Rachel Heck was annoyed. For two straight weeks, the former Stanford golfer and current lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force Reserves had been receiving texts from an unknown number. The unknown sender kept asking Heck if she was free for a chat, but, thinking the messages were spam, she ignored them.
Then she received a message from Rob Ohno, president and CEO of the Annika Foundation. Ohno told Heck that Annika Sörenstam, the 72-time LPGA Tour winner with 10 major championships, was trying to contact her.
“I realized I’d been ghosting Annika for two weeks and I was just mortified,” Heck said. “I don’t think I’d ever been so mortified in my life, I was ghosting the GOAT of golf.”
Sörenstam told Heck that she would be the inaugural winner of the Annika Inspiration Award, which celebrates women who are using their influence, passion and leadership to inspire others beyond their competitive achievements in golf. Heck’s honor was announced last Wednesday.
Heck was an NCAA individual champion and part of two NCAA Championship-winning teams at Stanford, but professional golf wasn’t for her. Battling injuries and depression since high school, Heck found her home in the Air Force. READ MORE
The USGA has expanded its State Junior Team Program to 14 states that will support the pipeline for elite junior golfers ages 13-18 into the U.S. National Development Program.
The 14 states added to the program are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, South Dakota, Texas and Washington. Teams are created through the USGA’s close collaboration with its Allied Golf Associations and the PGA of America sections. Rosters for these 14 teams will be released after the conclusion of the 2026 season.
These additions bring the State Junior Team Program up to 30 states. Teams from the initial seven pilot states announced in March 2024 now include 116 junior athletes. The second wave of participating states, announced last October, will announce their inaugural rosters by the end of the year. READ MORE
Tap-Ins
A defamation suit Jack Nicklaus filed against his former business partners has gone to trial in West Palm Beach, Florida. In the lawsuit, the 85-year-old golf legend has accused Howard Milstein, Andy O’Brien and the Nicklaus Cos. of seeking to destroy his reputation by waging a campaign to smear him in the media while solidifying control over a brand built on his name. READ MORE
Eighty junior golfers representing 34 U.S. states and one Canadian province have earned an invitation to compete at Augusta National Golf Club for the 12th annual Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals, which will be played on Sunday, April 5, 2026, prior to the start of the 90th Masters Tournament. READ MORE
Exmoor Country Club in Highland Park, Illinois, will host the 2033 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, the USGA announced last Tuesday. READ MORE
Austria has been selected as the site of the 2029 World Amateur Team Championships, the International Golf Federation announced last Monday. The competitions will be played at Fontana Golf Club. READ MORE
Youth on Course, a nonprofit providing youth with access to opportunities through golf, announced a recent milestone of 5 million rounds played by its members since the organization’s 2006 inception. READ MORE
Folds of Honor, a foundation that provides academic scholarships to the families of fallen or disabled military service members and first responders – and raises money through several golf initiatives – distributed nearly 11,000 educational scholarships valued at more than $53 million for the 2025-26 academic year, it announced last Wednesday. READ MORE
Compiled by Mike Cullity