Annika Sorenstam got an early look at Pelican Golf Club ahead of her namesake LPGA event next month. And for a course that has seen its share of showdowns – including Capital One's The Match – this contest was particularly close to the heart.
Sorenstam and husband Mike McGee took on a couple of high school golfers – their two kids, Ava and Will – for a friendly match-up last Saturday.
Ava, a senior at Lake Highland Prep, who joined the golf team this fall, shot 85 from the forward tees while Will, playing from the tips, posted 75. Mom and dad shot even par and 81 respectively, from combo tees at about 6,500 yards.
Will, who has big goals in the game and plays with mom annually at the PNC Championship, is a left-handed player while Ava, a softball player, plays golf right-handed.
“She has quite a lot of clubhead speed,” said Sorenstam earlier this year at the U.S. Senior Women's Open. “You know, she’s working around the green. She can hit par 4s in one and then walk away with six.”
Mom also reports that Ava has put in the work, high praise coming from an athlete known for her meticulous work ethic.
At last year's PNC, 15-year-old Will was slightly shorter than his mom and now has almost caught up to dad. He recently finished eighth in the 13-15 flight of the FJT Tour Championship with a closing 69.
Sorenstam, a 72-time winner on the LPGA, will once again host the current best in the world for the penultimate event of the season. The Annika driven by Gainbridge at Pelican will be played Nov. 12-15 in Belleair, Florida, and will be headlined No. 1 Nelly Korda, who will be vying for her fourth title at the event.
"The course looks incredible and the energy is already building up," Sorenstam wrote in an Instagram post.
After the match, 56-year-old Sorenstam took in her first Tampa Bay Buccaneers game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The family chatted with good friend Aaron Rodgers on the sideline ahead of Pittsburgh's overtime win.
Tournament sponsor EMaxx hosted Sorenstam and her family in its Raymond James Stadium suite, and she was announced to the crowd on the Jumbotron.
Beth Ann Nichols is a Golfweek senior writer covering the LPGA and women's golf.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Annika Sorenstam, husband played match against their kids ahead of LPGA event