Sources Confirm Caitlin Clark Is Out of the 2026 ANNIKA Pro-Am

Sources have confirmed that Caitlin Clark will not return to the ANNIKA Pro-Am in 2026.

The Indiana Fever guard had become an unexpected phenomenon at the LPGA event.

In 2024, she showed up as a 16-handicap golfer who just hoped to break 100.

More than 1,000 spectators followed her group at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida.

Fans crowded around her for autographs after the round, forcing security to step in.

Ticket sales for the Pro-Am day jumped 1,200% from the previous year.

She returned in 2025, bringing Fever teammates Sophie Cunningham and Lexie Hull as celebrity caddies.

She played alongside Nelly Korda, who praised Clark's ability to bring new fans to women's golf.

That crossover appeal will not be on display this year.

Scott Agness posted on Instagram that Clark will not return because of a scheduling conflict.

The event is scheduled for November 11 at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida.

It takes place a day before the ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge tournament begins.

Mike Nichols, chief of sponsorship strategy and activation for Group 1001, confirmed the news to Golfweek on October 1.

“She is not going to be playing this year,” Nichols told Golfweek.

He added, “We have enjoyed the energy she has brought to the tournament the last two years and look forward to having her back in the future.”

Organizers have left the door open for another appearance.

Clark's involvement with the event went beyond her rounds alongside Korda.

In 2025, she and Gainbridge helped select former Northwestern golfer Lauryn Nguyen for a sponsor invitation to compete at The ANNIKA.

Nguyen had won the NCAA individual championship earlier that year.

Clark and the organizers also presented $5,000 to Nguyen’s Duc Foundation.

Her interest in golf predates her WNBA career.

In July 2023, while still playing for Iowa, she participated in the John Deere Classic Pro-Am at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois.

She played nine holes with Swedish golfer Ludvig Åberg and another nine with fellow Iowan Zach Johnson, the two-time major champion and 2023 U.S. Ryder Cup captain.

The 2026 ANNIKA Pro-Am is still shaping up to be a major event for women's golf.

Seven of the world's top-ranked golfers are expected to headline a 108-player field.

They will be competing for a $3.25 million purse.

The tournament is named after LPGA legend Annika Sörenstam.