While one major tour hits a wall with Saudi investment, another charges forward without hesitation. The PGA Tour’s negotiations with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund collapsed earlier this year after multiple failed attempts. Meanwhile, the women’s game isn’t waiting around for anyone’s approval.
New LPGA commissioner Craig Kessler just broke his silence on partnering with PIF—and he’s not apologizing for it. The LPGA announced Wednesday a groundbreaking co-sanctioned event with the Ladies European Tour, fully backed by Golf Saudi. The Aramco Championship will take over Shadow Creek Golf Club in Las Vegas from April 2–5, 2026, featuring a $4 million purse—among the largest for a non-major in women’s golf.
This marks the first U.S. tour event backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Kessler made his position crystal clear from the start.
ADVERTISEMENT
“This reflects exactly where we’re headed in building the global schedule for our tour.”
The timing couldn’t be more striking. President Donald Trump brought PGA Tour officials and PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan together at the White House in February 2025. The two sides emerged farther apart than before. By April, the PGA Tour rejected a $1.5 billion investment offer from PIF—one that would have kept LIV Golf operational and made Al-Rumayyan co-chairman of PGA Tour Enterprises. Those negotiations haven’t advanced since.
ADVERTISEMENT
The LPGA took a completely different approach. Kessler told the Associated Press he’s been blown away by the support from both the LPGA and LET boards. Their overwhelming sentiment? “What took so long?”
“We often talk about routing, courses and purses—and this event checks every box: a spectacular West Coast setting, an iconic course and a purse that continues our momentum in raising the bar for our athletes. We also recognize that partnerships like this—built on the LET’s longstanding collaboration with Golf Saudi and PIF—can help strengthen the women’s game on a global scale and elevate opportunities for our athletes.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Read Top Stories First From EssentiallySports
Click here and check box next to EssentiallySports
This becomes the fourth co-sanctioned event between the LPGA and LET, joining the AIG Women’s Open, Amundi Evian Championship, and Women’s Scottish Open. Shadow Creek, which previously hosted the T-Mobile Match Play from 2021 through 2025, will now shift to a 72-hole stroke-play format featuring 120 players—a change that rewards consistency over head-to-head duels.
The decision comes at a fascinating moment for PIF’s golf investments. Reports indicated the fund suffered $1.4 billion in losses from LIV Golf over four years. However, experts noted that women’s golf has become a success story under PIF backing.
ADVERTISEMENT
Financial Transformation Through the PIF Global Series
However, this U.S. partnership is only part of a much larger initiative that’s transforming women’s golf worldwide. The 2026 PIF Global Series will comprise five tournaments across three continents, offering more than $15 million in combined prize money.
The series begins with the PIF Saudi Ladies International at Riyadh Golf Club from February 11–14, boasting a $5 million purse that matches the men’s Saudi International—a first in professional golf. It continues with stops in Las Vegas, London, Seoul, and Shenzhen, each event carrying a $2 million purse that keeps the momentum rolling across Asia, Europe, and the U.S.
Golf Saudi and the LET first partnered in 2020 with the Saudi Ladies Team International. By 2021, it evolved into the Aramco Team Series, where stars like Nelly Korda, Charley Hull, and Alison Lee claimed multiple titles. That success laid the foundation for Kessler’s confidence in expanding PIF’s footprint within the LPGA, where purses now rival the men’s game.
ADVERTISEMENT
Kessler, who became the LPGA’s 10th commissioner on July 15, 2025, wasted no time engaging with Golf Saudi. His swift attendance at the PIF London Championship and the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh signaled a commissioner unafraid to pursue partnerships others might avoid—a bold stance that could reshape professional golf’s landscape for years to come.