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ANNIKA Academy Web-site Update

Hello Everyone, this is Christian out at the Academy.  Today is a great day for the ANNIKA Academy team, not only is it Mike's birthday today, but it is the launch of our updated Academy web-site.  We have been working on this site for quite some time and are very proud of the final product!  Please take a look at www.theannikaacademy.com I want to go over a few highlights of the new look site.  First you will find all the information you would ever need to know about the Academy.  We will be updating it regularly to fill visitors in on new programs that we have going on at the Academy.   We will now have Charlotta's Tips on our brand new video wall which will also have some Kai's fitness tips and Annika videos.  The gallery will be focused on our past guests, Annika's visits to the Academy, and Ginn Reunion Resort.
Please take a look at the site, I hope that it will inspire you to come visit! 

Hook'em Horns

Hey all,

I wanted to share with you my experience at my college reunion this past weekend. I went to the University of Texas at Austin from 1992-1993, so 15 years ago, wow times fly. I left Texas after one year of school because at the time I missed Sweden so much, but if I was young again I would not hesitate to go back.  UT has an amazing practice facility attached to a great golf course.

One of the reasons for our reunion was that they had rebuilt the short game area and wanted to dedicate it to my coach, who is now retired but was the coach at UT from 1973-1993. I guess she didn't want to coach any longer since I was not there, ha ha. Jokes aside she, Pat Weis really started the ladies golf program there and it was very appropriate to dedicate the new short game area to her.

The other reason for our reunion was the annual Weis Cup, in which  the current team plays against the "Texas Exes".  A couple of players that attended you may recognize, Sherri Steinhauer (who didn't play due to injury) and Cindy Figg-Currier.  I was paired up in a best ball with Linda Chen, the tournament director for the GINN Open here at Reunion and my mentor while attending UT. We were the anchor match of  6 total groups.  Our match was against junior Shannon Fish and freshman Nicole Vandermade and we literaly got our rear-ends kicked, we lost 6/5 but I'm not to dissapointed since Nicole was about 7 under par herself after 13 holes! I must point out that I was a couple under par myself but we still had no chance aginst the consistent Shannon and the very very long hitting Nicole.

Of course you can't go to Texas with out BBQ and some football and since Texas played agianst Texas Tech on Saturday we all gathered to watch on the game TV and eat lots of ribs, chicken and peach cobbler.

In case you were wondering how the "Exes" did against Texas: In our overall match against the current team got down to the last hole, where LPGA player Kate Golden sank a 4 footer on the 18th hole to halve their match which lead to a 3-3 tie in the matches which meant that the "Exes" retained the cup as we had won the previous 2 years.  We look forward to next year and playing again and showing that experience really is important in the game of golf.

All the Best,

Lotta

P.S. Here is the link: Texas

Guest Post- Angie Damon

Hey Bloggers,

Many of you may not know me, but my name is Angie Damon and I  attended the Annika Academy almost exactly one year ago.  I had only been on a golf course about seven times in my life but when the offer came my way to attend the academy, I jumped at the chance. 

Intimidated but excited, I jumped right in and fell in love with the game and found many new friends in the staff.  Pam, Christian, Kai, Henri and Charlotta were extremely welcoming and I was learning a lot and having a blast.  On the second day, Annika flew in from Singapore and I was so impressed by how warm and genuine she is and how excited she truly is to "share her passion."

After my visit to the academy, I really did feel like I had some new 'friends for life," so I ran home and shared my experience with my nine year old twins, Maddy and Jacks, and before I knew it,  all three of us began taking lessons with Lotta and we were completely hooked.

Over this past year, Charlotta has done wonders with our golf games and we have spent some time hanging out.  I even managed to get her on one of my horses, "Wasabi" and the tables were turned, she was the student.  It was fun to see her nervousness at first, but as you can imagine, she picked it right up and rode quite well.  We hope to get Annika riding soon!

A few months ago, Charlotta ask me if I would caddy for her in a tournament in Hawaii.  After first thinking she was kidding, I accepted, but again felt a bit intimidated and "out of my comfort zone."  We had an amazing time and it was an incredible experience!  I got a chance to see first hand, what professional golfers like Annika and Charlotta go through.  It is hard work.  They practice 5-6 hours a day, work out in the gym, play 18 holes, hit the driving range, short game area, and putting green.  Not to mention, the radio/newspaper interviews, hosted meet and greets, and hours of endless plane flights.  Their dedication is amazing, and they do it all with grace, style, and a winning smile.

I was honored to be there and want to thank Annika and Mike for an amazing sushi dinner and the tour that Clifford, the cultural advisor, took us on, it was interesting and fun.  I especially  want to thank Lotta, for including me in such a unique opportunity and being such a great friend.  I hope to return the favor someday.

I hope many of you get the chance to attend the academy, meet these wonderful people and share in their passion.

Aloha,
Angie

New Video

Hello everyone, Christian stopping in.  Wanted to let everyone know that I had the opportunity to pull all of the videos off of Annika's camera and we are now posting them!  There is a new video in the archive and a few more will follow.  There is so much footage of the trip to Europe this summer.

Anyhow, enjoy the videos and keep checking for more throughout the week.

Happy Labor Day.

State Farm Classic

Hello Everyone, Lotta checking in again. It's been a while, but I hope it's worth the wait. : )

I'm in Springfield, Illinois hometown of Lincoln and home state for the State Farm Classic. The LPGA has played in Springfield for over 25 years and this is one of the oldest tournaments on the schedule.

I tee up tomorrow at 1:49 PM with Stephanie Louden and Hannah Jun from tee 10. It's very warm here in Springfield so yesterday in my practice round my fellow players caddie collapsed on the 18th tee box from a combination of the heat and not enough electrolytes in his system.

The course, Panther Creek Country Club, we are playing is different from last year. It is in very good condition compared to last year when they had a drought which meant not much grass on the greens. This year there has been a lot of rain so the greens have a lot of grass and the rough is very high. Before last year the venue was a public course called The Rail, which had been the original host of the tournament. The best thing about going to a "small town" for a tournament is that the whole community gets involved in the event and come out to watch the tournament.

Right now I am sitting in the players lunch room and I just enjoyed a nice salad that I mixed up topped with some grilled glazed pork loin. This afternoon I am going to go and help some of the players with their putting after a lot of requests this morning. I'm happy and a little surprised they are asking me for help. This has never really happened, but I'm drawing interest now that I work at the ANNIKA Academy.

This is my second event of the year and I really enjoy "getting out" of my office and back to my old job, but I must admit that I would rather have it the way I have it now. I enjoy playing a few events here and there rather than being out here all year long. The traveling conditions have changed a bit since I was a rookie on tour 12 years ago. It's almost impossible to arrive in the next town on time and with all of my luggage (after paying an additional fee for an overweight golf bag which is impossible to keep under 50 lbs).

Hope you enjoy my little update from "life on the road" from an LPGA Tour golfer. Send me good thoughts this week.

Take Care,

Lotta

Check out the new videos!

Hello everyone.  This is Christian from the Academy checking in and letting you know about a couple of things that were added to the site over the weekend.  Speaking of the weekend, I hope everyone had a nice and safe Fourth.  I wish every holiday involved grilling outside and relaxing!

So as you know Annika and Mike have returned from the road for a few weeks.  Well they aren't the only ones that returned, with them comes the video camera that shoots all of the videos we post!  There are a couple of new videos up in the archive so please check them out and tell me what you think.  We'll be adding more over the next few months, but two is good for now right?

Please also check out Charlotta's new tip.  She is a budding superstar instructor so what she says is very important to improving your game.  These are the same drills that she and Annika worked on while training to be the best!

Some may have noticed on the left side of annikablog.com that Annika is now on Facebook.  Annika has a new fan page on facebook so if you are a facebook user please add yourself as a fan of Annika's.

Two weeks ago at the Academy we had our second junior camp of the summer and again it was a lot of fun.  To me with juniors there is so much talent out there, it is fun to be a part of the fine tuning of their games.  If anyone has a junior golfer around the house : ), sending them here for a week next summer is a wise decision.

Anyways I hope everyone enjoys their work weeks and I'm off to do a club fitting.  Let me know if you have questions.

New Features on Annikablog.com

Hello all!  It is good to see so many posters here at annikablog.com, please keep it up and tell your friends to join.  I haven't posted in a while so I will re-introduce myself.  I'm Christian Thornley, the Operations Manager at the ANNIKA Academy in Orlando.  I know it is an exciting time with it being mid season for the LPGA, a few majors, and Annika playing well.  With that said, I wanted to post and let you know of a couple of additions here on the site.

Many have noticed the ANNIKA Academy Online section of the site that has just recently popped up.  This section will serve as a way to share some of the teachings of the Academy with the readers.  Charlotta has been working on some videos in which she'll share some of her favorite tips with you the readers of the site.  We have added a first tip and have a few more in the works so keep checking up. 

Another feature you may notice is the photo gallery of Annika's swing.  We have many Academy guests who request a copy of this sequence so that they can study her every move (obviously it works very well).  Annika wanted to share the photos with the reader so that they can try and emulate her swing. 

We've also added Annika's Tips for the Turn.  These tips you may recognize as they were shown on the Golf Channel over the past few months.  With the tips  on annikablog.com you will now be able to watch them again and again until you start playing like Annika does.  We'll be adding new tips as the weeks go on so again, please stay tuned for new videos. 

Last week we had our first ANNIKA Academy for Advanced Junior Golfers and it was a great success.  You may have noticed the photos that were posted over the weekend.  The juniors spent 5 days working with Charlotta, Kai and I fit them for clubs.  The whole week I just thought to myself "why wasn't this around when I was 15."  It was an incredible program and the best part was on Friday afternoon when we heard "I don't want to leave."  Actually the best part was seeing the improvement in their swings.  We hope to see all of these guests again soon!  There is another Junior Academy which starts 3 weeks from today, so if you are interested please give us a call.

Long post today, but I wanted to get everyone up to speed on what's going on around the Academy and with annikablog.com.  Let's hope Annika gets a fourth U.S. Open trophy in a few weeks.

 

ANNIKA Academy to be featured on the Golf Channel

Hello everyone.  This is Christian and it is another beautiful day out here at the ANNIKA Academy.  Like you, Annika's team is very happy to see that Annika has started the season off really well and we look forward to an exciting LPGA season.  With the amount of good talent playing, this season should be a lot of fun to watch.   

I wanted to mention, in January we spent time filming a special for the Golf Channel.  "What's in the Bag" will feature the ANNIKA Academy and the experience a guest will have when they attend the Academy.  Please do check it out at 7:30 PM Eastern Time next Monday (3/17).  After you watch the show please use this post to ask any questions that you may have about the Academy and let us know your thoughts. 

I hope everyone is warming up out there and looking forward to watching Annika play in Phoenix!

PGA Show Week

Hi again, it's Christian letting you know all of the happenings at the ANNIKA Academy.  This last week was the week of the PGA show which takes place annually at the Orange County Convention Center which is only about 15-20 minutes from the Academy.  It was a very busy week around the Academy as we were entertaining our Championship Package guests as well as many who stopped by to see the Academy.  We had the opportunity to meet a lot of club pro's and professionals from the golf industry which was a lot of fun.

One pro that used our facility to his advantage was Duffy Waldorf.  As everyone knows Duffy is a long time veteran of the PGA Tour and is a great character (as well as a true gentleman).  Duffy is playing this week in San Diego and we wish him well this year.

Also Christian Nilsson, who is a promising young player on the European Tour was out to work with Henri to prepare for his upcoming season.  Christian is one of the longest drivers on the European Tour so it is fun to put him on our Callaway C-PAS system to see his club head speed.  Pretty impressive if I do say so myself!

Of course we have had Annika out here practicing a lot.  She has been in the gym with Kai as well as out hitting  quite a few golf balls.  Her swing is looking great (as always), and I'm sure you will see her in top form this year.  I don't think I have heard a strike of the golf ball that sounds as pure as Annika's. 

I hope that everyone is having a great January and I will talk to you all soon! 

New Season at the Academy

Hello everyone, this is Christian checking in once again.  I hope all of the annikablog.com readers had a great holiday and are enjoying 2008. 

With the fall season over, we have moved into our winter/spring season here at the ANNIKA Academy.  Already this year we have some exciting things happening.  The first is we have a new Director of Sales, Michelle McGee, who started working with us at the beginning of January.  She came to us after working with the Oakland Raiders in their ticket sales department.  We are very happy to have Michelle as part of the Academy team and I'm sure she will be participating on annikablog.com in 2008.

Last weekend we were visited by Troy Tanner of the Back Nine Radio Network.  Troy runs a show that broadcast across the most of western Florida and is available worldwide over the Internet.  Each member of the Academy team was interviewed and it was a great experience for us all.  Of course Troy was very interested in how Kai and Henri were preparing Annika for the upcoming LPGA Season.  Charlotta received questions on the LPGA and her experience with life on the road.  Pam and I fielded questions on Academy packages as well as club fitting and our experience working for Annika.  Thank you Troy for taking the time to visit us at the ANNIKA Academy, we very much enjoyed it.

I wanted to mention one of the most amazing rounds of golf that I've ever seen.  Just before the holiday we had a group in for a Soren-Slam package in which our guests play with Annika.  Well fresh off her win in Dubai on Sunday and 30 hours of traveling, Annika managed to shoot a 61 on the Arnold Palmer course here at Reunion Resort.  I'm sure that Annika would downplay the 61, but I know the guests and I were very impressed.

This is the first Academy post of the year so we want to wish a Happy New Year to everyone.  If your resolution is to improve your golf game this year please give us a call and we will find the ANNIKA Academy package that will help you to reach your goals!