The ANNIKA to Donate $50 for Every Birdie and $100 for Every Eagle Made During Competition, Nov. 14-17; More than $260,000 Donated Since 2020
Fans Have Opportunity to Test Their Skills in the BayCare Long Putt Challenge, with $100 Donated for Every 30-Foot Putt Made
BayCare is the Official and Exclusive Health Care System for The ANNIKA
BELLEAIR, Fla. – The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican and BayCare Health System announced today the launch of its “Birdies for Babies” charitable program surrounding the 2024 edition of the championship, taking place Nov. 14-17 at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Fla.
To give back to the local community, The ANNIKA has pledged to donate $50 for every birdie and $100 for every eagle scored during all four rounds of the championship (Nov. 14-17) with a minimum donation of $100,000 to the Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation. All funds received from this partnership will be invested at BayCare’s Mease Countryside and Morton Plant hospitals to enhance the care of their most vulnerable, premature babies, specifically with access to the NICU2HOME app and a new neonatal transporter.
Spectators at The ANNIKA also will have the opportunity to donate to the Birdies for Babies program. At Pelican Golf Club’s signature par-3 12th hole Nov. 13-17, fans will be able to test their putting skills via the ‘BayCare Long Putt Challenge.’ For every 30-foot putt made during the week, $100 will be donated by the tournament to the Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation.
“It is important for The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican to partner and give back to the community in a variety of ways as the Tampa Bay community continues to rebuild, recover and heal from the recent hurricanes,” said Ryan Dever, tournament director for The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican. “BayCare has been an important and integral part of our community, and we are honored to continue with our partnership with BayCare as our official health care system for a fifth consecutive year.”
“We are proud of the Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation’s partnership with the LPGA Tour and The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican and are grateful for their continued support through the Birdies for Babies program,” said Ernestine Morgan, president and CEO of Philanthropy at Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation. “The support we received in our first four years has helped to keep families and infants safe and secure. The upcoming donations from all the birdies made during tournament week will be invested in supporting and enhancing care for premature infants and their parents.”
The Birdies for Babies charitable program launched with the inaugural Pelican Women’s Championship in 2020 and has donated more than $260,000 to families in need in the tournament’s first four years.
- 2020: 932 total birdies were recorded for a $46,600 donation.
- 2021: 1,369 birdies were recorded for a $68,450 donation
- 2022: 958 birdies were recorded (three-round tournament) for a $47,900 donation.
- 2023: 1,446 birdies and 19 eagles were recorded totaling $74,200; $21,305 donated from the ‘BayCare Long Putt Challenge’; $4,500 donated by the Doyle family to round up the total donation to $100,000.
A link to the Birdies for Babies charitable program and donation information can be found here: https://give.mpmfoundation.org/birdies-for-babies. Fans also have the opportunity to donate to the Birdies for Babies program directly via The ANNIKA website as well as during the check out process when purchasing tickets.
All donations from the 2024 Birdies for Babies program will go specifically toward supporting parents of premature infants in the NICU with access to the NICU2HOME app and the need for a neonatal transporter at Mease Countryside Hospital. The NICU2HOME smartphone app is designed to help parents get oriented to their new reality, learn about their baby, track their NICU journey, receive educational information – including milestones – and receive real-time updates on their baby’s status from nurses and doctors caring for their child in the NICU.
Donations also will go towards supporting premature infants at Mease Countryside Hospital via a neonatal transporter with an integrated ventilator to transport critical newborns from the hospital’s emergency department and operating rooms to its Labor and Delivery and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
BayCare, a leading not-for-profit health care system, provides a wide range of services at 16 hospitals and hundreds of other convenient locations for patients and their families throughout Tampa Bay and the Central Florida regions. As a founding partner of The ANNIKA, BayCare is supporting the tournament’s volunteer program that recruits and deploys hundreds of individuals to assist in managing the event.
For more information on The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican, visit www.TheAnnika.com and on social media: @TheAnnikaLPGA on X, @TheAnnikaLPGA on Instagram and The Annika driven by Gainbridge at Pelican on Facebook.
About Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation
For nearly 50 years, Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation has provided philanthropic support to the not-for-profit hospitals of Morton Plant Mease, including Morton Plant, Clearwater; Mease Dunedin; Mease Countryside, Safety Harbor and Morton Plant North Bay, New Port Richey. The close connection between the hospitals of Morton Plant Mease and their neighbors reveal a unique spirit of giving – a relationship characterized by people caring for the hospitals that care for them. Thanks to the community’s philanthropic support, the Foundation granted the not-for-profit hospitals of Morton Plant Mease $16.4 million in 2022 – significantly the most in its history. Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation’s strong financial health and commitment to accountability and transparency have earned a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest independent charity evaluator.
About BayCare
BayCare is a leading not-for-profit health care system that connects individuals and families to a wide range of services at 16 hospitals and hundreds of other convenient locations throughout the Tampa Bay and central Florida regions. The system is West Central Florida’s largest provider of behavioral health and pediatric services and its provider group, BayCare Medical Group, is one of the largest in the region. BayCare’s diverse network of ambulatory services includes laboratories, imaging, surgical centers, BayCare Urgent Care locations, wellness centers and one of Florida’s largest home care agencies, BayCare HomeCare. BayCare’s mission is to improve the health of all it serves through community-owned, health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. For more information, visit BayCare.org.
About The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican
The Annika driven by Gainbridge at Pelican is the LPGA’s annual tournament in the Tampa Bay region and features the world’s best female golfers competing over four rounds for a share of the $3.25 million purse, one of the largest purses on the LPGA Tour. The tournament is contested at the Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Fla., a Donald Ross design and Beau Welling redesign that offers world-class amenities and an unmatched golf experience. The sole namesake event on the LPGA Tour, Annika Sorenstam serves as tournament host with proceeds benefiting the ANNIKA Foundation. The championship is operated by Outlyr, a global sports, event management and lifestyle marketing agency. For more information on The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican, visit www.TheAnnika.com.
About ANNIKA
In 2008, Annika stepped away from professional golf and created the ANNIKA Foundation, which has impacted more than 8,000 young women from 60 countries to date and growing. It currently hosts grassroots “Share My Passion” golf clinics for young girls and seven global tournaments for junior girls. The Foundation also hosts the ANNIKA Intercollegiate presented by 3M, a premiere event on the NCAA Division I women’s golf fall schedule featuring 12 of the top DI schools in the country. A member of the winning team earns an exemption to compete in The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican.
Annika, the ANNIKA Foundation and the Haskins Foundation annually recognize the NCAA Division I women’s golf player of the year via the ANNIKA Award. LSU’s Ingrid Lindblad was named the Annika Award winner for 2024.
The Foundation is launching the new More Than Golf Invitational in 2025 for women’s Mid-Major Conference Champions. It also supports 12 female college graduates through the ANNIKA Development Program at Old Barnwell as they pursue their professional golf dreams. The ANNIKA Women’s All Pro Tour was launched this year to provide a better pathway for women to the Epson Tour and LPGA Tour.
In 2014 the LPGA, in partnership with Rolex, the Rolex ANNIKA Major Award was established to recognize the player who, during a current LPGA Tour season, has the most outstanding record in all five major championships. In 2020, Annika was elected the President of the International Golf Federation which oversees golf in the Olympic Games. In 2021, Annika became the first female golfer to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
About the LPGA
The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is the world’s premier women’s professional golf organization. Created in 1950 by 13 pioneering female Founders, the LPGA, whose members now represent more than 60 countries, is the longest-standing professional women’s sports organization. Through the LPGA Tour, the Epson Tour, the LPGA Professionals, and a joint venture with the Ladies European Tour, the LPGA provides female professionals the opportunity to pursue their dreams in the game of golf at the highest level. In addition to its professional tours and teaching accreditation programs, the LPGA features a fully integrated Foundation, which provides best-in-class programming for female golfers through its junior golf programming, and its LPGA Amateurs division, which offers its members playing and learning opportunities around the world. LPGA aims to use its unique platform to inspire, transform and advance opportunities for girls and women, on and off the golf course. Follow the LPGA online at www.LPGA.com and on its mobile apps. Join the social conversation on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter), Instagram and YouTube.
About the LPGA Tour
The LPGA Tour is the world’s leading competitive destination for the best female professional golfers in the world. The Tour hosts more than 30 annual events across 10 countries for over 200 Active Players, awarding total prize funds exceeding $125 million and reaching television audiences in more than 220 countries. Follow the LPGA Tour on its U.S. television home, Golf Channel.
Media Contact:
Jeremy Friedman
The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican
Outlyr
407-721-9752
jfriedman@outlyr.com
