Ahead of her 18th U.S. Women’s Open start, 11-time LPGA Tour winner Lexi Thompson announced her intentions to retire from full-time golf at the end of the 2024 season.
“While it is never easy to say goodbye, it is indeed time,” Thompson wrote in a statement posted to Instagram. “At the end of 2024, I will be stepping away from a full professional golf schedule. I’m excited to enjoy the remainder of the year as there are still goals I want to accomplish.”
Thompson’s last LPGA victory came in 2019 (ShopRite LPGA Classic). She’s racked up 15 titles around the world and participated on four Solheim Cup teams.
She won her lone major, the 2014 Chevron Championship (then the Kraft Nabisco Championship) at 19 years old. At the 2017 Chevron, Thompson was infamously docked a four-stroke penalty after a home viewer reported her for improperly marking her ball. She lost in a playoff to So Yeon Ryu (much to the dismay of Tiger Woods.)
She has eight other top-3s in majors.
As a 12-year-old, Thompson became the youngest golfer to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open. She made her first U.S. Women’s Open cut two years later.
“I’m looking forward to the next chapter of my life. Time with family, friends, and my trusted companion Leo,” Thompson wrote. “I will always look for ways to contribute to the sport and inspire the next generation of golfers. And of course, I look forward to a little time for myself.”
Thompson, 29, has long been one of the more popular faces on the LPGA Tour. In February, she stole the show in the latest edition of Capital One’s The Match, playing with Rose Zhang, Rory McIlroy, and Max Homa.
“I feel like I’m very content with where my life is and where this decision will lead me to,” Thompson told the media at Lancaster Country Club on Wednesday. “I’m just looking forward to what life has in store other than golf.”
“Being out here can be a lot,” she added. “It can be lonely … a lot of people don’t realize a lot of what we go through as a professional athlete. I’ll be the last one to say, ‘Throw me a pity party,’ — that’s the last thing I want — but we’re doing what we love, we’re trying our best every single day. We’re not perfect. We’re humans. Words hurt. It’s hard to overcome sometimes.”
Thompson’s 23 endorsements — including Puma and Cobra — are the most of any player on the LPGA Tour, and have generate millions in sponsorship money for the LPGA Tour, according to Golf.com.
“Lexi’s impact extends far beyond the golf course,” LPGA commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan wrote on X. “She embodies the spirit and dedication of our founders — always showing up and engaging intentionally to help further the growth and impact of the LPGA. She is beloved by fans, consistently seen signing autographs and interacting with them no matter the result that day.”
“I think she does an amazing job for the Tour,” World no. 1 Nelly Korda said on Tuesday. “She spends so much time going to each pro-am party. She really dedicated her time to growing the game. It’s sad to see that she’s obviously leaving and not going to be out here with us anymore, but she’s had an amazing career, and I wish her the best in this new chapter of her life.”
Last fall, Thompson accepted a sponsor exemption to the Texas Shriner’s Houston Open, becoming the seventh woman to enter a PGA Tour event. She carded five birdies en route to a 2-under 69 on Friday to come within two strokes of being the first woman to make a PGA Tour cut in 80 years.
“Definitely at the top of my accomplishments,” she said afterward.
Playing alonsgide Zhang and Minjee Lee, Thompson will begin her final U.S. Women’s Open at 1:58 p.m. ET on Thursday.
Thompson is currently ranked no. 54 in the world.
