Unprofitable Women's Open Announces Record $10m Prize Fund

The AIG Women's Open has accrued its prize money for a sixth successive twelvemonth contempt not being a profitable tourney to stage.

This year's championship, which is being held from 30 July - 2 August astatine Royal Lytham & St Annes connected nan Lancashire coast, will person a grounds purse of $10m (£7.4m).

It is not nan only 1 of nan 5 yearly women's fields taking advantage of sponsorship deals to connection expanding prize money. The US Women's Open - which past twelvemonth had nan largest prize money successful nan women's crippled astatine $12m - has nan backing of Ally Financial.

"At nan infinitesimal it's not profitable," said R&A main executive Mark Darbon.

"We dainty it arsenic an finance into nan game, but an perfectly captious investment.

"Our attraction really is astir assemblage growth. We deliberation if we're going to beryllium existent to that conception of inspiring millions of group astir nan world, we request to turn nan assemblage for this title and nan women's crippled much broadly."

Around 50,000 spectators are expected to be crossed nan week of what will beryllium nan 50th Women's Open, while Darbon pointed to accrued tv sum arsenic a measurement of boosting nan game's profile.

The $10m prize money lags down nan $17m shared retired betwixt nan players astatine past year's Open Championship and while Darbon would for illustration to spot that levelled successful nan future, he said nan R&A had to "think sustainably".

"There is simply a commercialized reality. We're investing collectively, AIG and nan R&A, important sums into nan championship, and we want to do that successful a responsible way.

"So we're not successful a position to person adjacent prize costs astatine nan moment, but we will look to proceed to elevate our prize money complete time.

"We want to reward nan stars of our sport. We person to do that successful a sustainable fashion."

Darbon said it would beryllium imaginable to make nan title profitable by cutting backmost connected nan walk but that was not connected his agenda.

"If profitability was our number 1 ambition for this event, location are a number of things we could do to put america connected a way to achieving that result.

"At nan moment, profitability is not a main target for us. We want to present superb venues and a awesome acquisition for nan players.

"We want to person a meaningful and increasing prize pot, and we want to present a spectator acquisition some unrecorded and done broadcast and integer channels that inspires and excites people."

Darbon besides announced that nan 2028 Women's Open would beryllium held astatine Sunningdale's Old Course successful Surrey.

Unlike nan men's Open Championship, nan women's visits inland courses arsenic good arsenic links courses connected nan coast.

"The Open and Women's Open person their ain discrete identities," he said.

"We don't dainty them arsenic one, and truthful we don't dainty nan venue action process arsenic 1 either.

"We are very focused connected taking this arena to what we respect arsenic immoderate of nan world's very champion courses."