Brittany Lincicome, an eight-time LPGA tournament winner, two-time major champion, and the 2024 assistant Solheim Cup captain, is one of the key storylines this weekend at The Annika driven by Gainbridge at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair.
After all, the Florida native announced, prior to the tournament, that this will be her final event before retirement, capping it off no more than 40 minutes away from her hometown of St. Petersburg.
The Annika driven by Gainbridge is one of the most prestigious events to be invited to play in. The tournament honors the career and accomplishments of Annika Sorenstam, arguably the sport’s best female golfer ever. Sorenstam won 97 professional tournaments, including 62 regular-season LPGA events and 10 majors. In 2003, she earned a grand slam, meaning she won each of the four majors at least once over the course of her career.
The Orlando resident is also popularly known for playing in men’s PGA Tour events, which she was invited to since proving her dominance on the women’s side of things in the early 2000s.
So, keeping in mind the location and the prestige of the event, The Annika is as good a place as any for Lincicome to play her finale.
“I’ve had a tremendous career, on and off the golf course on the LPGA Tour, and I’m incredibly honored and humbled to have the opportunity to finish my final full-time season where everything started for me here in the Tampa Bay region,” Lincicome said in promotional materials released by the event. “Thank you to Pelican Golf Club, Gainbridge, and Annika for giving me the opportunity to compete in front of my family, friends, and fans.”
Other notables in this weekend’s field include some of this year’s top competitors, such as Allisen Corpuz, a two-time Team USA Solheim Cup member and U.S. Open champion, Lydia Ko, who owns 22 career wins and is currently fourth in this year’s Rolex Rankings, Charley Hull, a two-time winner who sits 12th in the Rolex Rankings, Minjee Lee, an eight-time regular season LPGA champion with two major crowns, and Megan Khang, a member of this year’s winning Team USA at the Solheim Cup.
All of the top six in the Rolex Rankings, and 18 of the top 25, will be teeing it up on Thursday with hopes of taking home a trophy as well. Of course, this means that fans can also get ready to watch Nelly Korda, the No. 1 player in the world, who won The Annika in 2021 and 2022. Lilia Vu, her Solheim Cup teammate, will also be returning to Pelican with the expectation of defending her 2023 Annika title.
There were also some top-tier athletes from other sports giving golf a go in the Pro-Am event on Wednesday at Pelican. Caitlin Clark — a national, trending treasure since breaking several NCAA records with the Iowa Hawkeyes, ultimately changing the face of women’s basketball before heading to the WNBA — was one of the top attractions. Her golf game is almost as impressive as her game on the court, and she was paired with Korda and Sorenstam, herself in the exhibition.
Finally, as Lincicome prepares to close a chapter, Rachel Kuehn will be making her LPGA Tour professional debut this week at Pelican. Kuehn just completed her collegiate career at Wake Forest, with eight wins and back-to-back ACC Player of the Year honors. She was invited to compete at last year’s Annika, finishing tied for 15th at 11-under par. Kuehn says that she is excited to tee it up again, proving already that she can go low at Pelican, and hopes to capitalize on the success she experienced last year as an amateur.
“I look forward to testing my game against the sport’s best players,” she said in a media release. “Thank you to Pelican Golf Club, Gainbridge, and Annika for giving me the opportunity to begin my next chapter in my professional career at one of the most prestigious events on the LPGA Tour.”
