WOGA to celebrate centennial this summer by ken mac leod
The Women’s Oklahoma Golf Association will celebrate its 100th anniversary this summer, capped by a huge celebration July 26 at Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club, site of the first WOGA State Amateur Championship in 1915 and the 2015 State Amateur as well. WOGA president Sheila Dills has been working hard researching events and personalities stretching back to the beginnings of WOGA’s formation in 1914. Women played golf in long flowing dresses with puffy sleeves and hurried through tournament rounds in order to get to the fair on time. The gala celebration begins at 5:30 p.m. and is open to anyone who loves golf. Tickets are $75 and can be purchased at www. woga.us. A party bus will bring northeast Oklahoma celebrants from Southern Hills Country Club, returning that evening. Details are on the website. WOGA was formed, Dills said, by a socially elite group at Oklahoma City Golf Patti Blanton & Country Club in 1915. The first state amateur championship was won by A.W. Wills of the home course. The medalist score in the nine-hole qualifier was 52. The women’s state amateur quickly became a hugely popular social as well as athletic event. Many would enter just for the parties that would take place at the host club on championship week. Entries swelled up to as high as 234, many of them strictly social. On the course, talented golfers began to emerge. The 1920s were dominated by Patty Blanton, Estellen Drennan,
Pat Grant
Betsy Cullen
Mabel Hotz
LeeAnn Fairlie
today. Gibson is Lucy Wallace and Hulbert Clark, who the director of the combined for 12 State Amateur chamFirst Tee of Tulsa, pionships while also winning titles in Coatney is a manthe Trans-Mississippi Championship, ager at Stillwater Women’s Southern Amateur, the BroadCountry Club, moor, the Mexican Amateur and the Luellen is the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship. coach at Arizona Pat Grant of Cushing, a captain in the State and Dills is U.S. Army, became the only person to the president of win five consecutive amateur champiWOGA. onships when she did so from 1939-42 Although the while a student at Oklahoma Baptist, highest level of then again in 1946 when she returned Patty Coatney the women’s state from serving in World War II. There amateur today is dominated by high were no tournaments from 1943-45. In the early 1950s, Mabel Hotz started school and collegians – then 13-yearold Yujeong Son became the youngest a junior girls program at Tulsa Country winner ever in 2014 – the women have Club that became hugely popular across done well retaining the social aspect the state and the talent that eventually and providing a setting for competition rose up from those ranks was stunning. for all. The Championship Flight of the Susie Maxwell Berning, Betsy Cullen, Women’s State Amateur is limited to 16 Beth Stone and Dale McNamara were players after qualifying, but there are four Oklahoma Golf Hall of Fame memsix other flights for the higher handicap bers who came out of that program. golfers. Another wave of talent came through Dills, who won the WOGA Junior the WOGA ranks after Title IX was in 1984 and the state amateur in 1989, implanted in 1972 expanded the oppor1994, 1995 and 1996, tunities for collehelped save the junior giate golfers. Patty event when the orgaMcGraw Coatney nization was ready to (OSU), Janice Burba give up on it in 1985 Gibson (OSU), Melisdue to low participasa McNamara Luellen tion. At 18, she became (TU), Adele Lukken the tournament direcPeterson (TU), Teresa tor and helped the Streck Delazalere event change from (TU), LeeAnn Hammatch play requiring mack Fairlie (OU) a week to 36 holes of and Sheila Luginbuel stroke play over two Dills (OSU) herself days. Participation were some of the has slowly built back standout Oklahoma up and a full field is juniors who went on expected this summer to solid collegiate when the event is held careers and many July 14-15 at Southern are still influential Hills. in Oklahoma golf Yujeong Son www.golfoklahoma.org •••••• 15