As we ease toward pro golf’s offseason, two amateur golf stories have dominated the game over the past month. First, the wildly entertaining Internet Invitational captivated golf fans with its inaugural edition. Second, WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark and YouTube golf star Kai Trump broadened golf’s audience at the LPGA’s Annika event.
Now the two viral stories appear to be on a collision course.
According to Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, he’s asked both Clark and Trump to play in the next Internet Invitational. And they both said yes.
Here’s what you need to know.
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When the first episode of the highly-anticipated Internet Invitational went live, it immediately struck a chord with golf fans. And the audience seemed to transcend far beyond the already large base of YouTube golf devotees.
Across six episodes and some 16 hours, 48 YouTube golfers of wildly varying abilities put on a show, competing in an inventive format and racking up tens of millions of views so far.
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Meanwhile, two weeks ago the Annika LPGA event similarly transcended the LPGA’s typical audience with the help of Clark and Trump. Clark, one of the most famous athletes in the world, played the pro-am, bringing a couple of her Indiana Fever teammates along for the ride.
And as always happens, wherever Clark goes, massive audiences follow. They were further boosted by Trump’s own appearance, not in the pro-am, but in the actual event. The 16-year-old and popular YouTuber, who is the granddaughter of President Donald Trump, made her LPGA debut at the Annika. And though she missed the cut, Trump similarly drove huge interest in the event and women’s golf in general.
Which brings us back to the Internet Invitational. Despite its huge success, organizers like Portnoy are hoping the next edition has even more impact.
And as a rabid WNBA and Caitlin Clark fan, Portnoy thought of one easy way to do that.
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Portnoy, the mind behind the Internet Invitational, made an appearance on Barstool’s “The Unnamed Show” on Thursday, and he quickly made it clear that he intends for the popular event to be an annual affair.
Then he got to his big idea for taking the tournament to the next level: inviting Clark and Trump to play. Incredibly, Portnoy revealed “both said yes,” but he made it clear that it’s not a sure thing yet, given Clark and Trump’s busy schedules.
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“I’ve invited two people so far, they’ve both said yes,” Portnoy said. “I don’t know how serious the yesses are. Caitlin [Clark] said yes; Kai Trump said yes. Those are my two that I’ve asked. Whether, push comes to shove, and those two are available and do it, who knows?”
He also revealed another big idea he has for the next Internet Invitational. He wants the prize pool to skyrocket from $1 million to $10 million. And he’s hoping the success of the inaugural event will help draw new sponsors that can make that idea a reality.
“I’d like to do a $10 million pool next year. See I think it’s going to be a lot easier to get money, sponsors, all this stuff,” Portnoy explained. “We proved it. Year 2 you really prove it, and then you’ve got something.”
You can watch Portnoy’s full appearance on “The Unnamed Show” here.
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