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The 40-year-old’s voice wavered as she reflected on a fight that has stretched across her entire career. After two decades on the LPGA, the eight-time winner watched younger stars like Nelly Korda finally receive something she had long pushed for, a dependable healthcare supported by the Tour.

“And we have healthcare now. We haven’t had healthcare in the 20 years I’ve been on Tour, which blows a lot of people’s minds. And it figures these categories like one to 15, I think, get like full healthcare, and I’m 16 now, and I’m like ‘I have fought for it for 20 years, and now I can’t even get it.’ But it’s great to see that the girls will have healthcare, and so it’s just little things like that that he’s already changing that’s making the Tour so much better,” Brittany Lincicome told The Golf Guy Podcast.

Lincicome has often voiced her concerns about healthcare coverage for LPGA stars. In 2022, she appeared on The Troublemakers Podcast, where the host Lisa Cornwell and the 2x major champion discussed the healthcare benefits. At the time, LPGA golfers used to get $1,850 stipend for healthcare coverage. According to the LPGA icon, this was nowhere near enough.

She highlighted that many golfers and most caddies on the Tour didn’t have any kind of coverage. This is scary because the LPGA stars and their caddies travel a lot. And if they get hurt or any unfortunate circumstance occurs, it can cost them thousands of dollars in medical bills without proper coverage.

Thanks to the concerns raised by her and many other members of the LPGA Tour, things have improved. The LPGA rolled out fully subsidized health insurance in 2025. It was a major upgrade from prior stipends of $1,850, rising to $4,000 in 2024. This fulfilled long-term player demands amid the tour’s 75th anniversary growth.

Lincicome credited the new commissioner, Craig Kessler, for these amazing changes. However, the fully subsidized healthcare coverage was already announced in 2024, when Mollie Marcoux Samaan was the LPGA commissioner. But it’s not just about healthcare coverage; Brittany Lincicome is crediting Kessler for many such changes.

“And there are so many good things happening behind closed doors with Craig coming in and kind of revamping everyone’s spirits and getting everyone back on track of trying to build the LPGA and grow it into something even bigger and better,” Lincicome said.

Craig Kessler, who started July 15, 2025, succeeding Mollie Marcoux Samaan, has emphasized player welfare enhancements like this. Besides accelerating healthcare benefits, he also facilitated the prize money boost to $131 million across 33 events. Brittany Lincicome credited Kessler’s early changes with lifting spirits and positioning the LPGA for expansion. She admitted that it is “cool to still be a little bit of a part of it.”

Healthcare and golfers’ welfare are not the only priorities on Craig Kessler’s mind. There are many more things the new LPGA commissioner has done right from the time he took the role.

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Changes in the LPGA after Craig Kessler became commissioner

LPGA elites, including Nelly Korda, Charley Hull, Lexi Thompson, and others, have voiced concerns about slow play for years. This led to the development of a slow-paced policy in 2025. However, the issue still affected many events. Craig Kessler updated the slow play policy to make the punishments a little stricter. This included a fine for someone taking more than five seconds, a one-stroke penalty for six to 15 seconds, and a two-stroke penalty for more than 16 seconds delay.

By late 2025, success eliminated split tees and threesomes at the CME Group Tour Championship, cutting slow play significantly. Average round times improved, benefiting fans and competition flow.

Besides that, Kessler is also trying to eliminate another issue that has bugged the LPGA for years. Despite the prize money and the quality of golf improving on the tour, broadcast issues still affected many events.

Now, every 2026 round broadcast will be live on linear TV for the first time via Golf Channel and CNBC. It will also have state-of-the-art tech, including 50% more cameras, 30% more mics, drones, and enhanced shot-tracing from FM and Trackman partnerships. These aim to elevate storytelling, fan engagement, and event demand to fuel further financial growth.

Craig Kessler is also working on bringing in more sponsors for the LPGA Tour and other strategic improvements.

Brittany Lincicome’s reflections highlight how long-awaited changes are finally reaching the players who pushed for them. With stronger leadership and deeper investment in player support, the tour appears set for steady growth as it heads into its next chapter.