BELLEAIR, Fla. - Pelican Golf Club is home to 7,000 yards of lush fairways, and large, undulating greens. It’s championship style course hosts one of the LPGA’s most prestigious tournaments; The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican. This event has only been a stop on the LPGA for four years, and in that short time the purse has expanded all the way to 3.25 million dollars, which is the highest of any non-major on the tour.
In 2024, not only will Pelican continue to host the annual LPGA event, but it will also host its first FSGA Championship as the 65th Girls’ Junior is set to be played June 24-26. The best junior females in the state will have the opportunity to compete against each other on the same course that the LPGA players will compete only a few short months later.
The Director of Golf, Justin Sheehan, says that hosting women’s golf events is fitting for what the club wants to achieve as a whole. He says, “One of the things the Doyle’s talked about when they were building the club is that they did not want a men’s club. They want Pelican to be a club for everyone, and with my teaching background with a few players on the LPGA, I suggested hosting an LPGA event.” Sheehan continues to explain that they have expanded to also hosting two college events, one of which being the SEC Women’s Championship in April.
“To have a women’s professional event, a women’s college event, and now a girls’ junior event, it really just ties in with everything we are trying to achieve as a club.” Sheehan stated.
Moreover, the par-70 course features 18 holes spread out across 7,000 yards. The original layout was designed by Donald Ross in the 1920’s. However, with the recent construction and golf club redesign, the current owners hired Beau Welling for the job.
Welling was a former Tom Fazio associate who now holds a license to do his own design work. He is also a senior consultant on Tiger Woods’ design firm. Welling had one famous course in mind as he redesigned Pelican, and it was none other than Augusta National. There are similarities to the legendary Georgia course all the way down here in Florida including an emphasis on the “second shot”, pine straw lining the trees, and bunker placement. When asked about how to describe the course, Sheehan said, “Pelican is different to a lot of Florida golf courses. It’s a small property and a great course to walk.” Sheehan further emphasized the importance of the second shot at Pelican. “We have a number of short par 4’s and a number of long par 4’s, but driving is not the most important aspect to this course. It really comes down to the second shot and being able to handle the greens. If you miss a green, it needs to be in the right spot, and putting is crucial. It is not a driving contest.”
The course features landing areas as massive as sixty-yards wide, but dons some of the most challenging greens in the area. These large greens with massive undulations test golfers of any skill level. Pelican also uses Latitude 36 Bermudagrass with its prominent green hue and the ability to make the firm greens even quicker have become a signature of the prestigious club.
Some notable holes include the par-3 12th hole, similar to the famous 12th hole at Augusta National. It is a short par-3 at about 150 yards over a pond to a green that is angled away from the player in a similar fashion to Augusta. In addition, the par-5 14th hole presents a challenge to most players. It served as the AON Risk Reward Challenge hole for the LPGA event last year in that it is a par-5 that gives the player the opportunity to reach the green in two. However, drive placement is key as this particular hole requires more accuracy off the tee than the rest of the course. Bunkers surround the landing zone as well as the green and taunt players trying to take a risk.
It is safe to say that Pelican Golf Club presents a challenge to golfers of any level. The 65th Girls’ Junior offers the best female juniors in the state the opportunity to play on a tour style course. A goal of our organization at the FSGA is to prepare our players for the highest possible competition and part of that includes competing on championship style courses. At the FSGA, we would love to see our players hopefully return to Pelican Golf Club as a competitor in the prestigious LPGA event one day.
Sheehan reminisced on his time as a junior golfer, “There is just something that feels better about being able to compete where the professionals play when you are a junior golfer. I am anxious to see these juniors and how they compare to the professionals. These girls are just so good, and it’s all about refining their games. I think it’s really exciting for them and a couple months later they get to watch the tournament and hopefully a lot of them will want to come back to Pelican and watch in November.”
Other notable tournaments that Pelican has hosted includes Capital One’s The Match in which Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy competed against Jordan Speith and Justin Thomas.
