In the 1741 edition, Poor Richard’s Yearbook35-year-old Benjamin Franklin wrote for the character of poor “Richard Sanders” and opined on The Fruits of Wisdom.
“At twenty, will rules; at thirty, wit rules,” Franklin wrote. “And a sentence at the age of 40.”
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285 years later, LPGA Commissioner Craig Kessler, 40, hopes Franklin’s words still hold true.
More than any title or topic, Kessler’s age best describes the fight he’s about to take on as the LPGA’s new chief executive officer. As one of the youngest leaders of a major sports league on the planet, Kessler enters the LPGA with the ability to bring the tour to the forefront of innovation and growth. But the 40-year-old is hoping to navigate these changes without sacrificing the same golf business he always has: TV rights, title sponsors, hospitality tents and goodwill.
This is Kessler’s biggest advantage as a leader on the LPGA and makes him a genuine threat. He is old enough to remember the good old days and young enough to know what happens after. In a time defined by systemic upheaval, it’s Kessler’s job to decide what stays and what goes.
What’s the best way to understand that conflict? Kessler says it starts in the living room.
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“In my generation, if you turned on the TV and didn’t like what you saw, you waited until the top or bottom half of the time to watch the next episode,” Kessler told GOLF.com on Monday during a media day promoting next month’s Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions. “I have three boys, ages 6, 8, and 10. I’ve watched them consume content, and it’s very different than my generation. They sit there with the Apple TV remote, and if they don’t like something, they have six seconds to press the next button and move on to what they want to watch.”
In those six seconds, Kessler understood the world of women’s golf. If previous generations of sports audiences were defined by people waiting for the end of time; Next This generation will be represented by people who can’t wait until rock bottom. minutes.
“It was absolutely eye-opening for me to see how the next generation of LPGA athletes are consuming media and entertainment,” Kessler said. “We’re looking to capture a share of the attention economy, and we’re taking the right actions in the right ways to succeed.”
Kessler is not alone in this sentiment. The “attention economy” has been adopted by many of the sports ruling class in 2025 as a way of understanding the times. We live in an age of mass distraction, where multibillion-dollar social media companies are funded on the premise of endless scrolling and attention spans. This change is best understood from an economic perspective. Now, for the first time, people have become products rather than customers. The more attention you get, the more profit you get.
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For sports leagues competing within the “attention economy,” downstream changes have been similarly seismic. For modern sports executives, the ultimate currency is not trophies or wins, but seconds of attention earned, and the competition is not “the other league” but internet giants like TikTok and Instagram. The old ways of doing business are still very valuable, and sports television deals and sponsorships are captivating audiences in their most raw form. But the wave of new media options is also creating entirely new ways of doing business.
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This presents a rare opportunity for a sports organization like the LPGA to not be limited by previous understandings. Note as “Network Television Hours.” Pay attention to Kessler’s LPGA It was done This means expanding television rights partnerships with major partners (Kessler’s biggest win as commissioner so far is a major partnership with FM to expand the LPGA’s television airtime in 2026). But it could also mean growth in the world of social media. Its algorithms are geared to encourage individuals to live interesting lives, visit beautiful places, and interact with famous people – three things that happen almost every week at the LPGA.
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“I think the most important theme is giving our fans a chance to understand our athletes, both inside and outside the ropes,” Kessler said. “Fans want to not only watch their favorite athletes compete, but understand who they are as people. What do they do in their free time? What do they eat? What do they watch? Who do they play with? What do they wear? And some of sports’ biggest stars have found a way to showcase both their competitive side and their real-life personalities.”
If you sense a theme in Kessler’s thinking, you’re right. The ideas he wants to implement in LPGA aren’t exactly transmitted through ChatGPT from StarLink satellites. These are modern twists on old-school sports marketing strategies. And in a world where audiences can be built and cultivated without the help of major television networks, Kessler’s ideas reflect the flexibility to win no matter the conditions.
Will these ideas bring meaningful change to women’s professional golf? It’s too early to tell. The original rules governing the popularity of the sport have not changed, with big stars competing on the big stage in important events, and the LPGA continues to strive for this purpose.
But these are unusual times in professional sports. Never in the history of humanity has it been cheaper, easier, or more accessible to so many viewers. Soon, content generated by artificial intelligence could lower that barrier even further. Of course, Kessler has ideas about that too.
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“I think AI will fuel the human desire for connection more than ever before,” he said. “Events like the Tournament of Champions perfectly reflect our innate desire for human connection, which has evolved over millions of years.”
There is little debate that the LPGA requires a clear vision and good judgment.
The 40-year-old leader in women’s golf certainly has the former. What about the latter?
Well, maybe poor Richard can testify.
The author can be contacted at james.colgan@golf.com.
The post What’s the source of professional golf’s latest major overhaul? AI…and the Apple TV remote control. First appearance in golf.
