Marilynn Louise Smith (April 13, 1929 – April 9, 2019) 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 ...

. She was one of the thirteen founders of the LPGA in 1950. She won two major championships and 21 LPGA Tour events in all. 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 ...

Amateur career

Smith was born in

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...

. She started playing golf at age 12. She was a three-time winner of the Kansas State Amateur from 1946-48. She won the 1949 national individual intercollegiate golf championship while attending the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

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 The Fort Wayne Open was a professional golf tournament on the Ben Hogan Tour that was played in Fort Wayne, Indiana from 1990 to 1992. It was played at Orchard Ridge Country Club in 1990 and 1991, and at Brookwood Country Club in 1992. In 1990, ...

. She would go on to win a total of 21 events on the LPGA Tour, including two major championships, the 1963 and 1964

Titleholders Championship The Titleholders Championship was a women's golf tournament played from in 1937 to 1966 and again in 1972. It was later designated a major championship by the LPGA Tour. History The Titleholders Championship was founded in 1937. Like the Masters ...

s. 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

in the Lifetime Achievement category in June 2006 and was inducted in October 2006. While playing at a tournament in Florida, Smith escaped uninjured when a sniper fired several shots at her and

Margie Masters Margaret Ann Masters (24 October 1934 – 9 October 2022) was an Australian professional golfer. She won one title on the LPGA Tour in 1967, having been named Rookie of the Year two years earlier. Early life Masters was born in Swan Hill, Vic ...

. The perpetrator was never identified. Both Masters and Smith ultimately made the cut. In 1973 she became the first woman to work on a men's golf television broadcast. She died on April 9, 2019, 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)

1954 Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...

(1)

1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...

(2) Heart of America Open, Mile High Open * 1958 (1)

Jacksonville Open The Greater Jacksonville Open was a PGA Tour event that was played from 1945 until 1976. Shortly after World War II, the Jacksonville Open began play as a PGA Tour event in Jacksonville, Florida at the Hyde Park Golf Club until it was discontinue ...

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

(1)

Memphis Open The FedEx St. Jude Classic was a professional golf tournament held in Memphis, Tennessee as a regular event on the PGA Tour. The tournament was held annually from 1958 through 2018, and was played in June at TPC Southwind (since 1989). In 2019 ...

* 1962 (2) Sunshine Open, Waterloo Open *

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cov ...

(4)

Peach Blossom Open The Peach Blossom Open was a golf tournament on the LPGA Tour from 1953 to 1966. It was played at the Spartanburg Country Club in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Betsy Rawls, Spartanburg native, hosted the event. Winners ;Peach Blossom Invitational *1 ...

, Eugene Ladies' Open, Cavern City Open *

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

(2)

, Albuquerque Pro-Am *

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

(1)

* 1966 (2)

St. Petersburg Women's Open The St. Petersburg Women's Open was a golf tournament on the LPGA Tour from 1954 to 1989. It was played at three different courses in the St. Petersburg, Florida area. LPGA Hall of Fame member Kathy Whitworth won the tournament five times (1965, 1 ...

, Louise Suggs Delray Beach Invitational * 1967 (2) St. Petersburg Orange Classic, Babe Zaharias Open * 1968 (1) O'Sullivan Open *

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...

(1) Women's Golf Charities Open *

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

(1) Pabst Ladies Classic LPGA majors are shown in bold.

Other wins (2)

*1957 Hot Springs 4-Ball (with

Fay Crocker Fay Crocker (2 August 1914 – 16 September 1983) was a Uruguayan professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour. In her career, she won 11 LPGA tournaments, including two major championships, the 1955 U.S. Women's Open and 1960 Titleholde ...

) *1962 Naples Pro-Am (with

Mickey Wright Mary Kathryn "Mickey" Wright (February 14, 1935 – February 17, 2020) was an American professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour. She became a member of the tour in 1955 and won 82 LPGA Tour career events including 13 major champion ...

)

Major championships

Wins (2)

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

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Marilynn American female golfers LPGA Tour golfers Winners of LPGA major golf championships World Golf Hall of Fame inductees Golfers from Kansas University of Kansas alumni Sportspeople from Topeka, Kansas 1929 births 2019 deaths 21st-century American women