How can women’s golf continue to grow? A Hollywood actress shares her take

If you’re not familiar with American actress Kathryn Newton on the big screen in movies like Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, don’t worry. Chances are, you’ll catch her on TV in a pro-am sometime soon.

That’s right. In addition to acting in movies and on hit television shows like Big Little Lies, Newton is an avid golfer. She played golf throughout her childhood and in high school before focusing on acting. Though she doesn’t currently have an updated handicap, she said that her scores are generally in the low-to-mid-70s on a good day.

Newton’s stature in the film and TV industry has gotten her a lot of attention in the golf world. She is an ambassador for Ralph Lauren and the R&A, and has been enjoying an inbox full of invitations to pro-ams around the globe, from the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am to the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. As such, Newton is uniquely positioned to offer a valuable perspective on the state of women’s golf, and on this week’s episode of Subpar, she shared her take on how best to grow the women’s game with hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz.

“[The women’s] games are already so good, so highlight their game more, give them the stage,” she said. “But I think the other thing that could be helpful, like for me, whenever I do a movie, I do a press tour, right? So I have things to talk about, and I have support from the studio about things I should say and shouldn’t say. And I’m like, well what if they did that? Like, just had a backup of things to talk about, so when they do interviews, they don’t feel like they’re floating, and they don’t feel like they’re going to say the wrong thing.

“They need support,” she continued. “And that comes from internal. They don’t need to do anything, they don’t need to post on Instagram. They don’t need to do more stuff like that. It’s just, give them the stage to shine on, and then I think the people will come.”

For more from Newton, including her favorite course she’s ever played, and why meeting two NFL stars made her a fan of football, check out the full episode below.

Golf.com Editor

As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-birdie everyone on the masthead. She can out-hustle them in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online features, and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Is­sue, which debuted in February 2018. Her origi­nal interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November of 2015, and appeared in both in the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.