Lauri Merten (born July 6, 1960) is 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 ...
. She also competed under the names Lauri Peterson (1983–87) and Lauri Merten-Peterson (1988).
Merten was born in
Waukesha, Wisconsin. She attended
Arizona State University
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
and joined the
LPGA Tour in 1983.
Merten's three wins on the LPGA Tour came at the 1983
Rail Charity Golf Classic
The LPGA State Farm Classic was a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. It was played annually from 1976 to 2011 in the Springfield, Illinois metropolitan area. From 1976 through 2006, the tournament was held at The Rail Golf Cours ...
, the 1984
Jamie Farr Toledo Classic and the
1993 U.S. Women's Open
The 1993 U.S. Women's Open was the 48th U.S. Women's Open, held July 22–25 at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Indiana, a suburb north of Indianapolis. Five strokes back after three rounds, Lauri Merten fired a 68 (−4) to win her only m ...
, which is one of the LPGA's
major championships.
When she retired, Merten claimed burnout was the cause. Another factor was undoubtedly the unwanted attention surrounding the murder conviction of her brother-in-law
Thomas Capano
Thomas Joseph Capano (October 11, 1949 – September 19, 2011) was a disbarred American lawyer and former Delaware deputy attorney general who was convicted of the 1996 murder of Anne Marie Fahey, his former lover.
Background
Thomas Capano, a p ...
in 1996.
Professional wins
LPGA Tour wins (3)
LPGA Tour playoff record (1–0)
Major championships
Wins (1)
References
External links
*
American female golfers
LPGA Tour golfers
Winners of LPGA major golf championships
Golfers from Wisconsin
Sportspeople from Waukesha, Wisconsin
1960 births
Living people
21st-century American women
{{US-golf-bio-stub