Just when we thought “Annika golf†was back for good, we are now left to cherish the twilight of one of the greatest eras in the sport – men or women.
Sweden’s Annika Sorenstam, just days after winning her 72nd LPGA title, made the stunning announcement that she is to retire at the end of the 2008 season.
The 37-year-old called a press conference at the Sybase Classic in Clifton, New Jersey, where she revealed that she wants to spend more time developing her business and she also wants to start a family. She said in an AP article:
“I think I’ve achieved more than I ever thought I could. I have given it all, and it’s been fun.â€
Sorenstam dominated women’s golf for many years and was world number one before Mexican Lorena Ochoa unseated her in 2007. Even then, it wasn’t because of a drop in form but because of a back injury.
She bounced back at the start of 2008, vowing to recapture the kind of “Annika golf†that brought her so much success. And she has won three tournaments so far this year, including last weekend’s Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill by seven shots.
Her 72nd title, including 10 majors, puts her third in the all-time women’s list behind Kathy Whitworth’s 88 and Mickey Wright’s 82. In majors, she is in fourth place, trailing Patty Berg’s record of 15.
Sorenstam plans to marry fiancé Mike McGee next year. McGee is the son of former PGA Tour pro Jerry McGee.
She has been a pioneer in many ways for women on the LPGA, helping to give the tour a tinge of glamour and also becoming the first female player since 1945 to play with the men when she teed up for the 2003 Colonial, where she missed the cut.
The eight-time LPGA Player of the Year, however, does not want to go out with a whimper. She is going to give it all this season as she takes on Ochoa for the money-list title. She said:
“I’m a huge competitor. Right now I’m second on the money list. People that know me know I don’t settle for second. I know what to do, and I look forward to it.â€
The time to retire is when you are at the top so congrats to
Annika for a wise decision. There is a life off the golf course
and I wish her and Mike all the very best for future endeavors.
To follow without halt, one aim; there is the secret of success.
And success? What is it? I do not find it in the applause of the
theater; it lies rather in the satisfaction of accomplishment.
~~Anna Pavlova
Hi Annika,
Although i got to know you only last year when i first took up golf, you’ve carried yourself well and I respect you. God bless you!