Caitlin Clark Almost Whacks Fans With Golf Shot Gone Awry
Caitlin Clark has had a meteoric rise over the past year as one of the newest breakout stars of women's basketball. But she doesn't just stick to her sport; she's also participating in a golf tournament this week.
The Annika golf tournament, which has a pro-am segment designed to pit professionals and amateurs against each other, is happening this week at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida. On Nov. 13, Clark took a shot from the course that could've ended very badly for one of the spectators standing to the side. Rather than go flying up in the air and forward toward the green, her shot flew off to the left and over the heads of some spectators standing to the side. "Fore!" someone in the crowd yelled after fans chuckled in relief.
Got a little dicey here! Caitlin’s No. 1 goal today is to not hit anyone! pic.twitter.com/npk8WnKW5H
— Beth Ann Nichols (@GolfweekNichols) November 13, 2024
The immediate reload is so relatable pic.twitter.com/cBc77XezxL
— Paige Spiranac (@PaigeSpiranac) November 13, 2024
Clark was joined by fellow amateurs Dan Towriss and Jason Rickard for her 7 a.m. tee time today. The team of three faced off against professional golfers Nelly Korda and Annika Sörenstam, two of the most accomplished women in the sport; Korda is a 14-time LPGA winner with an Olympic medal to her name, while Sörenstam holds the record for most professional tournament wins by a female golfer in history.
Speaking with Sports Illustrated after the match, Korda was just happy to have participated, revealing she tried to speed up her recovery from a neck injury so she could play against Clark. "I really, really wanted to play this week, so in a sense, maybe I rushed my rehab to get to these two events," Korda said. "Just a lot of rehab. I haven’t really been playing too much golf."
"[It] was great to see how relaxed she was,” Korda noted. “Obviously with the media attention she has gotten probably in the past year and a half, two years, you can see how she's comfortable playing in front of a larger crowd. And she was just really enjoying it. You can tell."
"She's definitely very talented. She was picking the ball really clean," Korda continued. "She was losing a couple shots to the right, but I asked her how many times a week she plays and I think with the amount of obligations she has she probably gets to the golf course once a week."
Clark went on to clip a fan with another errant shot later in the game, but both she and the fan were good sports about it. She autographed the ball and apologized for the potentially painful hit.
“Thanks for the good kick, whoever I hit.” - Caitlin Clark on the par-3 ninth after missing one left in the crowd. She autographed a ball for the fan and apologized. pic.twitter.com/dmTahbAZx7
— Beth Ann Nichols (@GolfweekNichols) November 13, 2024