LPGA's Melanie Green throws first pitch at Tampa Bay Rays game to promote star-studded Annika

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. ― Melanie Green didn’t hesitate to say yes when asked to throw out the first pitch on Thursday at a Tampa Bay Rays game.

When asked about her previous experience with such things, the LPGA rookie had to go all the way back to her childhood days in small-town Medina, New York, when she’d convince her dad to go out in the front yard to play catch. Only that was usually with a football.

The native New Yorker didn’t really follow the Yankees. They were quasi-Braves fans, thanks to some family friends in Georgia. But mostly, they followed the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres. 

“I love sports,” she said, summing up her eagerness about the day.

Green’s presence at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, was to promote The Annika driven by Gainbridge at Pelican, which takes place Nov. 12-15 at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida. 

After Green rewrote the history books at the University of South Florida, she stayed in the Tampa Bay area as a professional. Currently No. 85 in the CME Race to the Globe standings, she’ll try to make a late push to qualify for the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, where the winner earns a $4 million check. The field of 60 is determined after The Annika.

Three-time Annika winner and world No. 1 Nelly Korda has committed to the field along with LPGA Hall of Famer Lydia Ko, defending champion Linn Grant and Brooke Henderson.

After graduating from USF, the gritty Green was the 2025 Epson Tour Player, sailing her way through to the LPGA. In April, she posted two top-10 finishes on tour and looked poised for a big summer ― possibly even a run at the U.S. Solheim Cup team ― but she has cooled off of late. After a three-week break from competition, she’s poised for a crammed home stretch, including potentially four straight events in Asia. 

“I give myself more grace,” she said of recent play.  “I don’t need to figure it out all in one year. I don’t need to figure it out in two years…. Just keep getting better.

Green lives about an hour from Pelican Golf Club and hasn’t quite figured out how much she’ll want to commute that week. 

Former USF player Melanie Green throws out the first pitch at the Rays game to promote the upcoming @theANNIKAlpga. Did pretty good! pic.twitter.com/25HaRZrdaR

— Beth Ann Nichols (@GolfweekNichols) September 17, 2026

Talking to Green now, it’s hard to believe she was too shy growing up to play team sports. At age 13, she finally agreed to play in a golf tournament and routed the field at Locust Hill Country Club.

 Her longtime instructor, Nick Semuta, often referenced Sorenstam during their lessons. 

“Annika does it right” is a phrase she grew up hearing.

Now, after competing in Sorenstam’s junior events as a kid, she’s reached the big leagues.

And she’s primed for the spotlight. 

Beth Ann Nichols is a senior writer for Golfweek covering the LPGA and all things women’s golf. Follow her on X/Twitter (@GolfweekNichols).

This article originally appeared on Golfweek: LPGA’s Melanie Green throws first pitch at Tampa Bay Rays game to promote star-studded Annika