The U.S. Women’s Open already has the largest purse in women’s golf, and it just got bigger.

Under a new partnership with Ally Financial, the U.S. Women’s Open will now dole out $12 million in prize money, up from $10 million in 2022 and 2023. Ally is now the presenting sponsor of the U.S. Women’s Open, and the official retail banking partner of the USGA and both the men’s and women’s Opens.

“Partnering with Ally allows us to not only continue elevating the U.S. Women’s Open, but to also further our commitment to the future of the game via our U.S. National Development Program,” USGA CEO Mike Whan said.

It becomes another title sponsorship for Ally, with the bank also sponsoring a PGA Tour Champions event at Warwick Hills in Michigan.

Additionally, Ally signed Lilia Vu to its team of athletes on a sponsorship deal. Vu won two major championships last year and ended as LPGA Player of the Year.

“I’m proud to be partnering with Ally as they align with the USGA and continue their mission to change the game for women’s sports and elevate the U.S. Women’s Open,” Vu said. “Their commitment to advancing equity in women’s sports is unprecedented, and I look forward to working with their team and my fellow brand ambassadors to create change while encouraging others to do the same.”

In a statement, Stephanie Marciano, who is the head of sports marketing at Ally, cited golf’s “meteoric rise” and diverse fanbase as among the reasons for the partnership.

It also helps Ally reach its goal of achieving parity in sponsorships between women’s and men’s sports.

The championship is coming off of a massive year at its Pebble Beach tournament, with the U.S. Women’s Open boasting its highest attendance since 2015, highest broadcast viewership since 2014 and setting the record for the most-streamed women’s golf event in NBC Sports history.

“The USGA is best-in-class and presented us a powerful opportunity to positively impact both the women’s and men’s game, as well as engage a new group of sports fans across the country,” Marciano said. “We couldn’t be more excited to team up and deliver on that promise together.”

A tennis player once again topped Forbes’ list of highest-paid female athletes, with Iga Swiatek taking over the top spot.

She becomes just the fourth athlete to top the list after Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka and Maria Sharapova. Both Williams and Osaka had maintained a hold on the list in recent years, with Osaka taking the top spot in 2022. But Williams has retired and Osaka sat out the 2023 season to have her first child, leaving the top spot for Swiatek.

The 22-year-old Polish tennis player brought in an estimated $23.9 million in 2023, which included $9.9 million in on-court earnings after winning the women’s singles title at the French Open. She also added four new endorsement deals.

Twelve of the 20 highest-paid women athletes play tennis, as well as nine of the top 10. Eileen Gu, who came in second on the list, is the only non-tennis player to feature inside the top 10. She made $22.1 million in 2023, with the majority of her earnings coming from endorsements.

Coco Gauff, who won the 2023 US Open, placed third on the list with an estimated $21.7 million in earnings.

Even despite her break, Osaka still sits at fifth on the list having brought in $15 million in endorsements. She’s set to make her return to competitive tennis in the new year, which will include an appearance at the Australian Open.

Combined, the top 20 earners made roughly $226 million in 2023. It’s a drop from the $258 million made in 2022, but the retirement of Williams, who made $41.3 million last year, played a large part in the decrease. Still, the median for the top 20 earners increased from last year to $8.5 million (up from $7.3 million), and eight athletes surpassed $10 million. That number matches last year’s total – which set a record – and is double the number from 2021.

Other athletes inside the top 20 include golfer Nelly Korda, U.S. women’s national soccer players Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan, gymnast Simone Biles and WNBA star Candace Parker.

The 2023 edition of the LPGA Tour Championship just teed off, but the season-ending tournament already is making waves into 2024.

Next year’s first-place winner will receive a record $4 million, up from $2 million. The total purse will increase from $11 million, up from $7 million and tied with the U.S. Open as the largest purses in tour history.

On Wednesday, CME Group announced a two-year extension of their partnership with the LPGA, which included the increased purse size. In addition to $4 million for the winner, $1 million will go to the runner-up.

CME Group has sponsored the final major of the season since 2011. And the extension of the partnership signifies the “growth and strength of the LPGA,” according to LPGA commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan.

“CME Group has been pushing the LPGA forward at every step of our evolution since 2011, and with this extension they are once again helping take the LPGA, women’s golf and women’s sports to unprecedented heights,” she said in a statement.

Those looking to follow this year’s tournament can watch it on Peacock from Thursday through Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. ET. NBC and Peacock will present the final round beginning at 1 p.m. ET Sunday.

Alex Morgan is getting into golf.

The U.S. women’s national team and San Diego Wave star announced Friday that she is joining The Golf League as an investor in the Los Angeles team, alongside retired LPGA great Michelle Wie West, tennis legends Serena and Venus Williams, NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and more.

“It’s official, my husband and I are married to the game,” she wrote on social media. “I’m thrilled to announce my involvement as an investor with @WeAreLAGC, the inaugural team of @TGL!”

TGL is a new league set to begin play in January 2024, founded by golfers Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. Some of the top players in the world will compete in three-on-three team competitions using golf simulator technology.

Initially, four teams were announced: Boston, New York, Atlanta and LA. Two more are expected to join the league, which has partnered with the PGA Tour.

“We’re providing a form of the game that looks more like other sports,” Mike McCarley — CEO of Tmrw Sports, the company behind TGL — told Fast Company. “This is going to be an NBA courtside experience, whether you’re there in person or watching on television.”

It’s unknown if or when pros from the LPGA will become involved in the new league. But other investors in the league, including Serena Williams’ husband and fellow TGL investor Alexis Ohanian, are committed to making that happen.

“My first question was, when can we get the LPGA involved? And it’s not just because my daughter is into golf,” Ohanian said. “It would be nice to help elevate the women’s game.”

Ohanian first connected with Morgan when he started tuning into the NWSL, and he later joined Angel City FC as an investor. Now, he’s helped the soccer star become part of TGL.

“Golf has become a family hobby,” Morgan told Fast Company. “So, [investing in LAGC] was a no brainer. It’s something I wanted to be a part of.”

From there, Morgan reached out to Wie West, who was on board almost immediately.

“It’s great to have the same mission: democratizing the dream, breaking down the stigmas of golf, and really showcasing how fun it is,” Wie West said. “We really want to use TGL, to use technology, to help bring this sport to people and communities that would have not otherwise been exposed to it.”

She’s also committed to bringing women golfers into the sport.

“I’ve had many conversations with LPGA Tour Commissioner Mollie [Marcoux Samaan],” she said. “Getting women involved is something that’s very important to me. We’re gonna make it happen. When? I hope soon.”

Angel Reese has been named to Time Magazine’s 100 Next list for 2023.

A standout for LSU basketball, she helped lead the Tigers to their first national title earlier this year while setting a record for double-doubles in a single season. And her star has continued to rise as she elevates her game and her profile.

WNBA star Candace Parker, who wrote Reese’s blurb for Time Magazine, noted that Reese brings “work, effort and energy,” all of which are required to excel in their game.

“She’s ripping the sport open and tearing back the layers,” Parker writes. “Her tenacity and confidence on the court make her such an exciting player to watch—it’s incredible to see her stand in her power and make such a big impact on women’s basketball, especially this early in her career.”

There is only “one time” that Parker doesn’t root for Reese, and it’s when LSU plays her own alma mater, the University of Tennessee.

The 100 Next list, which recognizes up-and-comers in industries across the world, also features a pair of World Cup stars in Spain forward Salma Paralluelo and USWNT and Portland Thorns forward Sophia Smith. Stanford golf phenom-turned-LPGA pro Rose Zhang also made the list.

Smith touched on her missed penalty kick at the World Cup in her blurb. The shot helped seal the USWNT’s penalty shootout loss to Sweden in the Round of 16.

“You don’t let those moments completely define who you are,” she said. “When something doesn’t go your way, you can let it take you down, or you learn and grow from that moment and be better from it. I’m choosing that route.”

Sometimes it feels like the celebration of a career might take just a little bit longer than 90 minutes.

Saying goodbye — Claire Watkins

01/

Megan Rapinoe’s final bow

Megan Rapinoe took her final bow on the international stage on Sunday, playing her last match for the USWNT in a 2-0 win over South Africa.

  • “It has been such an honor to be able to wear this shirt, to play with all these amazing players and to live out my childhood dream,” she said after the game.

End of an era: Rapinoe leaves the U.S. as a two-time World Cup champion and an Olympic gold and bronze medalist.

  • She also led the charge in the USWNT’s fight for equal pay and stood up for a number of social causes throughout her career.

“We have fought so hard off the field to continue to create more space for ourselves to be who we are, but hopefully I’m turning it into more space for you guys to be who you are,” she said on Sunday.


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(Candice Ward/Getty Images)

02/

A’ja Wilson leads Vegas to semifinal win

The No. 1 seed Aces are off to a strong start, taking down No. 4 Dallas 97-83 in Game 1 of their WNBA semifinal series on Sunday.

  • Reigning MVP A’ja Wilson scored 34 points to lead all scorers, followed by 25 points by teammate Kelsey Plum.

Controlling the game: “I like offense. I like to get on offense, so the only way I can do that is getting the basketball on defense,” Wilson said after the third quarter.

  • Wilson had four total blocks and outscored the Wings by herself in the third quarter, with 14 of the Aces’ 26 points to extend the lead.

The Wings’ chances hinged on points in the paint, an area the Aces focused on limiting in the second half.


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(David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)

03/

Liberty play ‘worst game of season’ in loss

The WNBA’s other semifinal matchup resulted in an upset, as No. 3 Connecticut took Game 1 off the No. 2 Liberty in New York 78-63.

  • DeWanna Bonner led all scorers in the low-scoring affair with 20 points.

Battling through: Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello called it the “worst game of the season” for her team, which shot just 34% from the field.

  • WNBA MVP candidate Breanna Stewart was 7-for-25 from the field and 0-for-8 from the 3-point line.

The Sun have now guaranteed themselves two semifinal games at home in Games 3 and 4.

  • On the other side, Sun head coach Stephanie White called the performance “probably the most consistent 40 minutes that we’ve played all year.”
  • Next up on Tuesday: CON vs. NYL, 8 pm ET / DAL vs. LVA, 10 pm ET (ESPN)

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(Jane Gershovich/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)

04/

Mia Fishel’s long-awaited USWNT debut

The USWNT both closed a chapter and had an exciting debut this weekend.

  • New Chelsea signing Mia Fishel made her first appearance with the senior team, subbing into the 2-0 win in the 65th minute.

Long time coming: Fishel was a standout with Tigres in Liga MX Femenil, but was not called into pre-World Cup camps by then-USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski.

  • “It was all positive vibes,” Fishel said. “Twila [Kilgore] was amazing. I feel like this new group has new energy after the World Cup and we’re ready to go.”

The 22-year-old forward replaced Alex Morgan against South Africa on Sunday, slotting into a central attacking role.


05/

Europe’s furious Solheim Cup comeback

Team Europe retained their Solheim Cup crown on Sunday, roaring back from a deficit to tie Team USA 14-14 and earn enough points to hold onto their title.

  • The tie was the first in the history of the biennial event, held 18 times.

The event came to an awkward ending after Team Europe reached the 14-point threshold before the final pairing finished, prompting early celebrations.


06/

U.S. Soccer ‘happy’ with USWNT coach search

U.S. Soccer Sporting Director Matt Crocker gave an update on the USWNT’s coaching search this weekend.

  • “I am really happy with where we are with search,” he told select media in Chicago before Megan Rapinoe’s final USWNT match.

They plan to have the new coach in place by the team’s December friendlies.

  • “There was definitely a sense of — this is no disrespect to the history — but the players want, going forward, a coach that can build, develop, and source outstanding relationships,” he said of player feedback.

07/

WNBA players push back on awards voting

The release of the 2023 WNBA All-Defensive Teams selection set off a chain reaction of comments from players and coaches this week.

  • “Yeah they should let players and coaches vote on these awards,” Courtney Williams wrote on social media. “It’s just different having to scout and play against it night in and night out.”

“Stats are how people largely vote on/explain these awards, and that means steals, blocks, and rebounds. Two of those three immediately skew towards bigs,” wrote Mystics coach Eric Thibault.

  • “Voting for this league is a joke,” Natasha Cloud wrote in a now-deleted post.

08/

Debinha joins the Golden Boot race

The Kansas City Current are still in the hunt for a playoff spot, and Debinha is quietly making an NWSL Golden Boot case.

  • The Brazilian midfielder has seven goals on the season, tied with Morgan Weaver and Lynn Williams for third.

When NWSL games resume next week, time will tell if anyone can catch Sophia Smith’s tally of 11 goals.

  • The fewest goals needed to win the Golden Boot in NWSL history is 10, by Ashley Hatch in 2021.

09/

Number of the Day

8 — A’ja Wilson is the eighth player in history to win WNBA Defensive Player of the Year more than once, after earning the honor for the second straight year this week.


10/

Quote of the Day

“That’s why I have such peace about moving on, is I look at players like Soph Smith, Naomi, Trin. The squad is in very, very good hands if those are the ones that are holding it moving forward.”

— Megan Rapinoe on the future of the USWNT

Follow Claire Watkins on Twitter and read more of her work for Just Women’s Sports.

Lilia Vu captured her second major of 2023 at the Women’s British Open on Sunday.

The victory caps off a big season for Vu, which featured her first LPGA Tour win and two major championships. And soon she’ll be ranked No. 1 in the world.

“It sounds almost unreal,” Vu said.

The 25-year-old American won her first event in February in Thailand before taking the Chevron Championship in a playoff two months later. She’s missed the cut in four of six stroke-play events since then as she has tried to adjust to the expectations of a major champion.

“Honestly I just wanted to win golf tournaments out here on the LPGA,” Vu told reporters in England. “It’s just been a crazy year for me, just doing pretty well at the beginning of the season and just hit a lull in the middle, just struggling. I thought at the U.S. Open after I played so bad, I didn’t know if I could ever win again.”

She finished at 14 under par, six strokes ahead of Charley Hull, her co-leader at the start of the day.

On Sunday, she felt a bit of relief, she said. She became the first female player to win two majors in the same year since Jin Young Ko did it in 2019. And she’s the first American woman to do it since Juli Inkster in 1999.

“How I felt afterward, honestly I was thinking those two wins were a fluke,” she said. “It just comes down to not thinking about winning, just playing one shot at a time. This golf course forces you to do that. It really tests you. That was my only goal. To drive the ball well and give myself chances for birdie.”

The LPGA Tour is closing out the final major of the 2023 season with a bang.

The AIG Women’s Open, which teed off Thursday at the Walton Heath Old Course in Surrey, England, increased its purse for 2023 to $9 million — a 23% increase from 2022. In doing so, the LPGA Tour’s total prize fund for 2023 reached a record $108 million — a 15% increase from 2022.

The other four women’s golf majors have seen similar increases to their prize money in the last several years:

  • Chevron Championship
    • 2021: $3 million
    • 2022: $5 million
    • 2023: $5.1 million
  • KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
    • 2021: $4.5 million
    • 2022: $9 million
    • 2023: $10 million
  • U.S. Women’s Open
    • 2021: $5.5 million
    • 2022: $10 million
    • 2023: $11 million
  • Amundi Evian Championship
    • 2021: $4.5 million
    • 2022: $6.5 million
    • 2023: $6.5 million
  • AIG Women’s Open
    • 2021: $5.8 million
    • 2022: $7.3 million
    • 2023: $9 million

Viewership numbers also have set records in 2023, with July bringing the highest average monthly viewership ever for the LPGA Tour at more than 600,000. More than one million viewers tuned in for the third and final rounds of the U.S. Women’s Open, plus the final round of the Dana Open.

In the AIG Women’s Open, Ally Ewing, a 30-year-old from the United States, leads the field at 10-under par in the second round.

AIG Women’s Open: How to watch

  • Saturday, Aug. 12: Third round
    • 7 a.m.-2 p.m. ET — USA Network
  • Sunday, Aug. 13: Final round 
    • 7 a.m.-12 p.m. ET — USA Network
    • 12-2 p.m. ET — NBC and Peacock

Céline Boutier dominated the Evian Championship, winning by six strokes Sunday to capture the first major title of her LPGA career.

She’s also the first French golfer to win the major in her home country and just the third to win any LPGA major after becoming the winningest French player in March. The Evian Championship is held in Evian-les-Bains, France.

“Honestly, it has been my biggest dream ever since I started watching golf,” Boutier said. “This tournament has always been very special to me, just even watching as a teenager. To be able to hold this trophy is pretty unbelievable.”

During her impressive weekend, she was the only player to shoot all four rounds under 70, including a final round score of 68. She finished at a dominant 14-under for an overall score of 270.

Boutier’s six-stroke win is tied for the largest since the tournament became a major in 2013. She joins the company of Lydia Ko, who won the Evian Championship in 2015.

Brooke Henderson finished in second at 8-under, while a number of players finished at 7-under. Newly-minted pro Rose Zhang finished tied for ninth, her third straight top-ten finish at a major since turning pro in May.

And for Boutier, the win cements this year as one to remember, no matter what follows.

“I think nothing else matters now that I have this trophy,” she said. “So I’m really good for the rest of the year.”

Michelle Wie West is ready for her curtain call.

The 33-year-old golfer is playing the final tournament of her professional career this week at the U.S. Women’s Open. And while the five-time winner on the LPGA Tour does have her share of “what-ifs,” she is looking beyond them to her future outside the game.

“I feel very — confident that I had the career that I wanted to,” she told the New York Times. “Obviously, I wish I could have done more as well. I think anyone and everyone thinks that.”

But “the what-ifs and the regrets and the ‘I wish I could have done this better’ can drive you truly insane,” she said. And at the end of the day she’s done what she set out to do: earn a degree from Stanford and win a U.S. Open — the 2014 tournament at Pinehurst.

Still, she admitted that it is “hard to know” the right time to walk away. While she always planned to retire after having children, giving birth to her daughter Makenna in 2020 spurred a desire to continue playing. She has done so, playing a few tournaments over the last few years, though she has not played a full LPGA Tour schedule since 2018.

Ultimately, her body has told her that now is the time to step away.

“I really, really wanted to play longer. I really wanted to — especially after having Makenna and her being a girl, I really wanted to play longer,” Wie West told ESPN. “In an ideal world I wish I was still out on tour and playing. Unfortunately it’s just I had to make a hard decision with my body. It is hard. It is hard to be a mom out here. You have to make a lot of sacrifices. I just had to make a hard medical decision and also a personal decision.”

She played a practice round Tuesday with Rose Zhang, a fellow Stanford alum who is just at the start of her career, and Wie West admits that it already has been “an emotional week.”

“I just realized everything I’m doing, I’m doing for the last time,” she said. “The putting drills that I’m doing, you’d best believe I’m not going to do another putting drill for the rest of my life if I don’t need to. So all that stuff I’m doing for the last time, the last practice rounds, getting the line, writing in my yardage book.

“I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting, and incredibly blessed for the journey that I have and the family that I’ve built. It’s just a really cool week to be here.”

As for what’s next, Wie West hopes to remain close to the sport.

“I continue to want to help the tour grow, female sports in general, and do everything in my power to keep empowering the women, closing the pay gap, whether it’s in sports and out of sports,” she said. “I think we have to lead by example, and I hope I can be a part of that.”

The U.S. Open tees off Thursday at Pebble Beach. The tournament will run through Sunday. The broadcast schedule is below, and the full tournament will be available to stream on Peacock.

  • Thursday, July 6: 6-11 p.m. ET — USA Network
  • Friday, July 7: 6-11 p.m. ET — USA Network
  • Saturday, July 8: 3-9 p.m. ET — NBC
  • Sunday, July 9: 3-9 p.m. ET — NBC