The LPGA has been desperate for a moment like this. There hasn’t been a player on the LPGA with the potential to move the needle in the United States like Rose Zhang since a prodigious Michelle Wie West.
Several players have risen to the level of “household name” on the LPGA in the past two decades, but those were households outside of the U.S. Ariya Jutanugarn, for example, became the first Thai player to win a major and ascend to No. 1 in the world. Her face was on a Gatorade bottle in Thailand, but her name never resonated here in the U.S.
Ai Miyazato rivaled Tiger Woods in popularity in her native Japan. No one on the LPGA did more media than Miyazato during her time on tour, but that daily attention came almost exclusively from Japan. Yani Tseng had the same security detail as Lady Gaga when the LPGA came to Taiwan for the first time. Lydia Ko’s youngest-to-ever resume was significant, but it didn’t revolutionize the tour.
Not even Inbee Park’s attempt at winning a fourth consecutive major in a calendar season could capture the attention of golf media in the U.S., let alone the greater sports landscape.
Annika Sorenstam, the greatest player in the modern era, won 46 times in 124 LPGA starts from 2001 to 2006. But not even her sustained dominance could break out of Tiger’s shadow.
There isn’t a player on the LPGA right now who can be considered a household name in the United States. To become a household name, one must be well-known among those who aren’t golf fans. For example, people who don’t watch a single hockey game any given year know of Wayne Gretzky. Plenty of people don’t read Stephen King but know of his work. Sports fans might not watch tennis all season but would tune in to watch Serena Williams at Wimbledon.
These are household names.
Wie West became a household name because she contended at LPGA majors as a kid, competed in PGA Tour events and tried to qualify for men’s majors. Sharing a stage with men – as Annika did at Colonial – skyrocketed Wie West’s global appeal. She was magnetic.
Rose Zhang speaks during a press conference after a playoff win against Jennifer Kupcho of the United States (not pictured) in the final round of the Mizuho Americas Open at Liberty National Golf Club on June 4, 2023 in Jersey City, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Zhang, 20, put together the greatest amateur golf resume in the modern era and then won on the LPGA in her first start as a professional, something…
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