A familiar last name is about to make its mark on the LPGA Tour. But this time, it’s for her swing, not her family ties. Kai Madison Trump, the 18-year-old granddaughter of President Donald Trump, announced that she will make her LPGA Tour debut at The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge in November 2025. The tournament, hosted by golf legend Annika Sörenstam, will be held at the Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida, from November 13–16. Pelican Golf Club decided to go with Trump as the third sponsor invitation for the tournament, with other big names receiving an invite as well.
The Netherlands’ Anne-Sterre den Dunnen and the USA’s Lauryn Nguyen are the other two who received an invite. Kai shared the news through an Instagram post, speaking of her excitement for her debut. “I’m thrilled to announce that I will be making my LPGA Tour debut in November at The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge. The ANNIKA is at the Pelican Golf Club. It has been a dream of mine to compete at the professional level, and I’d like to thank the Pelican Golf Club for the invitation. I’m looking forward to teeing up and competing with the best players in the world at one of the most premier venues on tour,” Trump said in the Instagram video post.
Trump is dedicated to pursuing golf as a career, among many other things. Kai was also present at the 2025 Ryder Cup with his grandfather. She described the experience as “even better than I expected.” She shared her experience in one of her YouTube vlogs. “I’ve never been to the Ryder Cup. I’ve always wanted to go. It’s always been like a dream of mine. So, I’m like really happy that I get to go. But I’m really excited, very thankful that I had the opportunity to go, especially with my grandpa,” Trump said.
Currently attending The Benjamin School in Palm Beach, Florida, she is scheduled to play collegiate golf at the University of Miami, an NCAA Division I school. She will enroll there in the fall of 2026. Trump has demonstrated remarkable skills on the South Florida PGA Srixon Medalist Tour. She had a T3 finish in July 2025. But that’s not all. She is also competing in junior and amateur tournaments on the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA).
The ANNIKA is one of the most prestigious events on the LPGA Tour. However, it will be more eventful this year because of the presence of WNBA star Caitlin Clark. Like last year, Clark will play Pro-Am at the event. She played with Nelly Korda and Annika Sörenstam last year. Since it is a prestigious event, the field is star-studded. Thus, Kai Trump will face the best of the LPGA golfers, including former World No. 1 Nelly Korda.
Besides Korda, Charley Hull and Brooke Henderson will also play the tournament. They recently played as a team in the biennial Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown in South Korea. Their team finished third, as Team Australia took the crown by defeating Team USA. Some other notable LPGA stars on the field include Megan Khang, Lexi Thompson, Lilia Vu, and Rose Zhang.
Heading into this event, Nelly Korda would look to maintain her exceptional form at The ANNIKA this year.
Nelly Korda’s legacy at The ANNIKA
The former World No. 1 won her 7th LPGA title of the season at The ANNIKA 2024. But what made that victory special was that it was her third win at the same event. Previously, she had won The ANNIKA in 2021 and 2022. In 2021, she won through a playoff against Lydia Ko, Sei Young Kim, and Lexi Thompson.
In 2022, it was again Nelly Korda and Lexi Thompson till the very end. She narrowly edged past Thompson by one stroke. Her third round of 64 helped her secure the win. Even more dramatic than the first two was her win at the 2024 The ANNIKA.
She staged a comeback with five consecutive birdies on the back nine, from hole 11 to hole 15, to overcome others, including Charley Hull. Besides that, she achieved victory in the darkness. The last round of The ANNIKA 2024 went into complete darkness because of the slow pace of play, something Hull criticized a lot.
This year, Korda will look to get her 4th victory at The ANNIKA. The win will certainly help her a lot in her journey to reclaim her World No. 1 title.
