Following Covid Era 'Dress Rehearsal', The ANNIKA Driven by Gainbridge at Pelican Poised for Best Year Ever

By Doug Milne

 

BELLEAIR, Fla. – While the Covid year of 2020 serves as a time most people prefer to forget, for Pelican Golf Club owner, Dan Doyle, Jr., an optimistic take on the time has paved the way to a host of successes.

 

With this week serving as the sixth iteration of The ANNIKA Driven by Gainbridge at Pelican and third with the World Golf Hall of Fame member as tournament host, Doyle will never lose site of the diamond in the rough that emerged when he and his family were creating the venue with Chief Operating Officer Justin Sheehan.

 

“None of us really want to remember the COVID year,” Doyle said. “We were told we're not allowed to have spectators here. But, it was a perfect dress rehearsal, and we kind of figured out how things flowed, people flowed and how the crowds moved around. The next year, it was great to have spectators here. The third year, we were still excited about it with thoughts of how to make it grow and make it better.”

 

Enter Annika.

 

“You take it from that level to this level, and we accelerated it from there,” Doyle added. “At the end of every tournament, the family sits down to think of how we make it better, and now we sit with Annika and (Sorenstam’s husband) Mike (McGee) to make it better together. I think every year we've upped the ante. Whether it’s men or women, the idea was to make it one of the best golf tournaments in the United States. I think we've achieved that.”

 

“It has been a dream come true to come here,” Sorenstam said. “Obviously, it's a bit surreal to see your name everywhere, but it's been fantastic to have partners like the Doyle family and Gainbridge, which supports women, in general, in so many ways.”

 

A 72-time winner on the LPGA, Sorenstam has been around and seen a lot. As such, few know better what makes an event a success. It’s safe to say she not only likes what she has seen, but also the tournament of which she has become such an integral part.

 

“Everything lined up so beautifully,” Sorenstam said, a month removed from her 55th birthday. “This golf course, the hospitality here, the club…everything about it is just really what I think both Mike and I dreamed about. Like Dan said, it's gotten better and better because we care, we’re committed, we’re dedicated and we want to make a difference. We want the players to feel extremely happy and special to be here, as well as the community.”

 

“It was kind of our passion when we started building this club,” Doyle said. “We looked around and realized there was not a professional women's sporting event in the Bay Area. We have hockey, baseball and football, but we didn't have a professional women's sport. We felt it was our duty. We all decided to just create it.”

 

Without question, one of the ways in which tournament is growing in significance is with regard to the decision to offer a sponsor invitation to 17-year-old high school senior, Kai Trump. In addition to being a standout player who recently signed with the University of Miami, Trump is the granddaughter to U.S. President Donald Trump.

 

“When you go into the history of exemptions, a goal is to bring attention to an event,” Doyle said. “Kai is lovely to speak to. She also brought a lot of viewers through Instagram and to people who normally don't watch women's golf. It has created a buzz on top of the other great players we have here.”

 

“I think any tournament wants buzz, and we've had it now for a few weeks for a lot of different reasons,” Sorenstam said. “Caitlin Clark coming back is a big deal, along with all the different initiatives we're seeing throughout the week, like the Women's Summit and Annika Inspiration Award.”

 

Like Doyle, Sorenstam believes a large part of the tournament’s success is bringing people in with aspirations of being a professional, enjoying the game and bringing something to the tournament. That, she said, is what they see in their three exemptions.

 

When Sorenstam was offered a spot in the PGA TOUR field at Colonial Country Club in 2003, she understood the associated controversy. In the end, though, she also believed it not only brought attention to the tournament, but to women's sports. That was this week’s objective with the inclusion of Trump.

 

“In this case, Kai brings a lot of different people to the sport, and we want people to hear about our tournament and be part of it,” Sorenstam explained. “Word is spreading and I think that's a good thing. Keep in mind, The ANNIKA Foundation is a beneficiary here, and we're all about providing and empowering our women. It really fits into our mission. We're really looking forward to the week.”

 

In addition to Kai and the other exemptions raising awareness and inspiring others, another significant element to this week is the ANNIKA Inspiration Award.

 

“The ANNIKA Inspiration Award is something that's been in the works for the last few years,” she said. “We wanted to celebrate a young lady that's been part of our foundation for a few years and gone on to do other things. Rachel Heck checks every box. That's another thing that I really love about this tournament, that we get to highlight the things we do in the Foundation. On Saturday, we have the Share My Passion clinic, which will include a lot of young girls attending here for the chance to watch their role models. That's what this tournament is about - the youth and the future.”

 

“Annika has got some great ideas and opinions,” Doyle said. “We captured those and said, ‘all right, what's the next thing we can do?’. Now, it's almost become like a passion project, kind of like the way the club was. We’ve just been trying to figure out ways to make this the best golf tournament out there.”

 

“I'm super proud, Annika said. “I think we're all just very proud of what we have here this week with the players, sponsors and engagements in general. It's been very, very positive. When Dan said we sit down every year and think about what to do to make it better, I'm already thinking about what I am going to do for 2026. I'm not a person to settle.”

 

While there are kinds of ways to determine the success of an event once it’s in the rear view mirror. Doyle, however, got an early indication of the event’s success this year . long before the first competitive tee shot even took flight.

 

“There is a little restaurant up the street I eat breakfast at on Mondays,” Doyle said. “The waitress there is over the moon about the event this year. I walked in Monday and she had an ANNIKA hat and ANNIKA T-shirt on. I mean, she's all in.”

 

Doyle made a return not long after.

 

“She was screaming to everybody in the restaurant about tee times and who is playing where. So, that was exciting,” Doyle laughed. “And, it was also a little bit scary.”

 

Amazing how far this event has come since the dress rehearsal in 2020.