Pia Nilsson (born 8 May 1958) is a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

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 ...

and coach. She was one of the two players, who were the first female Swedes to play collegiate golf at a University in the United States and the first Swede to captain a European Solheim Cup team.

Early years

Born in Malmö, Nilsson began playing golf at around 10 years of age, with her family at Torekov Golf Club in another part of Scania in southern Sweden, when they spend their summers there. At 14 years of age, her handicap had gone down to 10. In her golf career, she later also came to represent Ystad Golf Club, Jönköping Golf Club,

Ljunghusen Golf Club Ljunghusen Golf Club is a links golf club located in Höllviken, Skåne County in Sweden. It has hosted the PLM Open on the European Tour. History The club is located on Sweden's southern tip, along the Baltic Sea. Its first six holes were buil ...

and

Lidingö Golf Club Lidingö, also known in its definite form ''Lidingön'' and as ''Lidingölandet'', is an island in the inner Stockholm archipelago, northeast of Stockholm, Sweden. In 2010, the population of the Lidingö urban area on the island was 31,561. It ...

Amateur career

Nilsson first represented Sweden at the European Lady Junior's Team Championship in 1975 and continued to do so five years in a row. In 1978, at Is Molas Golf Club, Sardinia, Italy, Sweden won the championship for the first time ever. In 1976, at 18 years of age, Nilsson reached the semi-finals of the Swedish Match-play Championship and finished second at the Swedish International Stroke-play Championship. At the last-mentioned tournament, she was also part of winning the Swedish Team Championship with Ljunghusen Golf Club. Her achievements in 1976, earned her a place, as one of the three best female amateurs in the country, in the Swedish team at the Espirito Santo Trophy. In 1977, Nilsson beat her Swedish compatriot

Charlotte Montgomery Charlotte Montgomery (born 24 August 1958) is a Swedish professional golfer. She was one of the two players, who were the first female Swedes to play collegiate golf at a university in the United States and she was the first Swede to qualify for ...

in a play-off for the title at en international amateur tournament in Torreon, Mexico. In 1979, Nilsson won the Swedish Junior Stroke-play Championship at Sollentuna Golf Club outside

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

. She appeared in the

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

Espirito Santo Trophy at the Pinehurst Resort in

Pinehurst, North Carolina Pinehurst is a village in Moore County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 13,124. It is home of the historic Pinehurst Resort, a Golf resort, which has hosted multiple United States Open Champion ...

, United States, were the Swedish team finished 7th and Nilsson 10th individually as best Swedish player. She played her collegiate golf at

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 ...

, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education in 1981 having made All-Conference Second Team in 1980–1981. Together with

, Nilsson was the first female Swede to play collegiate golf at a University in the United States. In March 1981, Nilsson represented Sweden, together with Charlotte Montgomery, at the international World Cup team competition for two-women national teams in

Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,227,642 residents according to the 2018 census. The city spans with of urban area, making Cali the second ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

. Sweden won as a team, 7 strokes ahead of Spain. She was a member of the winning Swedish team at the 1981 European Ladies' Team Championship at Troia Golf Club, Portugal. It was Sweden's first victory ever in this championship.

Professional career

After being ill at the previous attempt in

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, six months earlier, Nilsson qualified for the U.S.-based LPGA Tour at her third attempt, when she succeeded through the LPGA Tour Qualifying School at Bent Tree, Sarasota, Florida, in December 1982, finishing 3rd among 153 players competing for 15 available spots. She played on the LPGA Tour from 1983 to 1987 with moderate success. Her best finish was tied 11th at the

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 ...

Konica San Jose Classic The Konica San Jose Classic was a golf tournament on the LPGA Tour from 1983 to 1989.LPGA Tournament Ch ...

held at the Almaden Golf & Country Club in San Jose, California, six strokes behind winner Amy Alcott. Nilsson ended the 1984 season 84th on the LPGA Tour money ranking. She also played in Europe, winning her first professional tournament on the Swedish Golf Tour, at the time named the Telia Tour, at the 1986 SI Trygg-Hansa Open. She had seven other Swedish Golf Tour wins 1986–1990, including the 1989

Swedish Matchplay Championship The Swedish Match Play Championship is a golf tournament played since 1904, held for both men and women. It is the oldest and most traditional golf tournament in Sweden. The name SM is shortening in Swedish language for "Svenska Mästerskapet" (th ...

, which since 1984 was open for professionals to enter. She became head coach for the Swedish National Women's Teams (juniors, amateurs and pros) in Sweden from 1990 to 1995 and Head Coach for the Swedish National Teams (men and women; pros, amateurs and juniors) from 1996 to 1998. By captain Mickey Walker, Nilsson was appointed assistant captain of the

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

European Solheim Cup team. Two years later, as the first ever Swede, she was captain of the European team in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

Solheim Cup at

Muirfield Village Muirfield Village is an “upscale” golf-oriented community in the central United States, located in Dublin, Ohio, a suburb north of Columbus. Origins Founded by Jack Nicklaus, it is named after Muirfield, Scotland, where he won the first of h ...

, Ohio, United States, were the U.S. team defeated the European team by 16–12. Six of the twelve players in the European team, and four of the five captain picks, were Swedish born. She was co-founder with Lynn Marriott and head coach of Vision54 Golf Academy in Phoenix, Arizona, United States and co-author of books "Every Shot Must Have a Purpose" and "The Game Before the Game." She coaches a number of LPGA Tour professionals and was a coach and mentor to Annika Sörenstam.

Personal life

She lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, United States, with a summer house in

Torekov Torekov () is a locality situated in Båstad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 863 inhabitants in 2010. It is still a fishing village but it is today known as a summer resort. In August, 1971 Torekov hosted a meeting in which it was decide ...

, Sweden and is a member of Talking Stick Golf Club, Scottsdale, Arizona and Torekov Golf Club, Sweden. She was a member of the board of the PGA of Sweden 1989–1993 and became an Honorary member of the PGA of Sweden in 1999 and of the LPGA Teaching and Club Professionals in 2000.

Amateur wins

*1977 International tournament (Torreon, Mexico) *1979 Swedish Junior Stroke-play Championship *1981 World Cup (Cali, Colombia) (team with

)

Professional wins

Swedish Golf Tour wins (8)

*1986 (2) Hooks Pro-Am,

SI Trygg-Hansa Open The Swedish International Stroke Play Championship or Swedish International (SI) was a golf tournament played in Sweden from 1945 to 2007. It has been featured on the Swedish Golf Tour and the Challenge Tour. Named the Swedish Golf Federation 7 ...

*1987 (1) IBM Ladies Open *1988 (1)

Ängsö Ladies Open The Ängsö Ladies Open was a women's professional golf tournament on the Swedish Golf Tour played annually from 1988 until 1994. It was always held at the Ängsö Golf Club in Västerås, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Swed ...

*1989 (3) Stora Lundby Ladies Open, Swedish Match-play Championship,

Grundig Team Trophy The Grundig Team Trophy was a women's professional golf tournament on the Swedish Golf Tour played annually from 1989 until 1991. It was always held at Royal Drottningholm Golf Club in Stockholm, Sweden. The 36-hole best ball tournament made it ...

(with Hillewi Hagström) *1990 (1)

(with Hillewi Hagström)

Team appearances

Amateur * European Lady Junior's Team Championship (representing Sweden): 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978 (winners), 1979 * Espirito Santo Trophy (representing Sweden):

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

* European Ladies' Team Championship (representing Sweden):

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

(winners) *World Cup (Cali, Colombia): 1981 (winners) Professional * Solheim Cup (representing Europe):

(non-playing captain)

Awards and honors

*1982 Elite Sign No. 68 by the

Swedish Golf Federation The Swedish Golf Federation ( sv, Svenska Golfförbundet, SGF) is the governing body for the sport of golf in Sweden, founded in 1904. The federation is responsible for administering the Rules of Golf, as laid down by The R&A, at the national leve ...

, on the basis of national team appearances and national championship performances *1993 Swedish PGA Merit Sign in Gold *1994 Swedish Female Sports Coach of the Year *1995 Swedish Sports Coach of the Year *1995 Swedish Golf Federation Golden Club for contributions to Swedish golf *1998 King of Sweden Medal of the 8th dimension with a Royal Blue Ribbon for leadership in sports *1999 Golf Digest Japan Golf Coach of the Year *2001 National Golf Coaches Hall of Fame *2010 Golf Digest #1 ranked Women Teacher in America *2017 Erik Runfelt medal *PGA's of Europe Five-Star Professional award

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nilsson, Pia Swedish female golfers Arizona State Sun Devils women's golfers LPGA Tour golfers Ladies European Tour golfers Sportspeople from Malmö People from Båstad Municipality Golfers from Scottsdale, Arizona 1958 births Living people