In team sports, athletes get a built-in support system thanks to teammates going through the same journey as them most of the time.
In golf, it’s you, the ball and the course – no matter what kind of team you have behind the scenes. And for those elite players, like Michelle Wie West, who has been playing LPGA Tour tournaments since she was 12 years old, it can be tough navigating a professional world at the onset.
To that end, West teamed up with Ford to launch "Power Her Drive," a new mentorship platform designed to support LPGA rookies on and off the course. It’s a program built on Wie West’s own experience as a teenager trying her hardest to make an impact on the course, while dealing with everything else that comes with being a professional athlete.
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"This is probably the easiest yes I’ve had when it comes in terms of sponsorship," Wie West said in a recent call with FOX Business ahead of "Power Her Drive" debuting at the Ford Championship, which begins in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 26. "This really, deeply aligns with my passion. Now that I’m retired and in my post-retirement career, hosting my tournament, having juniors involved and mentorship was a big part of it as well. I think what Ford is doing is amazing. Since our early conversations, it was very clear it wasn’t just about logos – it was about empowerment.
"Golf is an individual sport, and this is what I tell the juniors all the time: you have to lean into community. You have to lean into your support group."
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Wie West said she was lucky to have her parents as a strong support system, but since they didn't expect their daughter to be as successful as she was at an early age, the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open winner admitted, "It was the blind leading the blind a lot of the times."
So, with women’s sports in general seeing unprecedented growth, Wie West’s passion was one Ford immediately wanted to help out with in their partnership.
"I think this all started with the idea that we were very committed to becoming the official vehicle partner for the LPGA Tour. But then we started exploring it more deeply. How can we do this in a very unique way?" Lisa Materazzo, Ford’s global chief marketing officer, said to FOX Business.
"We don’t want to just sponsor the tournament. It’s very important, so I don’t want to downplay that at all, but we saw an unmet need when we began speaking with the LPGA and an opportunity for deeper connection with the athletes. Really authentically supporting their development, and this to us felt very right for Ford, to demonstrate that we have this unique commitment to the players and the LPGA, and more broadly, this sport and women’s sports in general."
"Power Her Drive" will begin with a Class of 2026, featuring a bright group of LPGA Tour rookies: Camille Boyd, Briana Chacon, Hailee Cooper, Laney Frye, Melanie Green and Yana Wilson.
As these rookies look to cement themselves as winners, or even stars, on the LPGA Tour, "Power Her Drive" plans to help them deal with what comes off the course, including brand sponsorships, financial advice and more.
"The score on the leaderboard is what you see, but there’s so many layers behind that," Wie West added. "I hope with our partnership, people will kind of see the peeling of the onion and see the support these players are getting. We’re going to go through and talk about personal brand building, talk about leadership skills. Even though it’s an elite individual sport, you’re still a leader of your own team – your caddy, your trainer, etc. I think all of this is going to be so much fun to go through with the rookies."
Materazzo added: "We are a big business – we’re a 122-year-old big, global brand. We know how to do these things, we know how to operate in a business environment. So, we can help those young golfers build their brands… If we can make other pieces of it an easier lift, that makes us, in theory, proud and very humble to be a part of that journey for them."
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