Hall of Fame golfer Nancy Lopez is a big believer in Lexi Thompson

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – Nancy Lopez knows what potentially lies ahead for Lexi Thompson.

Probably better than any other woman walking this earth.

True, Lopez wasn’t 16 in 1978.

She was 21 when she staged that rookie year for the ages, winning nine times on the LPGA Tour, including five straight at one point, and sweeping every possible award in her sport and some beyond.

And yes, that was a long time ago for Lopez, now 55.

Yet the matron of an exclusive sisterhood can still close her eyes and remember how it felt.

To dominate women’s golf at a tender young age.

To be so marketable that the off-course demands made it hard sometimes to concentrate or even practice.

To carry the weight of expectations and the future of an entire tour on your shoulders.

For Thompson, who in a span of three months last fall became the youngest winner in the history of both the LPGA and European women’s tour, all of that is on the table.

“People,” Lopez said Monday afternoon, “are going to be pulling and tugging at her all the time.”

As the Hall of Famer spoke, that exact thing was happening a few groups ahead.

Thompson, gliding around Pine Tree Golf Club with a small gallery in tow, mixed easily with well-heeled donors at the Bethesda Hospital Foundation Pro-Am.

The child golf goddess from Coral Springs posed for pictures with volunteers. She shared fist bumps with rich hackers who donated $6,000 per foursome. She patiently signed autographs with an easy smile.

Monday’s outing was actually fairly laid-back.

In another few weeks, Thompson’s world will start spinning even faster.

She’ll celebrate her 17th birthday next month while playing the second round of the LPGA’s season-opening event in Australia.

From there, she’ll be favored to contend for more tournament titles, possibly even a major. She could challenge the record of Boca Raton’s Morgan Pressel, who was 18 when she won the 2007 Kraft Nabisco.

Pressel’s advice?

“I don’t know that she needs a whole lot of advice,” Pressel said. “She seems to know what she’s doing. She’s really an impressive player. I’ve already told her, anything she needs, just ask. I think she’ll have a great year.”

The key, Lopez said, will be to find the proper balance.

“All the sponsors are going to want her to play,” Lopez said. “That was a lot of pressure when I was playing. There was a lot of pressure to play every week, and you can’t do it. She’s a smart girl. She’ll figure it out.”

Making it even tougher this year is the addition of four more LPGA events, bringing the total to 27.

Thompson’s family is targeting 17-20 events worldwide, which sounds about right for a girl who would still have to sneak into an R-rated movie.

“She just needs to find her happy medium of what she wants to do in her scheduling,” Lopez said. “Not just on the golf course, but she’s going to make a lot of money off the golf course.”

How much will depend on whether Thompson can keep winning and how many air miles she’s willing to pile up in search of fat appearance checks.

“She’s got the world of golf really at her fingertips right now,” Lopez said. “They always say somebody is the ‘real deal,’ but I think she’s just the real thing. The real thing in golf.”