THE WOODLANDS, Texas – Tournament rounds aren’t the only rounds under scrutiny these days on the LPGA. The tour’s longstanding no-practice policy during pro-am rounds will actually be enforced in 2025. There’s a fine structure already in place for those who take extra shots. Players are permitted to take extra practice putts, as long as they’re not holding anyone up.
World No. 1 Nelly Korda mentioned the change during her pre-tournament press conference on Tuesday at the Chevron Championship, shortly before her nine-hole pro-am round. Four of the five LPGA majors have pro-ams, with the U.S. Women’s Open being the only exception. There’s really not much of a change to the rule, however, officials are simply starting to crack down.
“Today is pro-am day,” said Korda, when asked early in the week how she expected the course to play, “so I can’t practice during the round today with our new regulations. I’ll probably go out and play 18 tomorrow. I’m not used to this. Usually I’ll play nine, nine, nine, but since I didn’t get in until late yesterday and we had the Champions Dinner, I didn’t get to play.”
Korda didn’t practice at all on Monday after traveling from Los Angeles to Texas and attending the Champions Dinner later that evening. Her plans to play 18 holes on Wednesday were interrupted when storms forced officials to close the course mid-morning.
The LPGA made changes to the language of its pro-am policy earlier this season to clarify that extra chip shots are not allowed. Interim commissioner Liz Moore said the purpose is to speed up the pro-am rounds to keep the day more entertaining and enjoyable for everyone. Two-time major winner Stacy Lewis said pro-am rounds had become dreadfully slow.
“It’s part of the whole mantra to speed up the pace of the game,” noted Moore, who rolled out a stricter pace-of-play policy for tournaments earlier this spring.
The LPGA pro-am experience has long been the tour’s bread and butter. For sponsors, the interaction with the players was a differentiator, and for players, it presented an opportunity to land more personal sponsorship deals.
But somewhere along the way, the player’s mindset shifted.
“The pro-ams are the most important day of the week,” said Lewis. “I’ve known that for a long time, but this current group of players doesn’t see the pro-am as the most important day of the week. It’s treated as a practice round instead of entertaining the people that you’re with and talking to them and making it about them.”
After some complaints from guests, there’s an effort now in place to get the tour back to its roots.
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