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Lexi Thompson will miss giving away … her shoes? … and other thoughts as she steps away from LPGA

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1 year ago

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Lexi Thompson’s retirement from full-time golf is bringing a level of openness from her that has only been seen in spurts during her career. With Thompson, 29, announcing over the summer that she’d step away from a full LPGA schedule—though she isn’t ruling out playing in selected events—this week’s CME Group Tour Championship is a farewell of sorts at the end of her 14th year on tour.

Thompson had a press conference on Tuesday at Tiburon Golf Club in Florida and thoughtfully answered a wide array of questions over 30 minutes. She delved into the state of the tour, her future in the game, and reflected on her career. Here are five of the most notable topics.

On her future plans

Thompson remained non-committal to how many events she will play next year. She has already earned plenty of opportunities: Her top-10 finish in this year’s Women’s PGA guarantees her a spot in the 2025 field; winning the then-ANA Inspiration (now Chevron Championship) in 2017 gave her a lifetime entry into the field, and she said she will have it “circled on my calendar” as a potential start. “It’s still a memory that I’ll cherish for the rest of my life, getting my first major win at that event,” Thompson said. “It’s very special to me.”

Also, with ending up in the CME field and being among the top 60 in CME points, the 11-time winner will be near the top of the LPGA’s priority list for the entire season.

“Like I said before when I made the announcement, [the stepping away] is just from full-time golf,” Thompson said. “I may tee it up a few times next year. A matter of when and what tournaments I don’t know. I am just going to take time for myself and take it day by day.”

On what she’d change on slow play as commissioner for a day

Thompson’s first response was on improving pace of play, noting it can’t be encouraging for fans to watch rounds turn into slow slogs. Charley Hull’s comments of fining players, then eventually removing their tour cards, seemed a step too far but in the realm of possibility.

“Hers was a bit of an aggressive comment. I don’t disagree with it. [Addressing pace of play] has to be done,” Thompson said. “Something has to be done to quicken up the play out there, whether it’s fines or whatever it is. Needs to be done because we need to play quicker. Fans aren’t enjoying being out there for five and a half hours in the heat.”

On the LPGA capitalizing on the rise of women’s sports

Thompson started on a positive note, being encouraged by the growing purse sizes and increased TV hours. She then advocated for increased TV hours across Golf Channel and NBC and said there are still ways to grow the tour.

“I think there is a lot more room for improvement,” she said. “I think we’re making as many stories as we can and focusing on all the good, but I think there are so many talents out here and so many stories that we can really focus on and really bring in a lot of fans and bring in a bigger fan base than what we have. … We’re improving right now, but there is a lot more to go.”

On advice to her younger self

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