LET Hits Rock Bottom With an Abrupt 2024 Season Announcement After Delaying Merger Talk With LPGA Tour

Compared to its American counterpart, the Ladies European Tour is going backward rather than attaining higher success. Unlike the LPGA Tour, which raised its prize purse to a record $118 million for 2024, the LET is going to have a smaller prize purse for the 2024 season, as the latest revelation suggests.

After delaying the historical merger between the Tours, the new information proposes a decrease of nearly €1 million ($1.102 million) from the 2023 total prize purse of the LET going into 2024. Despite the opportunities the merger may have unlocked, the LET and its members remain concrete in their decision.

The LET’s prize purse deteriorates

In 2023, the Ladies European Tour released a record-breaking total prize purse of €35 ($38.5 million). The 2023 season held 30 events, but this year the number of events has increased to 31. Unlike the LPGA Tour increasing the total purse of the next season, the tonality of LET suggests a decrease.

Although the event count at the LET has increased, the prize money on the contrary has sadly decreased. The total purse is said to be more than €34 ($37.49 million) million, unlike in 2023, when it was at least €35 million. This year will notably also include the $5 million prize money of the Aramco Saudi Ladies International presented by PIF to be held at Riyadh Golf Club for the first time.

However, the exact prize money for the 2024 season hasn’t been disclosed, but just a glimpse of the overall purse being more than €34 million is being made public. The total prize purse may not reach the record-breaking €35 million it did in 2023, and it likely poses a matter of concern for the golf fraternity. At times, when all of the golf leagues are excelling in their prize money and are offering higher purses for the tournaments, it sure comes as a shock that the Ladies European Tour is somehow likely to offer a lower purse than the previous year.

Additionally, the Ladies European Tour also postponed voting for the possible merger with the LPGA Tour. The deal with the Tour may have opened new revenue opportunities for the LET as the memo offered. However, as the voting was postponed, the LET will move forward with lower purse sizes.

The reason for postponing the merger between the LPGA Tour and the LET

Before the commencement of the LPGA Tour’s final event, the CME Group Tour Championship, the commissioner of the LPGA Tour, Mollie Marcoux, announced a vote being held for the proposal of a merger between the LET and LPGA Tour.

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The voting was scheduled for November 21, 2023; however, it was postponed by the LET players. In the released statement of the Ladies European Tour, it explained, “Based on additional information received just before the meeting, the LET Board decided to adjourn today’s meeting and postpone the planned vote.”

It seemed that the board and LET members were hesitant to merge with the LPGA Tour due to the “additional information,” which remains undisclosed. Even though the merger would have improved the prize purse, the LET players had chosen against it. With 60% of the members needed to agree with the deal, the LET and LPGA Tour’s merger remains uncertain.

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