Fansided

LPGA champion Lincicome steps up to take on the boys

By David Salituro

SHOAL CREEK, AL - MAY 31: Brittany Lincicome plays a tee shot on the eighth hole during the first round of the 2018 U.S. Women's Open at Shoal Creek on May 31, 2018 in Shoal Creek, Alabama. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
SHOAL CREEK, AL - MAY 31: Brittany Lincicome plays a tee shot on the eighth hole during the first round of the 2018 U.S. Women's Open at Shoal Creek on May 31, 2018 in Shoal Creek, Alabama. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Brittany Lincicome is a star on the LPGA Tour. But does she have what it takes to compete against the men?

Brittany Lincicome is already one of the best women golfers. Now she is ready to accept a new challenge, trying to compete in a PGA Tour event.

The 32-year-old LPGA star will accept an invitation to play in the Barbasol Championship, according to a report in Golf World. The tournament runs July 19-22 at Keene Trace Golf Club in Kentucky, opposite the Open Championship.

Lincicome, a Seminole, Florida resident, is currently 32nd on the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings. She has eight career LPGA victories, including two Major Championships. She has also won the Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic the past two years. That tournament is sponsored by the same parent company as the Barbasol Championship.

Lincicome isn’t setting her expectations too high. “I think we’ll go into it having fun and try not to put too much pressure on myself,” she said at the U.S. Women’s Open on Friday. “Obviously it’s a whole different ball game. I’m not trying to compete with the guys or prove anything. I’ve always thought it would be cool to go try.”

Women do not have a great record trying to compete on the men’s tour. Prior to Lincicome, four women have teed off in a PGA Tour event. Michelle Wie played eight events between 2004-08, missing the cut by a shot at the ’04 Sony Open in Hawaii as a 14-year-old. Annika Sorenstam and Suzy Whaley both missed the cut in 2003 at the Colonial National Invitation Tournament and Greater Hartford Open, respectively.

Babe Didrikson Zaharias, one of the greatest women athletes, is the only woman to make the cut in a PGA event, at the 1945 Los Angeles Open. Sam Snead has the lone LPGA title for a man when he won the Royal Poinciana Invitational in 1962.

Lincicome recognizes trying to compete will be a challenge. Take her driving distance, for example. Her average drive of 271.99 ranks sixth on the LPGA, but would be 205th out of 206 on the PGA. But it is a challenge she is willing to accept.

“The golf course sounds like it’s pretty wide open. It’s going to be obviously pretty far, but that’s nothing I don’t think I can’t handle,” she said.

Sorenstam’s invitation to play in 2003 met with some criticism. Vijay Singh, in particular, said he would rather withdraw than play with her. Wie was also criticized by those who argued she hadn’t accomplished anything on the women’s tour and had no business competing against men.

Next: Complete List Of PGA Championship Winners

Lincicome, however, hopes fans support her decision. After all, she could use all the support she can get.

“There’s only positives. If I play well, great. If I don’t play well, it’s still going to be a cool week. Hopefully a lot of people come out and follow and cheer for me because I’ll need a little extra support that week,” she said.

Lincicome is currently three-over at the U.S. Women’s Open after the second round.

Home/LPGA