As the penultimate event of the LPGA Tour season, November’s Annika Driven by Gainbridge at Pelican was already certain to feature many of the game’s biggest names.
However, it has now been confirmed that it will have even more star quality with an appearance from US basketball sensation Caitlin Clark at the Wednesday pro-am, where she will team up with arguably the greatest player in the history of the women’s game, 10-time Major winner Annika Sorenstam, who is the tournament's host.
As well the 22-year-old's appearance on the course alongside the LPGA Hall of Famer, the pair will also carry out a fireside chat at the Women's Leadership Summit the day before, on Tuesday 12 November, during Parity Week – an initiative that celebrates and amplies girls and women through sports and education grants.
In a statement, Clark said: "I love golf so the opportunity to play in the Pro-Am for a tournament with a legend like Annika Sorenstam's name on it is so exciting.
"Gainbridge is a leader in supporting women's sports and that's clear through their commitment to me, this event, Billie Jean King, and Parity Week.
“I'm looking forward to seeing all the LPGA players on the driving range, being part of the no get yet, and, of course, teeing it up in the pro-am with Annika."
⛳️ @CaitlinClark22 to tee it up in the pro-am at @theANNIKAlpga!The Gainbridge® ambassador will join legend @ANNIKA59 for her namesake @LPGA event this November in celebration of #ParityWeek. pic.twitter.com/g4f3y6S4atOctober 7, 2024
Clark, who also played in the pro-am for the 2023 John Deere Classic, has caused a sensation in the basketball world, first as a member of the University of Iowa's women's basketball team, the Iowa Hawkeyes, where she became the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer.
In April, she was selected as the first overall pick of the 2024 Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) draft by Indiana Fever, where she has continued growing her reputation as a generational talent and was named WNBA Rookie of the Year.
After Indiana Fever's season was ended in an 87–81 playoff defeat to Connecticut Sun in September, Clark explained she intended to play more golf during the off-season, saying: “I don’t know what I’m going to do tomorrow. I don’t know what I’m going to do the next day. Maybe play some golf. That’s what I’m gonna do until it gets too cold in Indiana. I’ll become a professional golfer.”
The Annika Driven by Gainbridge, which is held at Pelican Golf Club in Florida, begins on 14 November and will have a purse of $3.25m.
