Fay Crocker

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Fay Crocker
— Golfer —
Personal information
Full name	Fay Crocker
Born	(1914-08-02)2 August 1914 Montevideo, Uruguay
Died	16 September 1983(1983-09-16) (aged 69)
Nationality	Uruguay
Career
Turned professional	1954
Former tour(s)	LPGA Tour
Professional wins	12
Number of wins by tour
LPGA Tour	11^[1]
Other	1
Best results in LPGA Major Championships (Wins: 2)
Western Open	T2: 1955
Titleholders C'ship	Won: 1960
LPGA Championship	2nd: 1958
U.S. Women's Open	Won: 1955

Fay Crocker (2 August 1914 – 16 September 1983) was a Uruguayan professional golfer. She was the first non-American to win one of the LPGA major golf championships. Her first major was the 1955 U.S. Women's Open and her second was the 1960 Titleholders Championship, where she set a record for the oldest LPGA major champion of 45 years, 7 months and 1 day.

Crocker was born in Montevideo, Uruguay. She began golfing at age six in her native Uruguay, where her American expatriate father ran an import business. Her father won the Uruguayan men's golf championship 27 times, and her mother won both the Uruguayan women's golf and tennis championships. She was the great-granddaughter of Lt. Commander Frederick Crocker, a distinguished naval officer who moved to Uruguay after the American Civil War.

Crocker followed in those footsteps, herself winning the women's national championship of Uruguay 20 times. She also won the Argentine national women's title 14 times.

Crocker first played the U.S. Women's Amateur in 1939, but never had much success in the tournament. She did, however, impress spectators with her length off the tee. A 1939 Time magazine article said of Crocker, "... (her) long drives fascinated the galleries, convinced them that she is the Sam Snead of women golfers."

Crocker worked for a while as a visa clerk in the American embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, but eventually decided to pursue a professional golf career full-time. From the time she turned pro in 1954 up through at least 1958 (and possibly through 1960), Crocker played in every single LPGA event held.

In her very first round as a pro, at a 1954 tournament in Sea Island, Georgia, Crocker set a course record.

Crocker was 39 years old at the time she turned pro, and when she won the 1955 Serbin Open, she set a record as the LPGA's oldest first-time winner. She was 40 years, 6 months, 18 days, and that record still stands.

Crocker won three times in 1955, including the U.S. Women's Open, where she outdueled Louise Suggs and Mary Lena Faulk down the stretch.

Crocker won twice each in 1956, 1957, and 1958. At the 1958 U.S. Women's Open, her second-round 68 made her the first golfer to break 70 in that event.

Crocker won twice more in 1960, including her second major at the Titleholders Championship. She was 45 years, 7 months and 11 days old at the time of that win, also a record that still stands as oldest winner of an LPGA major.

But her days of winning on the LPGA Tour were over. Crocker was third on the LPGA money list in 1955, fourth in 1956 and second in 1957.

Crocker died in 1983.^[2] She was buried in The British Cemetery.

The Fay Crocker Cup, a South American event pitting national teams of junior golfers, is played yearly in Argentina.

Professional wins (12)

LPGA Tour wins (11)

1955 (3) Serbin Open, Wolverine Open, U.S. Women's Open
1956 (2) Serbin Open, St. Louis Open
1957 (2) Serbin Open, Triangle Round Robin
1958 (2) Havana Biltmore Open, Waterloo Open
1960 (2) Lake Worth Open, Titleholders Championship

LPGA majors are shown in bold.

Other wins (1)

1957 Hot Springs 4-Ball (with Marilynn Smith)

Major championships

Wins (2)

Year	Championship	Winning score	Margin	Runner(s)-up
1955	U.S. Women's Open	+11 (74-72-79-74=299)	4 strokes	Mary Lena Faulk, Louise Suggs
1960	Titleholders Championship	+15 (75-75-77-76=303)	7 strokes	Kathy Cornelius

References

↑ LPGA All-Time Winners List
↑ Sirak, Ron (29 March 2010). "Fay Crocker: Uruguayan victory in '60 at 45 a major feat". Golf World 63 (30): 41.

v t e U.S. Women's Open champions

1946 Patty Berg∞ 1947 Betty Jameson 1948 Babe Zaharias 1949 Louise Suggs 1950 Babe Zaharias 1951 Betsy Rawls 1952 Louise Suggs 1953 Betsy Rawls† 1954‡ Babe Zaharias 1955‡ Fay Crocker 1956 Kathy Cornelius† 1957 Betsy Rawls 1958‡ Mickey Wright 1959 Mickey Wright 1960 Betsy Rawls 1961 Mickey Wright 1962 Murle Lindstrom 1963‡ Mary Mills 1964 Mickey Wright† 1965 Carol Mann 1966 Sandra Spuzich 1967‡ Catherine LaCoste# 1968‡ Susie Berning 1969 Donna Caponi 1970‡ Donna Caponi 1971‡ JoAnne Carner 1972 Susie Berning 1973 Susie Berning 1974 Sandra Haynie 1975 Sandra Palmer 1976 JoAnne Carner† 1977 Hollis Stacy 1978 Hollis Stacy 1979 Jerilyn Britz 1980 Amy Alcott 1981 Pat Bradley 1982 Janet Alex 1983 Jan Stephenson 1984 Hollis Stacy 1985 Kathy Baker 1986 Jane Geddes† 1987 Laura Davies† 1988 Liselotte Neumann 1989 Betsy King 1990 Betsy King 1991 Meg Mallon 1992 Patty Sheehan† 1993 Lauri Merten 1994 Patty Sheehan 1995 Annika Sörenstam 1996 Annika Sörenstam 1997 Alison Nicholas 1998 Se Ri Pak† 1999 Juli Inkster 2000 Karrie Webb 2001 Karrie Webb 2002 Juli Inkster 2003 Hilary Lunke† 2004 Meg Mallon 2005 Birdie Kim 2006 Annika Sörenstam† 2007 Cristie Kerr 2008 Inbee Park 2009 Eun-Hee Ji 2010 Paula Creamer 2011 So Yeon Ryu† 2012 Na Yeon Choi 2013 Inbee Park

† event won in a playoff; ‡ winner held lead wire-to-wire; # event won by an amateur; ∞ event won in match-play

v t e Titleholders Championship champions

1937 Patty Berg 1938 Patty Berg 1939 Patty Berg 1940 Helen Hicks 1941 Dorothy Kirby 1942 Dorothy Kirby 1943-45 No Tournament 1946 Louise Suggs 1947 Babe Zaharias 1948 Patty Berg 1949 Peggy Kirk# 1950 Babe Zaharias 1951 Pat O'Sullivan# 1952 Babe Zaharias 1953 Patty Berg 1954 Louise Suggs 1955 Patty Berg 1956 Louise Suggs 1957 Patty Berg 1958 Beverly Hanson 1959 Louise Suggs 1960 Fay Crocker 1961 Mickey Wright 1962 Mickey Wright† 1963 Marilynn Smith† 1964 Marilynn Smith 1965 Kathy Whitworth 1966 Kathy Whitworth 1967-71 No Tournament 1972 Sandra Palmer

† indicates the event was won in a playoff # indicates the event was won by an amateur

Persondata
Name	Crocker, Fay
Alternative names
Short description	Professional golfer
Date of birth	2 August 1914
Place of birth	Montevideo, Uruguay
Date of death	16 September 1983
Place of death

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