Judy Rankin
Judy Rankin receives the 2022 Woman of Distinction Award from WWGA President, Susan Buchanan
Woman of Distinction
2022 Honoree
Listen to Judy’s speech delivered at the WWGA’s Annual Meeting on September 15th. at the Glen View Club in Golf, Illinois.
The audio ( about 18 minutes long) begins just after President Buchanan’s introductory remarks.
Judy started playing golf at age 6 with guidance from her father. At the age of 15, then Judy Torluemke, was the low amateur at the 1960 U.S. Open and in 1961 was on the cover of Sports Illustrated. In 1962, at age 17, she joined the LPGA Tour winning her first event in 1968.
During her outstanding golf career she played in a number of WWGA tournaments including the Women’s Western Open (held from 1930-1967). Judy played in our WWGA Open … from 1963 through 1966 … her best finish came in 1964 where she finished 4th.
One of her biggest victories was winning the Colgate Dinah Shore in 1976, now known as the Chevron Championship, her win helped make that tournament a major. In 1977, she won five events in a 6-month stretch of time. She was a two-time ‘Player of the Year’ and the first player to win more than $100,000 in a season.
Judy captained the victorious 1996 & 1998 U.S. Solheim Cup Teams and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2000. During her stellar career she won 26 tour events. She and her husband Yippy were pioneers when it came to child-rearing on tour with all 26 of Judy’s victories coming after the birth of her son Tuey.
In 1985 a bad back sent her on another pioneering adventure as the first female to put on a headset and cover the PGA Tour from inside the ropes. Her Golf Channel producer has said,
“I don’t think many people realize she was one of the first females to work in men’s golf. We see Dottie Pepper and Kelly Tilghman, but Judy was the first! Back then, that had to have been hard.”
She transitioned from the fairways to the announcing booth after her playing days and became a leader in golf television commentating for ABC Sports, ESPN and ESPN2. In 2010 the Golf Channel named Judy their lead broadcaster and analyst for LPGA Tour telecasts and effective this year, 2022, Judy reduced her TV schedule in what is her last year of broadcasting. Golf will be losing an iconic broadcaster.
Judy established herself as one of the game’s best analysts and put together a career that rivals any broadcaster in golf history. Judy has been recognized in the industry with numerous awards including PGA of America’s First Lady of Golf, the Bobby Jones Award from the USGA, Ben Hogan Award for her comeback to the game after recovering from breast cancer, and recipient of the LPGA Susan Komen Award.
According to Rhonda Glenn’s – “The Illustrated History of Women’s Golf,” Pat Bradley stated when she joined the Tour in 1974, she didn’t want to ‘hang out’ with her contemporaries, she wanted to get to know top players like Judy!
Judy has penned “A Natural Way to Golf Power” with Michael Aronstein and “A Woman’s Guide to Better Golf” with Peter McCleery. She helped to elevate the women’s game and created the JTR Suitcase Fund to assist junior golfers of varying ability make golf a game for life.
