Less than 48 hours before dancing with Jason Derulo on stage in Belleair, Florida, on Tuesday night, Gaby Lopez had no idea the R&B sensation was performing for the players competing at this week’s Annika tournament.
It just so happened that the three-time LPGA Tour winner had been working on a dance she was ready to bust out at the players dinner.
That is, if fate could align her with access on stage.
“I’ve been practicing this dance for months — just because I like it, not because he was coming,” Lopez told reporters after posting a 7-under 63 at Pelican Golf Club on Friday. “I had no idea.”
When Lopez heard the news that Derulo was coming, she said called LPGA commissioner Craig Kessler and others involved in the event planning to see what they could do.
“‘I’m like, guys, can I please perform? I know he brings a girl on stage.’ They said to me, give us 10 minutes,” Lopez recalled. “I received a phone call, ‘Yeah, you’re on stage.’”
The 33-year-old Mexican star got to practice with Derulo’s dancers.
“It’s pretty much the highlight of the week. I don’t know, I don’t care what happens this weekend, but I got to dance with him and it was a dream come true for sure,” she said.
She’s our chica 💃 Gaby Lopez got on stage with @jasonderulo to show off her moves to Mi Chico pic.twitter.com/mKIAip4YfD
— LPGA (@LPGA) November 11, 2026
Lopez credited a late range session after her 68 in Round 1 left her feeling a bit uneasy about her swing.
The extra work paid off immediately. On Friday, she missed just one fairway. She also birdied four times playing a bogey-free first nine holes after teeing off at the par-4 10th hole to start her round.
She finished the front birdie-birdie and then did the same thing at the end of her second nine.
“I love this golf course, there is something about this place that I truly enjoy playing in these conditions,” she told reporters.
“Golf becomes a little easier when you hit it close, so happy with kind of finding that feeling on my iron shots and on my wedges,” she added.
