The LPGA Foundation and the AXA Foundation Partner to Develop the Next Generation of Female Leaders through Golf

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., JANUARY 28, 2016 - The LPGA continues its commitment to developing female leaders through golf by launching the LPGA Leadership Academy in 2016 and today named LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame member Annika Sorenstam as Ambassador to this program.

“We are so excited about this new initiative,” said Nancy Henderson, LPGA Foundation President. “To have Annika as the Ambassador for this program is the perfect fit. When you think leadership on and off the course you think Annika.”

Sorenstam amassed 89 worldwide victories including 10 major championships. Her record-breaking achievements include eight Rolex Player of the Year awards, six Vare Trophies and is the only female to shoot 59 in an official LPGA event. She stepped away from competitive golf at the end of the 2008 season to start a family and further establish the ANNIKA brand of businesses.

“I am honored that the LPGA asked me to be the Ambassador of the LPGA Leadership Academy, an initiative that aligns very nicely with my foundation’s “More than Golf” tagline,” said Sorenstam “Throughout my life, I’ve had numerous mentors in golf and business that I’ve turned to for advice and I’m happy to be able to do the same for teenage girls.”

The LPGA Foundation held its first pilot Leadership Academy last August at Glen Arbor Golf Club in Bedford Hills, NY, and will launch its first official year in 2016 in partnership with The AXA Foundation. Two separate academies are scheduled to be held this year, one on the east coast and one on the west coast. Girls ages 15-18 are eligible to apply and are selected to partake based on leadership potential, financial need and golf capability. Attendees are taken through a series of hands-on leadership activities applied through the game of golf over a two-day, fully-funded program.

“Through this partnership, we will be able to teach teenage girls more than the game of golf,” Henderson added. “We will teach leadership skills through golf, inspiring and developing the next generation of female leaders.”

The new LPGA Leadership Academy is a natural fit for The AXA Foundation, as the mission of their signature philanthropic scholarship program, AXA Achievement SM is to provide access and advice to students and parents to help them succeed in college and beyond. Since its inception, AXA Achievement SM has awarded over $25 million in college scholarships to more than 6000 students, and more than half of those recipients were young women (56%). AXA female executives will participate in a leadership panel during the academies and will talk about their own roads to success, finding their own voices, and how and when to take calculated risks.

“We are so glad that the AXA Foundation is able to continue our company’s support of the LPGA Academies in 2016”, said AXA Foundation President Faith Frank. “AXA is committed to helping young women take the next step in their educational development and the skills and knowledge they gain from the LPGA Leadership Academies is essential to their future success.”

Girls and boys at ages 8-11 are developmentally similar, but as they enter adolescence, girls experience a disproportionate drop in self-esteem. As girls learn how to play golf in the LPGA Leadership Academy, they also learn how to overcome obstacles, develop relationships, and recover from setbacks to achieve their goals. These same skills contribute to professional and academic success through developing and promoting self-confidence, perseverance, self-reliance, discipline, and self-esteem.

Annika Sorenstam Named Ambassador for LPGA Leadership Academy

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