Ann Gregory

Ann Gregory (1912-1990) was an African-American amateur golfer.[1] Black newspapers had called her "The Queen of Negro Women's Golf."[2] As stated in Arthur Ashe's book, Hard Road to Glory, many observers called Ann the best African-American female golfer of the 20th century.[3]

Ann learned to play golf while her husband was away serving in the Navy during World War II.[4] In 1948 Ann won a tournament in Kankakee, Illinois, during which she defeated former United Golf Association champions Lucy Mitchell, Cleo Ball, and Geneva Wilson.[4] In 1950 she won the Sixth City Open in Cleveland, the Midwest Amateur, and the United Golf Association's national tournament, as well as tying the women's course record at a Flint, Michigan tournament.[4] On September 17, 1956, she began competing in the U.S. Women's Amateur Championship, thus becoming the first African-American woman to play in a national championship conducted by the United States Golf Association.[5]

Because she was African-American, Ann was denied entry into the player's banquet at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda at the conclusion of the U.S. Women's Amateur in 1959.[4][5] Also, in Gary, Indiana, African-Americans were banned from playing the South Gleason Park Golf Course.[3][5] However, in the early 1960s, Ann played that course, stating, "My tax dollars are taking care of the big course and there's no way you can bar me from it."[5] She was followed by other African-Americans who played the course soon after her, and the ban was ended.[5] In 1963, Ann was mistaken as a maid by Polly Riley, another contestant at the Women's Amateur in Williamstown, Massachusetts.[4][5]

In 1971, Ann was runner-up at the USGA Senior Women's Amateur, making her the first African-American to finish as runner-up in a USGA women's competition.[5]

In 1989, at age 76 and competing against a field of 50 women, she won the gold medal in the U.S. National Senior Olympics, beating her competitors by 44 strokes.[3]

In all, during her career, Ann won nearly 300 tournaments.[6]

Ann was also the first African-American appointed to the Gary [Indiana] Public Library Board, which occurred in 1954.[5]

A granite marker in Ann's memory stands at the sixth hole of the South Gleason Park Golf Course in Gary, Indiana.[4] She was inducted into the United Golf Association Hall of Fame in 1966, the African American Golfers Hall of Fame in 2006, the National African American Golfers Hall of Fame in 2011, and the National Black Golf Hall of Fame in 2012.[3]

In 2000, the Urban Chamber of Commerce of Las Vegas began the Ann Gregory Memorial Scholarship Golf Tournament, which lasted seven years.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "Gregory, Ann." Contemporary Black Biography. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 14 Feb. 2015 http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3057100033.html
  2. ↑ Originally Posted: May 20, 1991 (1991-05-20). "Playing Through Racial Barriers Ann Gregory made her mark in amateur golf as the first black woman to play on the national level". SI.com. Retrieved 2015-02-15.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Welcome Class of 2012". National Black Golf Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2015-02-14.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Calvin H. Sinnette (1999-02-07). "Merion Golf Club Black Members | Golf's ugly legacy - Page 4 - Baltimore Sun". Articles.baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2015-02-14.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 "2005 News Archive". USGA. Retrieved 2015-02-14.
  6. ↑ "DR. MICHAEL COOPER – February 2012 | African American Golfer's Digest". Africanamericangolfersdigest.com. 2012-03-10. Retrieved 2015-02-15.
  7. ↑ Mike O (2013-02-07). "Author's research uncovers locals who made huge strides in history". Monroe County Journal. Retrieved 2015-02-14.