is right on her tail in each of those and with four tournament victories apiece (the Olympic gold doesn’t count toward LPGA stats), the Player of the Year title is still very much in contention as the two prepare to tee off in Naples for the final four rounds of 2021. One possible advantage Ko might have heading into this weekend is the fact she won this tournament and the then $1.1M prize one year ago by a five-stroke margin.

While the LPGA’s MVP title is now a two-woman race, a historic $1.5M is up for grabs for this weekend’s entire field of 60 golfers, who have earned entry by the accumulation of “Race to CME Globe” points in LPGA events throughout the year.

Keep your eye on Rookie of the Year lock Patty Tavatanakit. The 22-year-old Thai golfer clinched her first tour victory in her very first major at the ANA Inspiration back in April and sits third in Player of the Year points due to an impressive nine top-ten finishes this season. New Zealander Lydia Ko is also playing great golf and with one victory and four second place finishes this season is another likely front runner for the cash prize this weekend. And for Lexi Thompson, a season ending victory would do much to salve the sting of her recent struggles to hang onto late tourney leads on the green. Whoever wins the record-breaking first place prize, it will be a momentous step forward for women’s golf.

Round one begins this Thursday on Golf Channel with Sunday’s final round coverage airing on NBC from 1-4pm ET.

Naomi Osaka advanced to the third round of the 2026 Australian Open with a three-set victory over Sorana Cirstea on Thursday.

But the hard-fought win was overshadowed by a heated exchange at the net and a subsequent public apology from the former Japanese fan favorite.

After Osaka defeated the unseeded 35-year-old 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 at Margaret Court Arena, the two shared a tense handshake before Cirstea reportedly called Osaka out for her on-court conduct. The issue apparently centered on Osaka’s habit of shouting "Come on!" to celebrate points, specifically between Cirstea’s first and second serves — a move the Romanian considered both a distraction and a breach of sportsmanship.

In her immediate postmatch interview, Osaka dismissed Cirstea's complaints.

"Apparently a lot of 'come-ons' that she was angry about, but whatever," Osaka said. "I think this was her last Australian Open, so, okay, sorry she was mad about it."

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However, during her subsequent press conference, Osaka apologized for her dismissive tone.

"I'm a little confused. I guess that emotions were very high for her," Osaka said. " I also want to apologize. I think the first couple of things that I said on the court were disrespectful. I don't like disrespecting people. That's not what I do."

Osaka went on to clarify that her vocal outbursts are self-motivating and not an attempt to rattle her opponent.

Cirstea, who recently announced that the 2026 season will be her last on the WTA Tour, later downplayed the incident. She called it a "five-second exchange between two players," insisting that "there was no drama."

Osaka, the No. 16 seed, will next face unseeded Australian Maddison Inglis in the third round on Friday.

How to watch Naomi Osaka at the Australian Open this week

No. 16 Naomi Osaka takes the court against Australia's Maddison Inglis this Friday (time TBA), live on ESPN.

While competing at the 2026 Australian Open this week, US tennis star Coco Gauff is giving back to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), with the world No. 3 WTA player announcing a $150,000 donation to the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) to fund HBCU tennis scholarships on Tuesday.

"Education has the power to change lives, and I hope this gift will help students achieve their dreams," said Gauff in a Tuesday statement.

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Even more, this week's donation marks the two-time Grand Slam champion's second UNCF contribution in as many years, with her $100,000 pledge in 2025 bringing Gauff's total gift to $250,000.

"I feel like HBCU tennis a lot of times doesn't get the funding that they need," Gauff said after advancing to Thursday night's Australian Open third round. "I would always try to uplift marginalized communities and support where I can."

One of the youngest major donors in organization's 80-year history, the 21-year-old star's Coco Gauff Scholarship Program has already sponsored multiple HBCU tennis athletes.

"My family has a deep-rooted history with HBCUs," Gauff wrote in a 2025 press release. "As a young Black athlete, I understand how impactful it is to see people who look like me thriving in both sports and education…. My hope is that this scholarship gives more young Black players the confidence to chase their dreams, knowing they have a strong community behind them and a bright future ahead."

PWHL players made their voices heard this week, as The Athletic published the results of the third-year league's first-ever anonymous player poll on Wednesday, surveying athletes on everything from the best trash-talkers to which nation's team will win Olympic gold at next month's 2026 Winter Games.

Leading the poll's individual accolades is 34-year-old Team Canada and Montréal Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin, dubbed the PWHL's best player by 80% of respondents.

Poulin's Team USA counterpart, Seattle Torrent forward Hilary Knight, snagged second as each standout prepares for a fifth career Olympic run.

As for who will win gold in Italy, all but one player predicted a Canada vs. USA Olympic Final, with a 50/50 split on the eventual victor.

Athletes also answered overarching questions about the growing league in the player poll, with Detroit earning the most nods as a PWHL expansion city — though Denver and Chicago also scored double-digit votes.

As for the future face of the league, current New York Sirens forward and 2024 PWHL No. 1 draftee Sarah Fillier narrowly edged out current University of Wisconsin senior and Team USA Olympic defender Caroline Harvey in the players' poll.

Toronto Sceptres forward Emma Maltais beat out Montréal's Abby Roque by one vote for the title of top PWHL trash-talker, though most players tapped her for quantity over quality — an assessment Maltais herself agrees with.

"I'm not trash-talking," clarified the 26-year-old Canadian. "I'm just yapping."

WNBA star Angel Reese is lighting up the silver screen, with the Chicago Sky forward racking up multiple film and TV credits during the league's offseason.

On Tuesday, Netflix revealed that Reese will play a character called "Trainer Barbie" in the second season of the streamer's hit show, The Hunting Wives.

Already a fan of the series, Reese's told Hunting Wives creator Rebecca Cutter to "just let me know if you need me for season 2" on X last summer — a conversation that helped spark the basketball star's casting.

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Tuesday's news follows last week's announcement that Reese and Las Vegas Aces star center A'ja Wilson will each voice a role in the upcoming animated film GOAT, produced by the NBA's Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry.

When the film hits theaters on February 13th, fans will see Reese as Propp, a polar bear, while Wilson plays a reptile called Kouyate.

Reese first opened her acting portfolio by playing herself in a cameo in the October 2025 Netflix film A House of Dynamite, with Hunting Wives marking the 23-year-old's first foray into a scripted series.

The eight-episode second season of the Netflix show is currently in production, though a premiere date is still unknown.