The ANNIKA Foundation, Hall-of-Famer Annika Sorenstam’s charitable organization, will award $50,000 in grants to current Epson Tour players as it launches the “ANNIKA Foundation Crisis Relief Fund.”
An initial round of grants will be awarded to 100 players in the amount of $500 each. Current Epson Tour players with Category A-K status who demonstrate true financial need due to the COVID-19 pandemic are eligible for consideration. When applying, players will be asked to share basic earnings information while certifying the accuracy of their submission. More information and the form can be found here: www.annikafoundation.org/crisisrelief.
The application deadline is June 12, and the ANNIKA Foundation expects distribution to occur on or about July 1.
Individual donors are also invited to support the crisis relief fund by making a 100% tax-deductible contribution; they can do so by also visiting www.annikafoundation.org/crisisrelief. The fund will remain in place for expedited activation during future crises.
With the establishment of the fund, the ANNIKA Foundation also made a $5,000 donation to the PGA of America’s Golf Emergency Relief Fund.
“It’s truly been a challenging time for our professionals not having tournaments to showcase their talent and earn a living,” says Mike Nichols, Chief Business Officer, Epson Tour. “We are extremely grateful to Annika and her Foundation for reaching out to try to find a way to provide this welcome and needed support to our athletes.”
“So many ANNIKA Foundation alumnae play on the Epson Tour, doing everything they can physically and financially to make their LPGA dreams come true,” says Annika. “Our team is humbled to be in a position to try to make a difference and give these players a little peace of mind during this break from tournament action.”
The ANNIKA Foundation is devoted to growing the game of golf around the world. It annually hosts six girls-only invitational tournaments on five continents: the ANNIKA Invitational USA presented by Rolex, the ANNIKA Invitational Europe and ANNIKA Cup (Sweden), ANNIKA Invitational at Mission Hills (China), the Women’s Amateur Latin America (with The R&A, in Argentina) and the ANNIKA Invitational Australasia (New Zealand). At the college level, each year it hosts the ANNIKA Intercollegiate presented by 3M and bestows the ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel to the most outstanding female Division I golfer.
Since the inaugural Foundation tournament – the 2009 ANNIKA Invitational USA – 60 ANNIKA event alumnae have earned LPGA cards. Twenty-eight alumnae competed in the 2019 ANA Inspiration.
For more information, please visit www.annikafoundation.org.
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