This USGA program helps women level the playing field

In 1946, Patty Berg won the inauguration Women’s US Open at Spokane Country Club, beating out a field of 39 players for a first-place prize of $5,600, paid entirely in war bonds.

She may not recognize the event today.

Eight decades later, this June sees the arrival of the 81st US Women’s Open presented by Ally Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, where 156 of the world’s best women – whittled down from a pool of 1,897 entries – will compete on one of the game’s most iconic stages for a total purse of $12 million.

Do the math. The numbers alone tell a surprising story about its evolution women’s golf. But as with most good stories, statistics only go so far.

Golf is booming like never before and female players have helped that growth. Nearly 8 million now play the game in the United States, according to the National Golf Foundation, a 46 percent increase since 2019. They make up a record 28 percent of all golfers and contribute significantly to the billions spent on the game each year.

And yet, for many women from all walks of life, golf still often feels like someone else’s pursuit: governed by unfamiliar rules, elusive codes of conduct and a culture that isn’t afraid to feel completely inclusive. For all the strides golf has made since Patty Berg was in her prime, a divide remains, limiting women’s access not only to the camaraderie and competition of the game, but also to the relationships and opportunities that are so often created around it.

This was the gap that a recent gathering at the Riviera aimed to close.

Presented by the USGA and Ally, the presenting partner of the US Women’s Open, an event called “Golf with Us” brought together 40 female business professionals, many of them new to the game, for an immersive day. instruction and conversation. On the range, participants worked with eight teaching professionals at three stations covering full swing, short game and putting. They fired some shots at him and hit others. No one was keeping track. The goal was not to produce scratch golfers. It was something more impactful: helping women gain confidence and comfort with a game that brings profound benefits both on and off the course.

“I’m someone who’s been in (golf) my whole life,” said Tisha Alyn, a former professional golfer, media host, artist and entrepreneur, who moderated a panel discussion that followed. “Every opportunity, most of the friendships, most of the connections and employees that I’ve made in my life have come through this game.”

Alyn knew that made her an outsider in the room. A quick show of hands confirmed it.

“How many of you had played golf before today?” she asked.

Most hands went up.

“And how many of you have made a business deal on the course?”

Most hands stayed down.

Alyn’s three panelists had a lot to say about that gap, which they each faced in one form or another on their winding paths into the game. Lauren Campbell, director of sports and entertainment marketing at Ally, was introduced to golf as a child through father-daughter outings at a PGA Tour event in Michigan and has spent much of her career since trying to make the game more accessible and attractive to women. Kat Harwood, head of Deloitte Consulting LLP’s US sports practice, started out as a passenger in a buggy, riding along with her husband, enjoying the fresh air and scenery, until curiosity finally got the better of her. When the playground stopped, she started swinging. She realized she liked him. What’s more, she revealed, “I wasn’t terrible at it,” she said. Katie Conway, the USGA’s senior director of partnerships, grew up as a fan’s daughter, her childhood weekends structured around Jack Nicklaus’ mini-times. She even worked on golf courses along the way, but somehow never thought to pick up a club. Eleven years into her USGA career, she is still early on the learning curve. She still hasn’t break 100.

Which, as the panel made clear, is beside the point.

As Alyn fed them, the speakers took turns sharing experiences and advice. Conway talked about treating each round as a chance to learn something: a swing type, an ethical point, a better feel for the pace of the game. She recalled playing Pebble Beach in a USGA outing, posting a score that fell short of the course record, but came away focused on the positive: a single hole she had played particularly well. She recommended adopting that mindset. “Women are less exposed to golf,” she said, “and we’re probably harder on ourselves than we should be.” Find a good shot. Keep it with you.

Harwood offered a companion thought: Don’t make a production of those evils. No worried comments after the shot, no apologies to your playing partners. “I realized I was drawing attention to my bad shots,” she said. Most of the judgment golfers fear on the course exists only in their imaginations. The fact is, no one cares how you play as long as you’re not slowing down. “Just get the ball and keep going,” Harwood said.

Another gem of hard-earned wisdom: Don’t hesitate to go all in. For a while, Harwood said, she never took a lesson, which she used as a built-in excuse until she realized how absurd it was. “I wouldn’t do this in any other aspect of my life,” she said. If he wanted to learn to cook, he would take a cooking class. Golf deserved the same respect and attention.

The women in the audience were not INITIAL off course. They were accomplished professionals, mothers, wives. But Alyn was honest about how long it can take to really feel at home in the game and how to reframe the moments that feel scariest. Being the only woman on a golf outing, she said, is not so different from being the only woman in a boardroom. Both can be intimidating. Both can be reversed with some mental gymnastics. “You might think, ‘Holy shit, there’s only two or three women in this room,'” she said. “I’m like, ‘Hell yeah, I’m here.'” Faith in the course, she added, can also be a matter of faking it until you make it. “You all are badass in this room. You have so much conviction in everything you try.” Apply the same mentality to golf, and eventually the feeling rings true.

And whatever you feel on the course, remember: it’s a game. It’s supposed to be fun.

The problem is that it can seem so serious, beset by obstacles – some real, some imagined – that the industry is determined to bring down. For proof, take the US Women’s Open presented by Ally herself, the oldest championship in women’s golf and a tournament whose growth over eight decades is a shining reflection of the changing face of the game.

As Conway made clear, you don’t have to be a professional to be part of the picture. She has no illusions about her game. She still aims to break 100. But her wider ambition cannot be measured in strokes. When outings have come up in the past, she’s found herself asking hesitant questions. Would she be the only woman in the group? Were others aware of her skill level? She would like to let go of the doubt itself.

“I’d like to go to a place where I can just say yes,” she said. “I’d be happy to play those customers without any warning.”

She encouraged the women in the room to do the same, whether the invitation is to a speedway, a mini-golf outing or a company bash.

Just say yes to golf somewhere in your life, she said. “It will change your personal and professional life.”