Dave Portnoy tries to recruit Caitlin Clark for viral Barstool Golf Tournament with $1m prize on offer

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In a year’s time, Caitlin Clark could be $1million richer.Clark, a WNBA superstar for the Indiana Fever, set social media alight when she drained a putt from just off the green at The ANNIKA LPGA Pro-Am tournament in Tampa Bay.View Tweet: https://twitter.com/CaitlinClark22?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw The former Iowa Hawkeye celebrated with her arms outstretched before pointing towards her Fever teammates Sophie Cunningham and Lexie Hull, who doubled as Clark’s celebrity caddies at the event.Portnoy dangles seven-figure carrot in front of ClarkGiven the viral nature of the clip, it was only a matter of time before it caught the eye of Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, who has long been a supporter of Clark.In a post on X, Portnoy reposted Clark’s putt and added the caption: “The 1st official invite for the 2026 @Internetinvite is @CaitlinClark22.”Portnoy’s post has since been seen over 1.5m times on X.What is the Internet Invite?The Internet Invite is Barstool’s celebrity golf tournament in which a mix of 48 golf professionals, influencers and content creators, including Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden and Paige Spiranac, compete for a $1m prize.This year’s edition of the Internet Invitational, played at Big Cedar Lodge in Missouri, marked the inaugural staging of the event.The tournament was filmed over five days in August and has been released across several days on YouTube, with each episode garnering over two million views.Time will tell whether Clark is able to accept the invite given filming takes place in the middle of the WNBA season, which runs from May to October.However, Clark may view a mid-season departure to take part in a few days of filming as a worthy cause amid ongoing tensions between the WNBA and the WNBA Players’ Association over a new collective bargaining agreement.And should she take up the chance to join the field for next year’s edition, Clark will no doubt be a serious contender.Portnoy has never been shy of his adoration for Fever superstar ClarkGettyIf Clark ever wants to go further in golf, a caddy duo of Cunningham and Hull might not be the wisest callGettyUnfortunately there does not seem to be room on the invite list for Clark’s close pal and on-court enforcer Cunningham.Unlike Clark, who wowed spectators in Tampa Bay, Cunningham left one patron with an unfortunate souvenir thanks to an errant shot.Cunningham stepped up to the tee box but instead of finding the fairway, she found an unsuspecting fan with her ball.The 29-year-old immediately raced down to apologise to the crowd member, who was thankfully OK and got a picture along with a signed ball from the Fever ace.How did Clark perform at The ANNIKA Pro-Am?Although Cunningham’s afternoon was over after one shot, Clark enjoyed mixed fortunes across her round on Wednesday.Grouped alongside LPGA superstar Nelly Korda, professional golfer Lauryn Nguyen as well as Jordan Jackson and Dan Towriss, Clark finished with a final score of -11, which was good enough for T36.The 23-year-old showed glimpses of her prowess with a golf ball instead of a basketballGettyDespite an impressive outing, Clark joked in her post-round press conference she may ‘need some lessons’ going forward.“I honestly haven’t played a ton, but it was fun,” Clark said.“I think any time you get to be out here and see these women do what they do really well, it’s really inspiring and really fun.“This isn’t the environment I’m usually in, so it’s kind of a challenge and something fun that I love that I get to do.“Just really thankful that Annika and Gainbridge had me out here.”If Clark does indeed get some lessons in the near future and elects to compete at the 2026 Internet Invitational, the rest of the field could be in trouble.Stay up to date with the latest from the WNBA across all platforms – follow our dedicated talkSPORT USA Facebook page and subscribe to our talkSPORT USA YouTube channel for all the news, exclusives, interviews and more.