She celebrated the shoot by tweeting: ‘I landed on the May cover of @GolfDigest ! So pumped to represent fitness & power.’
The decision has sparked a mixed response from readers.
PGA teaching pro Chance Scheffing told CBS New York: ‘I wasn’t sure if it was a Playboy ad, or if it was a Golf Digest ad.’
Golfer Morella Carta added: ‘I just think that this is a detriment to women, because I’d like to be recognized by being a good golfer; not about how my body looks like in the front page of a magazine.
‘I think that if we allow this to happen, we will never get to the place where we should be.’
It is the first time a pro-golfer has appeared on a ‘Fitness and Power’ issue cover – with past choices embroiling the publication in controversy.
Fox Sports golf reporter Holly Sonders, who was with the Golf Channel at the time, appeared on the cover and in a photo spread in 2013.
The next year, the magazine featured Paulina Gretzky, who was only connected to the sport as PGA tour professional Dustin Johnson’s fiancee.
LPGA Tour Commissioner Mike Whan said he was ‘disappointed’ in Golf Digest’s position to put Gretzky on the cover.
