SUNNINGDALE, England – Annika Sorenstam thought she had a lot in common with Brett Favre. In her “stepping away” announcement, Sorenstam compared her feelings about the LPGA to Favre’s lack of fire at football practice.
She even mentioned the famed Green Bay quarterback on David Letterman’s Top Ten Reasons Annika Sorenstam Is Retiring: No. 3, “I want to spend more time with Brett Favre’s family.”
While Sorenstam prepares to begin her final major (as far as we know) here at the Ricoh Women’s British Open, Favre is embroiled in a sticky situation in Green Bay. Sorenstam hasn’t shed many tears about leaving her sport. She’s content with her decision and shows little emotion when asked to talk about life without competitive golf.
Meanwhile, Favre can’t get back to throwing the football fast enough.
“What’s funny, though, is when I went to – I was going to say Leadbetter, but it was Letterman – I said I was going to spend time with his family,” Sorenstam said. “I’m not really sure what I’m going to do now because he won’t be there.”
While Sorenstam isn’t at all second-guessing her decision to step away, she did make it clear that the door to her competitive career is not completely closed. (Though she said “no” to a possible return in two to three years.)
“I want to start the next chapter in my life and we’ll see what happens,” she said. “If I get the urge, then I know I can come back.”
Sorenstam’s final major is a huge storyline in the world of golf. But there is a distinct possibility that Michelle Wie may get more ink in U.S. papers this week while playing in a PGA Tour event in Reno – particularly if she plays well. It’s a shame that Wie’s ongoing soap opera might overshadow the first round of a major championship.
“You know, I really don’t know why Michelle continues to do this,” Sorenstam said. “I mean, we have a major this week, and if you can’t qualify for a major, I don’t see any reason why you should play with the men.”
Quite a zinger from the biggest name in women’s golf.
Many golf observers feel Wie’s participation in Reno has as much to do with pleasing her sponsors as anything else. Sorenstam built up a collection of blue-chip sponsors over the years thanks to 72 LPGA victories. How much did her fine play and impeccable record please the likes of Lexus, Callaway, Merrill Lynch and Rolex? Well, all 10 of her partners are staying on after she steps away. Some are in the middle of contracts, but four are renewing with Sorenstam knowing she will no longer be playing inside the ropes.
That’s impressive considering that so many players out here have zero sponsors, and if they do, make very little money. Inbee Park, the newly crowned U.S. Women’s Open champion, just landed her first major sponsor (SK Telecom) after doing a two-week press tour of Korea.
In terms of sponsorships, victories and all-time records, Sorenstam never dreamed this kind of success. The British Open is the only major Sorenstam hasn’t won multiple times so if there’s a picture-perfect ending to this story, look for it to unfold this weekend at Sunningdale.
“You know that she’s going to be out there giving it her all, that’s for sure,” said Paula Creamer, who would like nothing more than to win her first major with Sorenstam still in the field.
The players out here will miss Sorenstam’s competitiveness. That might be the toughest void she has to fill in the coming years. Boardroom battles only come so close to stuffing a 7-iron down the 72nd on a Sunday.
What about casual golf?
“You know, I doubt that I can go out and play social golf just for fun for a while,” she said. “The reason I say that is I competed in tennis for eight years and it took 10 years for me to get over that. ... I hope by the time I’m 50, I can go out and shoot under 80.”
The good news for Sorenstam is that she can easily transition into a somewhat normal life. The shy Swede always has blended in well wearing street clothes. Take off her hat and sunglasses, let her hair down and she’s just a woman at the mall.
“I’ve always felt like I’ve got a good mix,” said Sorenstam, who gets her share of attention within the golf industry. “If I want to be recognized, I just put a hat on. If not, I take it off pretty much.”
This week at Sunningdale she’ll don her major championship cap at least one last time.
We were kind of hoping she’d never take it off.
Posted: 7/29/2008
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