Sir Nick Faldo, through his Faldo Series and Annika Sorenstam, through her ANNIKA Foundation, are collaborating in an effort to grow global awareness and opportunity through golf.
Stoke by Nayland Hotel, Golf & Spa near Colchester, England will be the site for the 20th annual Faldo Series Grand Final which will host winners from European Faldo Series events, winners from the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final, selected invitees as chosen by the PGA of America and for the first-time ever, invitees from winners selected by the ANNIKA Foundation.
The Faldo Series Grand Final will take place on October 11-13th at the championship golf course which is located on the Essex/Sussex border.
“Annika is one of the most influential and forward thinking people in golf,” said Faldo. “We share very personal commitments to supporting the next generation of inspirational models and in introducing golf to players on all levels around the world. I am delighted we can take this and future steps together to provide opportunity through golf.”
“Sir Nick’s dedication to growing the game globally has been unmatched,” said Annika. “Golf has been so good to us and we share the same passion for inspiring the next generation through tournaments and educational workshops. I am delighted some of our ANNIKA Invitational winners will have the opportunity to experience the Faldo Series Grand Final.”
Sir Nick will be in attendance to run clinics throughout the week and share his knowledge from over 40 years of playing at the highest level. He will be watching the competition with keen interest and offering his insight to the young players.
The PGA will be on hand, amongst many other experts, to advise players during the week on the many career paths within the game of golf. Faldo’s personal coach Keith Wood will also be in attendance and available to share the latest science of the swing.
Sir Nick Faldo created the Faldo Series (charity number 1102719) in 1996 to give opportunity to young people through golf and to help identify and nurture the next generation of champions.
Supported by golf’s governing bodies, 40 annual tournaments now take place in 30 countries worldwide, spanning Europe, the Middle East, North and South America, and Asia.
Past winners include Major Champions Tseng Ya-ni and Rory McIlroy, who took his tally of professional Major titles to four with his wins at the 2014 Open Championship and US PGA Championship.
The ANNIKA Foundation provides opportunities in women’s golf at the junior, collegiate and professional levels while teaching young people the importance of living a healthy, active lifestyle through fitness and nutrition. The Foundation annually conducts five major golf events for aspiring junior girls: the ANNIKA Invitational AJGA tournament in Orlando, Fla.; ANNIKA Invitational at Mission Hills in China; ANNIKA Invitational Europe and ANNIKA Cup in Sweden; and, new for 2016 in association with The R&A, the ANNIKA Invitational Latin America in Argentina. In 2013, the Foundation’s reach extended to the collegiate ranks with the ANNIKA Award Presented by 3M (awarded to most outstanding female NCAA Division I golfer) and ANNIKA Intercollegiate Presented by 3M (12-team, 54-hole event at Reunion Resort).
The Foundation has partnered with key organizations to promote healthy, active lifestyles including SPARK, the Florida Hospital for Children in support of its Healthy 100 Kids initiative and The First Tee in development of the Nine Healthy Habits curriculum for children. It has also endowed an AJGA ACE Grant.
Other grass roots golf programs include ANNIKA Junior Day in Memory of Holly Baxter, which brings together 80-100 Orlando juniors to learn golf fundamentals and the importance of fitness and nutrition. The Share My Passion LPGA*USGA Girls Golf Clinic invites 30 finalists who wrote letters saying why they should get to spend the day with Annika and learn about golf.
Faldo Series www.nickfaldo.com
ANNIKA Foundation www.annikasorenstam.com