The Pelican Golf Club in Bellaire, Fla., was filled with the usual weekend crowd Wednesday as the Anniki Professional Tournament featured two of the biggest names in women's sports going toe-to-toe. Playing together for the second year in a row, Nellie Korda and Caitlin Clark joined forces for nine holes with Clark's Indiana Fever teammates Lexi Hull and Sophie Cunningham serving as caddies for part of the game.
“It’s crazy,” Korda said. “That first T-shirt was almost straight out of a book. But it's so much fun. It's cool to see how many people she brings together in another sport and it's fun to hang out with her. She's very cool. We saw each other last week on a walk, and it's nice to be around great people; even her teammates are very cheerful.
This time last year, both players achieved great results when they turned pro together. Korda was named LPGA Player of the Year on the strength of her six wins to that point in the season, and later that week added a seventh by winning The Annika.
Clarke was coming off her WNBA Rookie of the Year campaign with the Fever. While her sophomore season was plagued by injuries that kept her sidelined at various points – both on the hard court and on the golf course – the sharpshooter said she is back to 100% healthy and is trying to take advantage of the weather before winter sets in.
“I think it just shows how powerful supporting each other can be,” Clark told Golf Channel. “I’ve always been a big supporter of this and supporting women’s sports. I've always been a big fan, whether it's golf or soccer, volleyball, whatever it is. [Nelly] take a look at her craft up close and how good she is.
“When I played with her last year and I played a few more rounds with her, she just makes golf so easy. You're almost like this: How? She's amazing and I'm rooting for her to win this week.”
Despite excellent form in 2025, with eight top-10 finishes in 17 starts, Korda has remained outside the winner's circle since entering it at this event last year. She came to Annika having not played since the first week of October, when she finished T4 at the LOTTE Championship.
Regardless of the rest time, the world number two will have plenty to look forward to this week, given her comfort level on this golf course and another walk around it with a familiar face on Wednesday.
“I think she loves everything she does,” Korda said of Clark. “There are so many things you can manipulate. There are so many things we need to do and for her to be so relaxed, relaxed, having fun and chatting with everyone, it's great to see.”
