American · Port Arthur, Texas · Born 26 June 1911 · Died 1956-09-27Legendary all-around athlete who won Olympic track medals before dominating women's golf in the 1940s-50s.
Mildred Ella Didrikson Zaharias was born in Port Arthur, Texas in 1911 and became the greatest all-round female athlete in history — winning Olympic gold medals in hurdles and javelin at the 1932 Los Angeles Games before becoming one of the founding figures of professional women's golf. She won 10 major golf championships and 41 LPGA titles across a career spanning 1935 to 1955. Her golf majors: US Women's Open (1948, 1950, 1954), Titleholders Championship (1947, 1950, 1952) and Western Open (1940, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947). At the 1932 Olympics she set a world record of 11.8 seconds in the 80m hurdles and won javelin gold. She also competed in basketball, baseball, tennis, diving and billiards at competitive level. She was named the Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year 6 times and voted the Greatest Female Athlete of the First Half of the 20th Century. She was one of the founders of the LPGA Tour in 1950. She was diagnosed with colon cancer in 1953, underwent surgery and won the 1954 US Women's Open by 12 shots, then died in September 1956 aged 45. She is considered by many historians the greatest female athlete in American sports history.
Multi-sport Olympic champion turned dominant golfer; LPGA founding member
How They Played
Powerful, aggressive player with exceptional distance off the tee
Lasting Impact
Greatest female athlete of 20th century, pioneered women's professional golf
Career Honours
- 10 major titles
- LPGA founding member 1950
- 3x US Women's Open champion
- AP Female Athlete of Half-Century
American Athletes