Deb Richard (born June 13, 1963) is an American former

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 ...

who was a member of 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 ...

for twenty years during the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s.

Amateur career

Richard was born in

Abbeville, Louisiana Abbeville is a city in, and the parish seat of, Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States, west of New Orleans and southwest of Baton Rouge. The population was 12,257 at the 2010 census. At the 2020 population estimates program, the populati ...

in 1963, and raised in

Manhattan, Kansas Manhattan is a city and county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. As of the 2020 cen ...

. She first found success as an amateur golfer by winning the Kansas state high school golf championship three consecutive years for

Manhattan High School Manhattan High School is a public high school in Manhattan, Kansas, United States, serving students in grades 9-12. It is part of the Manhattan–Ogden USD 383. For the 2013–2014 school year, Manhattan High had an enrollment of 1,920 students. ...

(1979–1981). She followed by winning the

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

Women's Amateur the next two years (1982, 1983). In 1984, Richard won the prestigious U.S. Women's Amateur; a few months later she was part of the U.S. team that won the

Espirito Santo Trophy The Espirito Santo Trophy (World Women's Amateur Team Championships) is a biennial world amateur team golf championship for women organised by the International Golf Federation. The inaugural event was held in 1964. It was instituted by the Fren ...

in Hong Kong. While competing for coach Mimi Ryan's

Florida Gators women's golf The Florida Gators women's golf team represents the University of Florida in the sport of golf. The Lady Gators compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They play their ...

team at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

from 1982 to 1985, she won seven tournaments including three consecutive

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

(SEC) individual championships. As a senior in 1985, she was the individual runner-up, by a single stroke, at the

NCAA Women's Golf Championship The NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship, played in the month of May, is the annual competition in women's collegiate golf for individuals and teams from universities in Division I. Golf was one of twelve women's sports added to the NCAA cha ...

, was recognized as the SEC Golfer of the Year, and won the

Broderick Award External linksThe Collegiate Women Sports Awards (sponsored by Honda)official websiteHonda: The Collegiate Women Sports Awards
College sports trophies and awards in the United States Women's sports in the United States Sports awards honoring w ...

as the nation's outstanding female collegiate golfer. Richard was a first-team All-SEC selection all four years (1982–1985) and a first-team All-American in 1984 and 1985. She graduated from Florida with a bachelor's degree in advertising in 1989, and was inducted into the

University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame The University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame includes over 300 former Florida Gators athletes who represented the University of Florida in one or more intercollegiate sports and were recognized as "Gator Greats" for their athletic excellence ...

as a "Gator Great" in 1995.Antonya English,
Carlson calls UF induction top thrill
" ''The Gainesville Sun'', pp. 1 & 6 (April 7, 1995). Retrieved July 23, 2011.

Professional career

Richard played on the LPGA Tour for twenty years (1986–2005), during which she won five Tour events and finished in the top-10 in over seventy events. Her five wins included the 1987

Rochester International Wegmans LPGA was women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. It was played from 1977 to 2009 at the Locust Hill Country Club in Pittsford, New York. History The tournament was originally known as the Bankers Trust Classic, a 54-hol ...

, 1991

Women's Kemper Open The Women's Kemper Open was a golf tournament on the LPGA Tour from 1979 to 1992. It was played at several different courses in California and Hawaii. Tournament locations Winners *1992 Dawn Coe *1991 Deb Richard *1990 Beth Daniel *1989 Betsy Ki ...

, 1991 The Phar-Mor in Youngstown, 1994

Safeco Classic The Safeco Classic (often styled as the SAFECO Classic) was a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour in the Seattle area, sponsored by Safeco Insurance. It was played 18 times, from 1982 to 1999, aMeridian Valley Country Clubin Ken ...

and 1997

Friendly's Classic The Friendly's Classic was a golf tournament on the LPGA Tour from 1995 to 1998.LPGA Tournament Chronol ...

. Her best finishes in the LPGA majors included a tie for tenth place in the 1996

Kraft Nabisco Championship The Chevron Championship is a professional women's golf tournament. An event on the LPGA Tour, it is one of the tour's five major championships, and has traditionally been the first of the season since its elevation to major status in 1983. Fou ...

, a tie for fifth in the 1991

LPGA Championship The Women's PGA Championship (branded as the KPMG Women's PGA Championship for sponsorship reasons) is a women's professional golf tournament. First held in 1955, it is one of five majors on the LPGA Tour. It is not recognized as a major by the ...

, a tie for ninth in the 1986

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 ...

, and ties for fourth in the 1988 and 1998

du Maurier Classic The CP Women's Open (french: Open féminin du Canada) is a women's professional golf tournament managed by Golf Canada. It has been Canada's national championship tournament since its founding in 1973 LPGA Tour, 1973, and is an official event on ...

. In 1992, Richard was selected for the U.S.

Solheim Cup The Solheim Cup is a biennial golf tournament for professional women golfers contested by teams representing Europe and the United States. It is named after the Norwegian-American golf club manufacturer Karsten Solheim, who was a driving force beh ...

team. Her career earning as a professional golfer totaled $2,759,551. Richard has been inducted into the Kansas Golf Hall of Fame. She has also received a number of awards for her charitable activities.

Professional wins (6)

LPGA Tour wins (5)

LPGA Tour playoff record (2–2)

Other wins (1)

*1991 JBP Cup LPGA Match Play Championship

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur *

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

(winners) Professional *

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Richard, Deb American female golfers Florida Gators women's golfers LPGA Tour golfers Winners of ladies' major amateur golf championships Solheim Cup competitors for the United States Golfers from Louisiana Golfers from Kansas People from Abbeville, Louisiana Sportspeople from Manhattan, Kansas 1963 births Living people