Nothin' But Net for Caitlin Clark Wednesday at The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican

 

By Doug Milne

 

BELLEAIR, Fla. - Indiana Fever point guard and WNBA Sensation Caitlin Clark knows quite a bit about covering a lot of ground. On the basketball court, she does it better than most. In her drive to inspire young women the world over, the 23-year-old arguably does it better than anyone.

 

On Wednesday of this week’s ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican, the Gainbridge ambassador returned for a second pro-am appearance. With someone of that ilk on site, a lot of people covered a lot of ground to be at Pelican Golf Club and in on the “Caitlin Clark Effect.”

 

After playing the front nine of the pro-am with defending champion Nelly Korda, Clark played the inward nine with Northwestern University All-American sponsor invite, Lauryn Nguyen.

 

“It was so special. It really doesn't get much better than that,” said Nguyen. “I was very nervous, I would say. Caitlin made it really easy, so I had a blast. She hit some good shots and got some birdies. So, what more can you ask for?”

 

“She's great and so fun to be around,” said defending champion Nelly Korda. “It's so cool to see how many people she brings to a different sport, how many fans she has and how much of the needle she moves. She’s just so laid back and chill. She enjoys everything she does.”

 

“I think it's amazing, exciting to have Caitlin here again this year,” said tournament namesake and host Annika Sorenstam. “What Gainbridge and the tournament are doing is putting all these different athletes together from different sports. It’s generating a lot of buzz.”

 

Loopers for the hoopster were two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and Soccer Legend Briana Scurry, NASCAR driver and Gainbridge ambassador Carson Hocevar and Clark’s Indiana teammates, Lexie Hull and Sophie Cunningham.

 

“Obviously this isn't the environment I'm usually in, so it's kind of a challenge and something fun that I love to do,” Clark said. “I’m just really thankful that Annika and Gainbridge had me out here. The weather turned out to be pretty nice. Everybody was like, sorry it's kind of cold. I'm like, no, it was snowing in Indianapolis this past week. So, this is great weather for me. It was a lot of fun. I’m just really thankful I got to be here.”

 

While her golf game may not exactly be nothin’ but net, the former Iowa Hawkeye and two-time National Female College Basketball Player of the Year had a blast.

 

“It was a little messy off the tee. I need some lessons, because I haven't played a ton,” she said. “But it was fun. I think any time you get to be out here and see these women do what they do really well, it's really inspiring and really fun.”

 

Seemingly as cool as the fall air was on Wednesday, nerves certainly came into play. She’s human, after all.

 

“People always ask me like do I get more nervous for golf or basketball. It's this and it's not even remotely close,” Clark laughed. “I don't worry about basketball too much, but there is nothing like standing on a tee box with a bunch people watching you…and this isn't what you're really good at. But obviously playing with Nelly and Lauren made it really easy. We just kind of took their tee ball most of the time and played from there.”

 

Even though the “Caitlin Clark Effect” is directed at her ability to popularize women’s basketball, what she has done – and is doing – extends well beyond the wooden floors.

 

“It's always cool when you see the amount of people that come out and want to support not only myself, but women's sports in general,” Clark noted. “We're in a very exciting time where all sports across the board are seeing more and more viewership and more people buying tickets and more people buying merchandise.”

 

One who grew up playing a host of sports beyond just basketball, Clark finds tremendous joy in what she sees happening around her, even if it is largely because of her.

 

Of course, the viewing wasn’t limited to just those on site. To help celebrate and document the day, Golf Channel featured a three-hour live special from on site. Within the telecast, it was noted that the special was only the second occasion of devoting such a chunk of time to a Wednesday event. The previous occasion was last year when Clark first played in The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican pro-am.  

 

The ground Clark covered Wednesday didn’t end after the pro-am. Along with Nguyen and Sorenstam, Clark fielded questions in an afternoon press conference.  

 

“I've always been a fan of women's sports,” she said. “I grew up playing all of them. So, I think that's just a really special thing (for people to come out this week). This isn't even my main sport and I'm not that great at it, but people still love the opportunity to be out here and support you. They get to know all these other golfers, as well. They come for the weekend and support these women. I think that's just a really cool and special thing. It's not anything you ever take for granted.”