Days After Her Clash With Media, Lexi Thompson Hits Another Roadblock Despite Being at the Doorstep of History

Lexi Thompson is going through quite a roller-coaster in her career. Although she was a solid performer for team USA, an ugly press conference incident and USA’s failure to win the cup played spoilsport in her Solheim Cup campaign a few days back. Last week, her only top-ten finish of the year at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship raised hope of a resurgence. And now she finds herself in a watershed moment in her career.

The 28-year-old-golfer has achieved many things at a young age. She has one major under her belt in addition to 10 LPGA Tour wins. Fair enough to say, she is already a role model for some up-and-coming golfers. Now, the LPGA Pro has grabbed an opportunity that might make her an icon for female golfers for generations.

Lexi Thompson is going to be part of the super elite club

The American golfer received an invitation from her sponsors to play at the PGA Shriners Children’s Open. Needless to say, she didn’t hesitate for a moment. When Thompson, tees it off against the men at TPC Summerlin, she’ll be only the fifth woman in history to do so.

While accepting the invitation, the 28-year-old-golfer hoped that this would inspire young female golfers to achieve their dreams. “I’m hopeful that my ability to play with the men next week at the Shriners Children’s Open sends a great message to the young women that you can chase your dream regardless of how hard it is,” ESPN quoted her as saying.

The last time a woman played on PGA Tour was in 2018, when Brittany Lincicome played in the Barbasol Championship. Thompson’s compatriot, Michelle Wie West has played in eight PGA Tour events. The other two women are Suzy Whale in the 2003 Greater Hartford Open, and Annika Sorenstam, also in 2003 at the Bank of America Colonial.

Thompson is no stranger to making history, however. She was the youngest player to qualify for the US Women’s Open in 2007. At the age of 16, she bagged the Navistar LPGA Classic, becoming the youngest winner of the LPGA Tournament. Now, at the age of 28, she finds herself at the doorstep of history. But, how do golf fans view this development?

Read More: Amid Nelly Korda’s Hiatus Post Appalling Solheim Cup, Lexi Thompson Shows Strong Character to Be the ‘Best Version’ of Herself

Is Lexi Thompson worthy of the honor?

Undoubtedly, this is a watershed moment in the career of the current world no.25. However, her overall form this season, has raised many eyebrows.

The four-time International Crown winner didn’t have a great year. Her last LPGA tour win came in 2019. Her best finish this year has been in the recently concluded NW Arkansas Championship, where she finished tied eighth on the leaderboard. One fan feels this doesn’t justify her inclusion in the tournament.

Another fan feels there are better players who deserved this chance more than the 2014 Kraft Nabisco Championship winner.

The six-time Solheim-Cupper missed a chip shot at the 18 hole in the Friday fourball session at this year’s event. After the missed shot, many USA fans felt an in-form golfer should have taken a better chip shot. This user probably alluded to that.

Thompson had a spat with the media during a Solheim Cup press conference. When a journalist asked her about a wayward chip, she shot off with, “I don’t need to comment on that.” Apparently, some fans are yet to forget that.

However, not everyone was averse to her achievement. Her recent outing at Walmart NW Arkansas Championship was a much better performance. Some fans were eager to see her play at the PGA Tour event.

One user chose to look at the bigger picture. The crossover between PGA & LPGA should be more frequent, they felt.

If Thompson can carry her recent form to the tournament and win the championship, she will have the opportunity to write her name in the annals of golf. For that, we have to wait till October 15.

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