Kathrynne Ann Whitworth (September 27, 1939 – December 24, 2022) was an American professional golfer. During her playing career she won 88

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 week ...

tournaments, more than anyone else on the LPGA or PGA Tours. Whitworth was also a runner-up 93 times, giving her 181 top-two finishes. In 1981, she became the first woman to reach career earnings of $1 million on the LPGA Tour. She is a member of the

World Golf Hall of Fame The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site honors both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 go ...

Early life and amateur career

Whitworth was born on September 27, 1939, in

Monahans, Texas Monahans is a city in and the county seat of Ward County, Texas, United States. A very small portion of the city extends into Winkler County. The population was 6,953 at the 2010 census. In 2018, the population was estimated at 7,669. History ...

, the youngest of three daughters of Morris Whitworth, a hardware store owner and later mayor in

Jal, New Mexico Jal is a small city located in Lea County, New Mexico, United States. It is New Mexico's south-easternmost city, and shares a border with eastward state Texas. The population was 2,047 at the 2010 census. Jal is historically important in the natu ...

, where she grew up. She attended

Odessa College Odessa College is a public junior college in Odessa, Texas. The college serves the people of Ector County and the Permian Basin. It was established in 1946 and enrolle8,024 studentsin Fall 2021 and 7,679 students in Spring 2022 in its universi ...

. Initially a tennis player, Whitworth began playing golf at 14. After working with Hardy Loudermilk, she won the 1957 and 1958 New Mexico State Amateur Championships. At 19, she changed coaches to

Harvey Penick Harvey Morrison Penick (October 23, 1904 – April 2, 1995) was an American professional golfer and coach, who coached many Hall of Fame players. Late in life, he became a best-selling writer. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in ...

and turned pro, joining the LPGA in December 1958.

Professional career

In 1962, Whitworth won her first tournament, the Kelly Girls Open. Between that and her victory in the United Virginia Bank Classic in 1985, she won 88 tournaments on the LPGA Tour, the highest number of any player, including on the men's PGA Tour. Six were major championships. In 1974, she won the Orange Blossom Classic for the fifth time, one of only four LPGA golfers have won the same tournament five times. She was the U.S. team captain at the inaugural Solheim Cup match in 1990. She was the first LPGA player to earn $1 million, in 1981. Whitworth was LPGA Player of the Year seven times between 1966 and

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

, won the

Vare Trophy 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 week ...

for best scoring average by an LPGA Tour player a record seven times between 1965 and 1972, and was inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame in 1975 and into the

in 1982. She was named

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 ...

in 1965 and 1967. She was Named "Golfer of the Decade" by ''

Golf Magazine ''Golf Magazine'' is a monthly golf magazine. It was started in April 1959 by Universal Publishing and Distributing, who sold it to Times Mirror in 1972. Time Inc. acquired it in 2000. It was acquired by Howard Milstein in 2018. It was the world ...

'' for the years 1968 to 1977 during the 1988 Centennial of Golf in America celebration. She received the 1986 William Richardson Award from the Golf Writers Association of America for consistent outstanding contributions to golf. She is also a member of the New Mexico Hall of Fame,

Texas Sports Hall of Fame The Texas Sports Hall of Fame recognizes athletes, coaches, and administrators who have made "lasting fame and honor to Texas sports". It was established in 1951 by the Texas Sports Writers Association. Once it made its first induction (baseball ...

, Texas Golf Hall of Fame, and the

Women's Sports Foundation The Women's Sports Foundation (WSF) is a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit charity focused on female involvement in sports. Founded in 1974 by tennis player Billie Jean King and initially supported by Olympic athletes Donna de Varona and Suzy Chaffe ...

Hall of Fame.

Later life and death

Whitworth retired from competitive golf in 2005 after competing in the BJ's Charity Classic on the Women's Senior Golf Tour. In 2007, with Jay Golden, she published ''Kathy Whitworth's Little Book of Golf Wisdom''. At the time of her death she lived in

Flower Mound, Texas Flower Mound is an incorporated town located in Denton and Tarrant counties in the U.S. state of Texas. Located northwest of Dallas and northeast of Fort Worth adjacent to Grapevine Lake, the town derives its name from a prominent mound locate ...

with her partner, Bettye Odle. She died in Flower Mound on December 24, 2022, at age 83, after collapsing while attending a neighbor's Christmas party.

Professional wins

LPGA Tour wins (88)

''Note: Whitworth won the Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner's Circle (now known as the

ANA Inspiration 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 ...

) before it became a major championship.'' LPGA Tour playoff record (8–20)

Ladies European Tour wins

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 Southeas ...

Smirnoff Ladies Irish Open

Other wins

*1962 Haig & Haig Scotch Foursome (with Mason Rudolph) *1966 Lagunita Invitational *1967 Ladies World Series of Golf *1968 Ladies World Series of Golf *1971 LPGA Four-Ball Championship (with Judy Kimball) *1975 Colgate Triple Crown *1978 Ping Classic Team Championship (with

Donna Caponi Donna Caponi-Byrnes (born January 29, 1945) is an American LPGA Tour professional golfer. She became a member of the tour in 1965 and won four major championships and 24 LPGA Tour career events. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. ...

) *1980 Portland Ping Team Championship (with

) *1981 Portland Ping Team Championship (with

)