Craig Kessler knew there was no easy answer, even if conventional wisdom said otherwise.
“No silver bullets to creating stars,” the LPGA commissioner said at the CME Group Tour Championship in November.
At the end of a year defined by parity, the LPGA and women’s golf faced a conundrum as it looked to find its breakthrough moment: Is it better to have one or two superstars win and win a lot, or are parity and depth the answer?
One of Kessler’s top priorities as he took over as commissioner was to find a way to create and market his stars. The way, he said, was to identify those who connect with fans, are willing to show up outside the ropes to build their brand and whose play meets the necessary level.
“You have the best players, you have the most marketable players, and you have the ones who are actually willing to lean in and do the work,” Kessler said. “It’s the handful of players at the center of that Venn diagram that we are going to invest our resources against in order to create global superstars and create that player and fan connection.”
Of course, it’s no secret who the needles are in women’s golf at the moment. It’s the same two players who Kessler specifically mentioned by name as players who have done things outside of golf to raise their star profile: Nelly Korda and Charley Hull.
While the outside-the-ropes stuff is important, Korda and Hull winning more, and doing so on the biggest stages in 2026, would be the most beneficial thing for the LPGA and women’s golf.
Korda went winless in 2025 after her seven-win 2024. Hull won once, capturing the Kroger after World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul four-putted on the 72nd hole. It’s not a surprise that the two biggest moments of the 2025 season were Korda’s Sunday charge at the U.S. Women’s Open and Hull’s final-round flurry at the AIG Women’s Open, both of which came up just short.
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A year in which Nelly and Charley win and win a lot would be the foundation for the climb toward a breakthrough that Kessler and all of the stakeholders in women’s golf envision.
That’s what made the controversial start to the LPGA’s season so head-scratching. Korda shot a sterling 64 on Saturday in chilly temperatures in Orlando to grab the lead. Everything was set up for the ideal Sunday, with the LPGA’s marquee star looking to snap a winless drought to open the 2026 season. But the decision to shorten the tournament to 54 holes due to the cold conditions meant Korda won the tournament on the driving range and won’t hit another shot for a month.
Kessler apologized for the way the decision was handled and communicated. He vowed to learn from it. There’s no doubt the controversial shortening overshadowed what could have been the ideal scenario for the LPGA’s opening weekend.
But Korda did still win. When she tees it up again, talk of a drought will be over, and she’ll be eyeing win No. 2 on the season.
“I did a lot of good last year,” Korda said after her 54-hole win. “Just kind of wasn’t going my way. I guess I was just so focused on being really present, which I told myself to do that last year, too. Maybe the outside noise did make its way in a little bit more than I wanted to. I learned a lot.
“Just very happy to get the first win of the year, and hopefully that leads into a great year.”
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And on Saturday, women’s golf’s other needle mover fired a final-round 65 to storm back and win the PIF Saudi Ladies International on the Ladies European Tour.
Hull birdied six of the final eight holes at Riyadh Golf Club to nip Akie Iwai and Cassandra Alexander by one.
“It feels great,” Hull said after securing the win. “Wow, it’s gone a bit too fast today. I was only two-under through nine holes and then I made a charge on the back nine. It was funny because last time I was around here my boyfriend said to me go out and make loads of birdies to begin with. He said to me last night, ‘Make loads of birdies coming in, you love chasing.’ And that’s what I did.”
The LPGA’s confounding decision to shorten the season-opening Tournament of Champions turned a Korda dream start into a question-filled debacle.
But on February 14, both Korda and Hull, the two biggest stars in women’s golf, have both won. Hull will tee it up again in two weeks at the HSBC Women’s World Championship, while Korda will return to action at the Fortinet Founders Cup in the middle of March. There’s a chance that one or both could have multiple wins by the time the first major rolls around at the end of April.
The answer to the LPGA’s stars vs. depth question was always going to answer itself. Just one month into the 2026 season, Korda and Hull already appear well on their way to delivering the expected answer: stars move needles and transcend sports. Wins are the accelerant.
That’s as close to a silver bullet as you’ll find.
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