How this’s for a marquee group: World Golf Hall of Fame member Annika Sorenstam, current world No. 1-ranked Nelly Korda — and perhaps the most visible female athlete in the U.S. in any sport, WNBA rookie of the year Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever.
That’s what golf fans will get at the Pelican Bay Club in Belleair (near Clearwater) beginning at 7 a.m. on Wednesday in the pro-am for The Annika, the LPGA’s second-to-last event of the season.
Under the LPGA’s pro-am format, fans on-site and watching on Golf Channel and streaming services on lpga.com and the NBC’s X channel can see Clark play portions of nine holes with Korda, then nine more with Sorenstam, the tournament host.
Golf Channel is starting its LPGA studio show early at 11 a.m., for live look-ins of Clark’s round.
And how’s this for Caitlin-Mania: her warmup session will be live-streamed.
Caitlin Clark reminds fans she’s ‘average golfer’
She spent most of her news conference on Tuesday trying to dial down the expectations for her on the golf course.
“I’m just the average golfer. I’m going to hit some good, I’m going to hit some bad,” she said. “Just going to try not to hit anyone standing outside of the ropes. But it’ll be fun. I’m excited for it. I’m not a professional golfer. I don’t play golf for a living. Just have fun with it. This isn’t super serious. Enjoy the experience.”
Clark averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 8.4 assists per game as a rookie. She averaged 28.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game at Iowa.
She said when it comes to golf, she’s simply a fan in an enviable position. Clark has already competed in a PGA Tour pro-am, at the 2023 John Deere Classic.
“There were so many people that would kill to be in my position or in my shoes,” she said. “The people following outside the ropes would love an opportunity to hit a ball on the first tee or something like that. So just remind yourself how cool this experience is and don’t let it pass you by.”
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Caitlin Clark looking for some fun on the golf course in Annika Pro-Am
