Marilynn Smith
Smith follows the flight of her ball
Personal information
Full nameMarilynn Louise Smith[1]
NicknameMiss Personality
Born(1929-04-13)April 13, 1929
Topeka, Kansas
DiedApril 9, 2019(2019-04-09) (aged 89)
Goodyear, Arizona
Sporting nationality United States
Career
CollegeUniversity of Kansas
Turned professional1950
Former tour(s)LPGA Tour (Founder)
Professional wins23
Number of wins by tour
LPGA Tour21
Other2
Best results in LPGA major championships
(wins: 2)
Western Open3rd: 1963
Titleholders C'shipWon: 1963, 1964
Chevron ChampionshipCUT: 1984, 1987
Women's PGA C'ship5th/T5: 1961, 1966, 1972
U.S. Women's Open3rd/T3: 1964, 1965, 1968
du Maurier ClassicDNP
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame2006 (member page)
LPGA Most Improved Player1963
LPGA Patty Berg Award1979
Commissioner's Award
(LPGA Founders)		2000

Marilynn Louise Smith (April 13, 1929 – April 9, 2019)[2] was an American professional golfer. She was one of the thirteen founders of the LPGA in 1950.[3] She won two major championships and 21 LPGA Tour events in all. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Amateur career

Smith was born in Topeka, Kansas. She started playing golf at age 12. She was a three-time winner of the Kansas State Amateur from 1946 to 1948. She won the 1949 national individual intercollegiate golf championship while attending the University of Kansas.

Professional career

Smith turned pro in 1949 and joined the Spalding staff. She was one of the thirteen women who founded the LPGA in 1950. She won her first tournament in 1952 at the Fort Wayne Open. She would go on to win a total of 21 events on the LPGA Tour, including two major championships, the 1963 and 1964 Titleholders Championships. She finished in the top ten on the money list nine times between 1961 and 1972, with her best finishes being fourth places in 1963, 1968 and 1970. She was named the LPGA Most Improved Player in 1963. She was the LPGA's president from 1958 to 1960. She was selected for membership of the World Golf Hall of Fame in the Lifetime Achievement category in June 2006 and was inducted in October 2006.[4]

While playing at a tournament in Florida, Smith escaped uninjured when a sniper fired several shots at her and Margie Masters. The perpetrator was never identified.[5] Both Masters and Smith ultimately made the cut.

In 1973 she became the first woman to work on a men's golf television broadcast.[6]

She died on April 9, 2019,[2] four days before her 90th birthday, from complications of an infection due to a fall during the week of The Founders Cup in Phoenix.

Professional wins (23)

LPGA Tour wins (21)

LPGA majors are shown in bold.

Other wins (2)

Major championships

Wins (2)

YearChampionshipWinning scoreMarginRunner-up
1963Titleholders ChampionshipE (72-75-69-76=292)Playoff 1United States Mickey Wright
1964Titleholders Championship+1 (73-66-77-73=289)1 strokeUnited States Mickey Wright

1 In an 18-hole playoff, Smith 72, Wright 73

See also

References

  1. ↑ Gardella, Kay (May 9, 1973). "Golf Color Commentator A Female With a Swing". Daily News. New York. p. 25C – via newspapers.com. Marilynn Louise Smith, 44, the fifth-ranking all-time money winner in the Ladies Professional Golf Association...
  2. 1 2 Sirak, Ron (April 9, 2019). "LPGA Founder and World Golf Hall of Fame Member Marilynn Smith Dies at 89". LPGA.
  3. ↑ "About the LPGA - Our Founders". LPGA.
  4. ↑ "LPGA founder Smith selected for World Golf Hall of Fame". PGA Tour. June 7, 2006. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007.
  5. ↑ Vaughan, Roger (10 October 2022). "Aussie golf trailblazer Margie Masters – who was once targeted by a sniper when on the tee – dies in Arizona". Seven News. Australian Associated Press. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  6. ↑ Kelley, Brent (April 4, 2017). "LPGA Founders: The 13 Women Who Created the LPGA – Marilynn Smith". ThoughtCo.com.
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