The Annika LPGA Tour event in Belleair, Florida, wrapped up a week that will be remembered for its electric atmosphere, record-breaking crowds, and the much-anticipated professional debut of Kai Trump, granddaughter of former U.S. President Donald Trump. While the 18-year-old high school senior finished last in a field of 108, her presence—alongside the return of basketball star Caitlin Clark to the pro-am—sparked a media frenzy and drew unprecedented attention to women’s golf.
Trump, who earned her spot through a sponsor’s exemption, faced an uphill battle from the start. Competing at Pelican Golf Club, she carded a 13-over 83 on Thursday, November 13, followed by a 5-over 75 on Friday. Her total of 18-over left her six shots behind the next-to-last finisher and 17 strokes shy of making the cut, but numbers only tell part of the story. As Jim Garren, assistant coach for the University of Miami women’s golf team and Trump’s soon-to-be college mentor, put it, "She’ll never play a more pressure-filled round in her career. Not only her first start but her first pro start and a big-time event. And she’s coming from junior golf straight to that. She hasn’t even reached our level yet. So it’ll never get harder for her career."
Trump’s nerves were evident on Thursday as she approached the first tee, surrounded by a gallery of fans—many in MAGA hats—eager to witness her first swings as a professional. She later admitted, "Yeah, for the first day I was definitely really nervous, I think the nerves just got to me. When I went out there today I felt very calm and peaceful to be honest with you. And, yeah, that’s why I played better." The improvement was clear: her second-round 75 showed poise and resilience, qualities that bode well for her collegiate career at Miami, which she officially committed to on the eve of her LPGA debut.
Despite her struggles, Trump’s performance off the tee was a bright spot. Reflecting on her play, she said, "It was pretty cool because I know I hit it far, but kind of playing with the best players in the world and being literally right there or even outdriving on some of the holes, it felt pretty good." Her ability to match the professionals in distance—if not consistency—hinted at the potential that earned her the sponsor’s exemption in the first place.
Throughout the two rounds, Trump recorded three double bogeys, thirteen bogeys, and four eagles—all coming during the second round. She faced adversity with a maturity beyond her years, especially after a triple-bogey on the fifth hole in her opening round. "I mean, things are going to happen. Once it happens you can’t go back in time and fix it. The best thing I could do is move on," she explained. "Like I told my caddie, Allan, kind of just started laughing. It is what it is. We got that out of the way, so let’s just move on. It was pretty easy to move on after that."
The Annika, hosted by golf legend Annika Sorenstam, was already primed for the spotlight thanks to Caitlin Clark’s pro-am appearance, but Trump’s debut took the buzz to another level. According to Josh Schrock of GOLF, the week "started with the Clark-Trump buzz" and ended with Sorenstam "looking on as a woman she has watched grow up in golf put the finishing touches on a classy, effortless win." The event saw a 30% increase in onsite attendance on Wednesday, November 12, and a staggering 60% jump on Thursday, the day of Trump’s first competitive round—numbers that underscore the drawing power of high-profile personalities.
LPGA player Olivia Cowan summed up the mood among players: "We had great crowds these past few days and we just have to build off that, and not let these moments go." The surge in interest was also felt in merchandise sales, concessions, and parking, making The Annika the most talked-about LPGA event on the 2025 calendar.
Yet, even as the LPGA basks in newfound attention, questions linger about how to sustain and capitalize on this momentum. Sorenstam herself acknowledged the challenge: "How do we capitalize on this and how do we grow on this? I think what we have seen is when somebody like Caitlin Clark comes here, there is an extra buzz. She brings more people into this event, more people watch." She continued, "The key for us is, like, how do we do this more often? How do we carry it from Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, into Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday? The players can only do so much. The interest is there."
Media analysts and players alike have called for a more robust social media strategy to leverage moments like Trump’s near hole-in-one on Friday, which went largely unshared on official LPGA channels until hours after the fact. Beth Nichols of GOLFWEEK suggested, "For a tour that struggles to go viral, a strong social media strategy from all corners of the event—including the tour—seems vital."
But not everyone is ready to declare the week an unqualified success. Eamon Lynch, writing for GOLFWEEK, cautioned that "a pro sports organization isn’t entitled to a free pass from scrutiny or criticism because it’s a women’s league, because its resources are strained, because it requires guerrilla marketing to get noticed in a crowded market, because it has a noble history, or because it is run by well-intentioned people." He pointed to the LPGA’s recent partnership with Golf Saudi as a controversial move that deserves more critical attention, especially given the tour’s ongoing financial challenges and the disparity in prize money compared to the men’s game.
Meanwhile, discussions about the structure of the LPGA’s season-long Race to CME Globe points competition and the Tour Championship continue. Some, like Nichols, have proposed redistributing the CME Group’s $11 million purse to offer a separate bonus for the points leader, making the race more relevant and ensuring a stronger field at the season’s final events. As it stands, the Race to CME Globe "gets the most attention all year" during The Annika, when the final field for the Tour Championship in Naples, Florida, is set.
As the dust settles on a week that saw both triumph and tribulation, one thing is clear: The Annika has set a new standard for what women’s golf can achieve when star power, strategy, and opportunity converge. For Kai Trump, the experience was a baptism by fire, but also a springboard into a promising collegiate career and, perhaps, a future return to the professional stage. For the LPGA, the challenge now is to ensure that this wave of energy and attention isn’t just a fleeting moment, but the start of something bigger.
With Linn Grant’s victory providing the perfect capstone to a week of excitement, and with the world watching, the LPGA finds itself at a crossroads—poised to build on its momentum or risk letting it slip away. The eyes of the golf world will be watching to see what happens next.
