Rawls, Betsy (1928—)

American golfer. Born Elizabeth Earle Rawls in Spartanburg, South Carolina, on May 4, 1928; graduated from the University of Texas.

Won the Vare trophy; was the first woman to serve on the Rules Committee for the U.S. Men's Open; won four U.S. Open titles (1951, 1953, 1957, 1960); won her namesake tournament Betsy Rawls Open (1956); won ten tournaments, including Mount Prospect Women's Open, (1959); all told, won 55 LPGA tournaments.

In the golfing world, Betsy Rawls was known as the "circuit judge" because of her comprehensive knowledge of the rules of golf. She was born in Spartanburg, South Carolina, in 1928, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Texas with a degree in math and physics. Rawls did not begin playing golf until she was 17, which is considered rather late. In 1949 and 1950, she won the Texas Amateur championship. In 1951, 1953, 1957 and 1960, she won the U.S. Women's Open championship, and was the LPGA champion in 1959 and 1969. Only Kathy Whitworth and Mickey Wright won more tournaments than Rawls, who had 55 tournament titles.

But 1959 was the year of Rawls. The soft-spoken golfer won ten titles, nearly 40% of the LPGA's 26-event schedule, setting new standards in women's golf in victories, money winnings, and scoring. She also won the coveted Vare Trophy, awarded to the woman with the lowest cumulative score for the season, with a record-scoring average of 74.03, and became the second player to win the Patty Berg Award. Rawls was elected to the LPGA Hall of Fame in 1960 and won her last victory at Tucson in 1972. Twice president of the LPGA, she was the first woman to serve on the Rules Committee of the U.S. Men's Open. When she retired in 1975, Rawls was named LPGA first tournament director. In 1981, she began a long reign as executive director of McDonald's championship. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1987.

Karin Loewen Haag , Athens, Georgia