It looked to be a huge blow to the LPGA when Lexi Thompson announced midway through the 2024 season that she was planning to step away from full-time golf at the end of the year.

Lexi Thompson has been a stalwart of the LPGA for well over a decade. The 30-year-old won a major title before her 20th birthday, while she quickly became one of the biggest names in the game.

The last few years have been a lot tougher for Thompson. Her most recent victory came in 2019, while she missed five cuts in eight major appearances across 2023 and 2024.

Despite the disappointment of Thompson stepping away, it seemed that everyone understood her decision given that she had made her major debut at the age of 12. And it appeared that everyone was determined to send Thompson out on a high.

Mel Reid comments on how often Lexi Thompson has played on the LPGA this year

Stacy Lewis made a point of handing her the Solheim Cup trophy in Gainesville, while there was a lot of criticism of the LPGA after Thompson finished her final round at the CME Group Tour Championship on the ninth hole rather than in front of the larger crowds on the 18th hole.

But those who expected Thompson to barely play from 2025 onwards have been in for a surprise. She has played eight times so far, registering two top 10s.

It has led to some questions over whether she should have been clearer in how she framed her decision to step away from full-time competition. And speaking on Quiet Please! With Mel and Kira, Mel Reid suggested that Thompson probably made an error with an ambiguous announcement.

Photo by David Berding/Getty Images
“Listen, I’m probably going to get slammed for this, but this is just my opinion and it is our podcast so I should be entitled to my opinion, I don’t think she necessarily went about announcing her retirement from full-time play [the right way], I think if she could do it again, she would because it’s very confusing for a lot of people,” she said.

“I think if she just wanted to reduce her playing schedule, probably she should have just naturally done that, and then commented on it if she was getting a lot of attention about it. Listen, I don’t blame Lexi, she’s been a child star since she was 12 years old. She’s burnt out, I get it. She has a lot of pressure, she honestly brings in so many fans on the LPGA, so she has a lot of commitment to stuff. She says yes to everything. She’s brilliant. I cannot fault her. And honestly, since saying that she’s not playing a full schedule she’s been playing great. I think she’s allowing herself a bit of time off, which is very good for her because she’s been, like I said, literally acting like a professional since she was 11 years old.

“So it’s good for her, I just think I thought she was retiring, I think a lot of other people did.”

What Lexi Thompson said about her ‘retirement’ announcement after this year’s US Women’s Open

Thompson was forced to comment on the situation after the US Women’s Open. She noted that she had never used the word ‘retire’ in her initial announcement.

“I’m not sure how many times I’ll have to repeat this, but I never used the word retire, I said not a full time schedule, because I’m not sure how much I will play. Just taking it one at a time. That’s why I’m still playing the tournaments I actually enjoy or want to play in. Much love to my true fans out there, thank you for your genuine support, you’re amazing,” she wrote on social media.

However, the LPGA did use the word in their headline announcing the news. Meanwhile, Thompson, on a number of occasions, was treated like a player who was almost completely bowing out from the game at the highest level.

Interestingly, Thompson had made 10 starts up until the same point 12 months ago, which means that she has only played in two fewer tournaments so far.

She has more than earned the right to pick and choose how often she plays. And in truth, she deserved all of the tributes which came her way towards the end of last season. There is also unlikely to be too many LPGA events which would turn down the chance to have Thompson in their field.

But Reid is probably right to suggest that she should have perhaps done things a little differently if she was intending to take just a handful of events off of her schedule.