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Sorenstam announces retirement
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Rude: Sorenstam puts life over craft
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Players, friends react to announcement
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Sorenstam send message with No. 72
Suzann Pettersen was on her way to the gym when she picked up the phone.
Did you hear the news? Annika is retiring at the end of this season.
“What? I’m shocked,” Pettersen said. “That means I’m not going to pair with her in the Solheim again.”
Like the rest of us, Pettersen knew it was coming. Annika Sorenstam has
talked about the “back nine” of her career for quite some time now. But
the announcement to retire came just two days after a seven-stroke
victory. The timing caught everyone off guard.
She’s back. But not for long.
“I just texted her after she won on Sunday and said ‘I’m so glad that
you’re playing really solid golf again,’ ” said Pettersen, of her
victory at the Michelob Ultra Open. “It’s been a long time since she’s
played that well.”
Unlike most of the LPGA, Pettersen isn’t in the field at this
week’s Sybase Classic, where Sorenstam at a 2 p.m. press conference
made her announcement to “step away from the game” at the end of 2008.
Pettersen played the first two rounds at Kingsmill last week with
Sorenstam and Lorena Ochoa. She witnessed first-hand the rise
Sorenstam’s game has taken in the last several weeks. Her iron shots
are once again superb, her short game practically flawless.
“I have come back from an injury, and I feel strong, I feel healthy,”
Sorenstam said. “The season has started really well, and I’m leaving
the game on my terms.”
Not many athletes walk away with so much game left in them. From a
numbers standpoint, it will be tough for Sorenstam to overtake Lorena
Ochoa this season in the world rankings. But with three victories so
far this year to Ochoa’s five, Sorenstam has a legitimate chance at
earning Player of the Year honors, a feat she’s already accomplished
eight times.
Even if that happens, even if Sorenstam tops the money list this season
and walks away from the ADT Championship with a $1 million check, she
won’t change her mind. Awards and statistics are no longer enough to
motivate her. Sorenstam will push as hard as ever to go out on top this
season, but nothing that happens over the next seven months will
convince her to come back in 2009.
Sorenstam is getting married in January. The 37-year-old wants to start
a family, wants to focus on building the Annika brand. Sorenstam knows
the focus and commitment it takes to dominate women’s golf. And she’s
ready to move on.
Pia Nilsson got the call two weeks ago. As a longtime mentor of
Sorenstam’s, Nilsson has been listening to Sorenstam talk about
retirement for a while now. During this particular conversation,
however, the decision was very clear in Sorenstam’s mind. It was time.
Two wins later, Sorenstam didn’t budge. Don’t expect her to waiver anytime next year either when major season rolls around.
“Other players are OK with playing a limited schedule, and they’re OK
with not having practiced as much and still playing while not at the
top of their games,” Nilsson said. “But the way Annika works she wants
to be on top. It’s a very Annika decision, very good for her.”
Most of the talk so far this season has centered around Ochoa. Will she
win five consecutive events? Will she win the Grand Slam?
Tuesday morning, Ochoa rang the opening bell at the New York Stock
Exchange. But nobody heard. The golf world was too busy trying to
adjust its calendar to accommodate a Sorenstam swan song.
Now every week will focus on saying farewell to one of the greatest the game has ever seen.
“I wanted to leave on my terms when it felt right,” Sorenstam said. “I
didn’t want an injury to take me away from this game. Now I feel at
peace.”
While American players were looking up to Juli Inkster, Meg Mallon and
Beth Daniel, Pettersen paid close attention to Sorenstam, her
Scandinavian neighbor. They would become a potent pair on European
Solheim Cup teams. Pettersen matured in the game working alongside
Sorenstam in those heated battles, and she developed a deep respect for
a woman who broke down so many barriers in the game.
During the 2007 Solheim Cup, Sorenstam hinted at team meetings that
Halmstad might be her last Cup. Pettersen knew this time was coming.
But, like most of us, there still was that element of surprise. And
even sadness.
“She’s done everything for women’s golf and she’s achieved more than
anyone in her period of time,” Pettersen said. “For her, she can stop
and be very proud of what she’s done. She has nothing more to prove to
herself or to anyone else.”
Posted: 5/13/2008
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