It is never a big surprise when a commissioner of the LPGA steps down, because it has happened quite a bit through the years.
The surprise with Mollie Marcoux Samaan’s announcement this week that she is stepping down from the job is that she is leaving the tour just three and a half years into a five-year contract.
“With the LPGA positioned for continued growth, it’s time for me to have more time to cheer on our three amazing children as they live their dreams while I continue to pursue my passion for building leaders, uniting communities and creating value through sports, particularly women’s sports,” said Marcoux Samaan in the statement from the LPGA.
Like most commissioners, the term for Marcoux Samaan had its ups and downs. If it was personally just time for her to leave or just time for a fresh approach from the commissioner’s office isn’t truly known. But there are some areas where Marcoux Samaan had an impact on the Coachella Valley and could have had an impact in the future:
For instance:
The Chevron Championship
Marcoux Samaan was the commissioner of the LPGA when word came out that Chevron was taking over as title sponsor of the LPGA major championship at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, but was also planning on moving the tournament to Houston after 51 years in the desert.
Since she was the commissioner, Marcoux Samaan received some of the blame from desert fans, which was unfair. The LPGA was looking for a big-time sponsor, and if that meant Chevron wanted to move the event, that’s what was going to happen. So many other things went into the decision to leave the desert, including better television exposure, competition from the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and perhaps waning interest in the tournament in the desert. Marcoux Samaan just happened to be the commissioner when all of that came together.
Bigger purses
It might not be fair to put all the blame on Marcoux Samaan, but the LPGA didn’t experience much growth in her three and a half years as commissioner.
The tour lost some sponsors and will have the same number of tournaments in 2025 as it had in 2024, 33 official events. But the purses were larger, with Jeeno Thitikul earning $4 million for her win at the CME Group Tour Championship.
So the tour was kind of floating along with some victories and some defeats in the last few years in terms of growing the sport. All that while other women’s sports were getting more exposure and more growth, such as the WNBA and women’s sports in the Olympics.
The LPGA’s future in the desert
The city of Indian Wells is making no secret that it covets an official LPGA event at the Indian Wells Golf Resort, and that a date in the spring is a possibility. City officials have been in discussions with the women’s tour about golf courses and dates and the need for a title sponsor, with the city as a presenting sponsor of an event. But all of that talk has been with Marcoux Samaan as commissioner.
A new commissioner – there is no specific timetable to hire a new person – might have an agenda that doesn’t include new tournaments as much as shoring up existing events. Either way, it might mean Indian Wells will be dealing with new personalities in its drive to get the LPGA in town.
More: Epson Tour Championship survives heat, awards 15 LPGA cards for 2025
Overall tour exposure
The LPGA has always been a tough sell for sponsors and even golf fans. But as basketball has seen Caitlin Clark bring in new eyes and athletes like Simone Biles continue to gain exposure in their sports, the LPGA hasn’t really been a beneficiary of the new-found respect for women’s sports in the country.
Nelly Korda and Lydia Ko were the biggest stars of the sport this year, and Korda did have some national attention and commercial endorsements. As the LPGA looks for a new commissioner, it might want to focus on the marketing of the tour and perhaps a new television contract as Golf Channel is spun off – along with other networks – from Comcast.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: How will next LPGA commissioner impact Palm Springs area’s search for new event?
