Lexi Thompson set to play in PGA Tour event 

Lexi Thompson is set to create history in becoming just the fifth woman in the modern era to play in a PGA Tour event.

ESPN reports that Thompson has accepted a sponsor’s invite to tee it up alongside the men at the Shriner’s Children’s Open in Las Vegas.

The 28-year-old will make her debut on the men’s tour just three weeks after participating in a thrilling Solheim Cup draw at Finca Cortesin in Spain.

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“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,” Thompson said.

“I’m grateful to Shriners Children’s for this opportunity to spend the week alongside these inspirational kids.”

Thompson, an 11-time winner on the LPGA Tour, will become the first woman in five years to play on the American men’s premier circuit.

Fellow American Brittany Lincicome teed it up at the Barbasol Championship in 2018, while Michelle Wie West has played in eight PGA Tour events throughout her distinguished career.

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Annika Sorenstam, widely regarded as the greatest women’s player of all time, missed the cut by four strokes at the 2003 Bank of America Colonial, while Suzy Whaley played in the Greater Hartford Open in the same year.

But the first woman to play on the Tour was Babe Didrikson Zaharias, who made the cut at the Los Angeles Open in 1945.

To this date, Zaharias is still the only woman to make the cut on the PGA Tour.

“We are thrilled to welcome Lexi to the 2023 tournament,” said Patrick Lindsey, the executive director of the Shriners Children’s Open. “We are eager to have Lexi on the course and continue to break through barriers.

The Shriner’s Children Open is the third event during the PGA Tour’s Fall schedule. The $8.4million tournament will take place at TPC Summerlin in Nevada from October 12-15.

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.