Inductees

In August 1961, subscribers of Sports Illustrated picked up the latest issue and probably couldn’t believe their eyes. On the cover was a photo of a smiling teenage girl, the shaft of a putter in hand, with “The Best Girl Golfer” as a subtle nearby headline.

Judy Rankin was all of 16 years old and a student at Eureka High School near St. Louis when the issues hit newsstands and mailboxes. Naturally, many probably assumed that Rankin had her sights set on becoming a household name. Not the case, actually.

“I was kind of struggling with whether I wanted to play golf or not,” Rankin said.

The SI cover, however, sparked a change of heart, and the game was all the better for it. Rankin spent 61 years in professional golf – 22 on the LPGA Tour, 39 as a TV analyst – and that’s why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted Rankin with the Class of 2022.

The Show-Me State saw her first, as Rankin won the Missouri Amateur at age 14. She then finished the next year’s U.S. Women’s Open with the low amateur score and turned pro at age 17.

Eventually, her career led to membership in the World Golf Hall of Fame, as Rankin won 26 LPGA Tour events. She finished in the top 10 on the money list 11 times between 1965 and 1979, and was the first to win more than $100,000 in a season on the LPGA Tour, accomplishing that feat in 1976 ($150,734).

Among her notable finishes were the 1972 U.S. Women’s Open (tied for second) and the 1976 and 1977 Women’s PGA Championship (tied for second, solo second).

Rankin then worked as an analyst on the PGA TOUR for ESPN/ABC from 1984 to 2018, and was the lead analyst on LPGA telecasts on the Golf Channel beginning in 2010.

What a journey it was. Then again, had Rankin walked away from the game in her teens, many would have understood. You see, five years before the Sports Illustrated cover, her mom had passed away after battling cancer. She was diagnosed when Rankin was 6 years old and ultimately was paralyzed in her final years.

To help ease his daughter’s worry, Rankin’s dad, Paul, took her golfing.

“He played public courses but wasn’t good,” Rankin said. “But he was a Ben Hogan fan. When he saw I could hit, he committed to turning me into a golfer.”

Rankin eventually found Triple A, a golf club whose members allowed her access on the nine-course layout.

During her final two years at Eureka High School, Rankin thought of the next step, with college golf in mind. However, sensing an opportunity to compete at a great level, she turned pro.

“My dad and Bob Greene were building a pretty decent golf swing. It was fundamental,” Rankin said. “When I went to Bob Toski (a PGA Hall of Fame coach), there was some refinement on my game. I learned to hit shots I  had never hit before. I became a complete player because of Bob Toski.”

Her first pro victory came in 1968 at the Corpus Christi Open.

Rankin’s 1972 runner-up finish in the U.S. Women’s Open was remarkable, considering she fought through a stubborn putting game that weekend at Winged Foot Golf Club in New York. She finished one stroke back of winner Susie Berning.

“I played the best golf I ever played from tee to green,” Rankin said.

Unfortunately, chronic back issues led to her to end her playing career in 1983. However, she wasn’t out of the game for long. ABC Sports golf analyst Bob Rosburg asked her to work inside the ropes.

“I understood the game well, and I was told by ABC that they didn’t want my expertise as a woman but they wanted my expertise as a golfer,” Rankin said.

Rankin helped grow the game in other ways.

In 1972, she was the Vice President of the LPGA Tour when it announced the Dinah Shore, which became a major in 1983. In April 2022, the tournament marked Rankin’s final full-time assignment inside the ropes.

Overall, the game of golf was her life, as her family was there along for the ride. Her husband, Yippy, passed away in 2012. Her son, Tuey, tagged along for years, and Rankin is now a mother-in-law to Jennifer and grandma to three.

“I was so very lucky,” Rankin said of her career. “I am so appreciative of everything I was able to do in the game.”