American · Torrance, USA · Born 6 January 1957American golfer who won 48 LPGA Tour events, including a legendary rookie season with nine victories in 1978.
Nancy Marie Lopez was born on 6 January 1957 in Torrance, California, to Mexican-American parents Domingo and Marina Lopez, and was raised in Roswell, New Mexico, learning golf from her father and beating him by the age of 11. She won the New Mexico Women's Amateur championship at just 12, and led her otherwise all-male high school golf team to a state championship as a senior, finishing runner-up at the U.S. Women's Open the same year. Lopez attended the University of Tulsa on a golf scholarship before turning professional in 1977, and delivered one of the greatest rookie seasons in professional sports history in 1978, winning nine tournaments including a record five in a row, sweeping the LPGA Rookie of the Year, Player of the Year, and Vare Trophy awards in a single season, a feat no other player has repeated. Lopez became the first Hispanic golfer to win an LPGA tournament, and finished her career with 48 LPGA Tour victories, including three major championships, though the U.S. Women's Open eluded her despite four runner-up finishes. Lopez was inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame in 1987, and credited with helping popularise women's professional golf during a period when the tour badly needed a breakout star, later founding her own golf equipment and instructional companies after retiring from regular competition in 2002.
Youngest LPGA Hall of Fame inductee; dominant 1978 rookie season with 9 wins
How They Played
Aggressive putting, strong short game, confident approach
Lasting Impact
Hall of Fame golfer who helped popularize women's professional golf
Career Honours
- LPGA Rookie of the Year 1978
- LPGA Player of the Year 3x
- LPGA Hall of Fame inductee
American Athletes