Paige Spiranac flaunting fits for PGA Tour gig is controversial, yet smart

Paige Spiranac was a fantastic college golfer at San Diego State, but she made a name for herself because of her Maxim-style fits that turned her into a household name.

Now the golf influencer is trying to diversify her portfolio of gigs, and she got her shot this week at the finale PGA event, the Tour Championship to crown the FedEx Cup champion with a $10 million payout.

golf influencer Paige Spiranac — Paige Spiranac / Instagram

That's the boring side. As usual, Spiranac's selfie grabbed the headlines with her picnic-table top and outshined any other golf commentator as far as coverage other than PGA Tour stars like Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler. Heck, on social media and online, Spiranac's fit got more attention than almost the entire field of 30 players.

This coming off the heels of CBS Sports reporter Amanda Balionis' awkward run-in with Spiranac joking about trying to steal her job.

Golf needs influencers like Spiranac

Yes, Spiranac gained her massive following (4 million on Instagram, 1 million on X, 1.7 million on TikTok) with her provocative fits, but when the PGA Tour is desperate for a younger demographic, hiring someone like Spiranac makes sense.

Anyone currently on-air for PGA Tour gigs, including Balionis, needs to be nervous about their job security.

Balionis wrote on her IG Stories, "I leave for two weeks," with a dying laughing emoji. "Give me a few more years before you come for my job @_paige.renee."

CBS Sports, Balionis' employer, has less than half the followers Spiranac does on Instagram with only 1.9 million.

Imagine Spiranac teasing coverage with her fits, and self-deprecating personality, for tune-in coverage and that raises awareness exponentially. Balionis has 355k, so nothing to scoff at, but not in Spiranac's league.

pic.twitter.com/nIlEjlqRFP
— Content Queen (@PaulimaGretzky) August 21, 2025

Spiranac still has to prove she has the on-air chops too

Spiranac is putting in the work doing the minor leagues for the Grass League 2-on-2 YouTube matches, and she's developing a commo-man approach to the stuffy world of golf.

I was born to do this tbh lol pic.twitter.com/ZydO1Omg4o
— Paige Spiranac (@PaigeSpiranac) August 7, 2025

It's a style that could absolutely work in the big leagues in a carved out role, and there has already been precedent with golf influencers and the major brands. Look no further than "No Laying Up" with NBC Sports, or former Barstool golf personality Dan Rapaport, who is one of the stars of Netflix's "Full Swing." (Spiranac also had a cameo in "Happy Gilmore 2.")

Spiranac's social media imprint crushes them all, and allowing disruptors into the fold makes a lot more sense than say, letting LIV Golf exist, taking away your biggest stars and ruining golf viewing outside of the majors.

And even those can still get very boring. Heck, Spiranac's fits would have added some juice to that final U.S. Open round won by JJ Spaun, where more viewers were more excited about the Tiger Woods retro-round during the rain delay.

Now would the Masters ever allow Paige's fits on-air? We'd be happy to find out.

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