Mike Whan: "I can’t be thinking, 'I rebuilt the LPGA, now I am going to cash out and go to a bigger platform.’"

GolfChannel.com’s Randall Mell talked to Commissioner Mike Whan about his intention to stay with the LPGA for a long time.

“My wife says, in time, God answers prayers, but maybe not in the way we expect,” Whan said. “I really believe, in some strange way, he answered my prayer. I wanted to raise and impact a young woman’s life, but there was another plan, another way to do that.”

A primary focus of Whan’s purpose going forward will be to address big, complicated issues.

Now, Whan can’t imagine leaving his adopted daughters with this larger purpose still to pursue, with women’s empowerment a cause he is committed to champion:

Growing the game to where half the golf population is female.

Growing the profile of his players with more network TV opportunities.

Narrowing the gender pay gap.

They’re all more aggressively in his crosshairs today.

“I can’t just let that be somebody else’s problem,” Whan said. “I can’t be thinking, 'I rebuilt the LPGA, now I am going to cash out and go to a bigger platform.’ That would feel wrong. You’re either in this, or you’re not.”

His comments are also notable given the pending renewal of media deals that certainly may lead to a bonus.