Elizabeth M. Hicks (November 16, 1920 – February 20, 2011)
was an American
professional golfer
A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...
, golf coach and teacher,
aviator
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
, and author. She also competed under her married name, Betty Hicks Newell.
Hicks was born in
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California.
Incorporate ...
.
As an amateur golfer, she won the 1941
U.S. Women's Amateur
The U.S. Women's Amateur is the leading golf tournament in the United States for female amateur golfers. It is played annually and is one of the 13 United States national golf championships organized by the United States Golf Association (USGA). F ...
and was
Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year
The first Athlete of the Year award in the United States was initiated by the Associated Press (AP) in 1931. At a time when women in sports were not given the same recognition as men, the AP offered a male and a female athlete of the year award to ...
. She turned professional later that year. She attended
Pomona College
Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became ...
, graduating in 1947.
Hicks competed on the
LPGA Tour
The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...
, finishing second several times in the 1950s but never winning. She finished second in the
U.S. Women's Open
The U.S. Women's Open, one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, W ...
in 1948 and 1954 and third in 1957. She won the
All American Open
The All American Open was a golf tournament on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s. It was played at the Tam O'Shanter Country Club in Niles, Illinois. It was run by George S. May and was originally known as the Tam O'Shanter National Open. From 1 ...
, which would later become a LPGA Tour event, in 1944.
Hicks coached the women's golf team at
Foothill College
Foothill College is a public community college in Los Altos Hills, California. It is part of the Foothill–De Anza Community College District. It was founded on January 15, 1957, and offers 79 Associate degree programs, 1 Bachelor's degree pr ...
in Los Altos Hills, California, where she also coordinated the aviation department.
As an author, Hicks co-authored the book "Golf Manual for Teachers" with Ellen Griffin in 1949. In 1996, she co-authored "Patty Sheehan on Golf" with
Patty Sheehan
Patty Sheehan (born October 27, 1956) is an American professional golfer. She became a member of the LPGA Tour in 1980 and won six major championships and 35 LPGA Tour events in all. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Sheehan also ...
. In 2006, she wrote "My Life: From Fairway to Airway" which chronicles her life in golf and her second career as a pilot.
Hicks is a member of the LPGA Teaching and Club Professional Hall of Fame, the Long Beach Golf Hall of Fame, San Jose Sports Hall of Fame, the Women's Sports Foundation International Hall of Fame, the California Golf Writers Hall of Fame, and the International Forest of Friendship Aviation Hall of Fame.
Six Voted into LPGA T&CP Division Hall of Fame's Inaugural Class
In 1999, she won the Ellen Griffin Rolex award for her efforts in helping the LPGA grow and in teaching the game of golf to women.
Hicks is sometimes confused with contemporary Helen Hicks
Helen L. Hicks Harb (February 11, 1911 – December 16, 1974) was an American professional golfer and one of 13 founders of the LPGA in 1950.
Biography
Hicks was born in Cedarhurst, New York. She began playing golf at the age of 15, after bei ...
, who won the U.S. Women's Amateur
The U.S. Women's Amateur is the leading golf tournament in the United States for female amateur golfers. It is played annually and is one of the 13 United States national golf championships organized by the United States Golf Association (USGA). F ...
in 1931.
Hicks died on February 20, 2011, from Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hicks, Betty
American female golfers
LPGA Tour golfers
Winners of ladies' major amateur golf championships
Golfers from California
American women writers
Aviators from California
Women aviators
Pomona College alumni
Sportspeople from Long Beach, California
People from Cupertino, California
Deaths from Alzheimer's disease
Deaths from dementia in California
1920 births
2011 deaths
21st-century American women