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Saudi Arabia is pumping more money into women’s golf.
Five tournaments on the Ladies European Tour are being revamped with new formats and increased purses totaling $13 million as part of a new deal with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, which is the financial backer of LIV Golf.
The move sees several events that were formerly part of the Aramco Team Series, named after the Saudi-owned oil company, now fall under the newly named PIF Global Series.
Starting with this week’s tournament in Seoul, events in South Korea; London; Houston; and Shenzhen, China, will feature $2 million purses—double what they offered in 2024. Last year, the U.S. event on the Aramco Team Series was held in Tampa.
The PIF Saudi Ladies International has been added to the new series, too. This year’s edition of that tournament was played in February, won by Jeeno Thitikul, who took home $675,000 from the $5 million purse, which will remain intact in 2026.
Moving forward, all five of the PIF Global Series will feature team and individual competitions happening simultaneously. Captains, appointed via world rankings points, will draft teams each week.
It’s a positive financial development for the LET, which paid out roughly $39 million in prize money in 2024, compared to the nearly $126 million awarded on the LPGA Tour. The LPGA—which plays much more often in the U.S.—and LET announced a joint venture in 2019, and they have been discussing a merger. However, momentum for that stalled last year.
