Barbara Gaile Romack (November 16, 1932 – October 15, 2016) was an American

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

. Romack was born in

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

.LPGA Tour profile
She won the

North and South Women's Amateur The North and South Women's Amateur Golf Championship is an annual golf tournament held since 1903 at the Pinehurst Resort in Pinehurst, North Carolina. An invitational tournament, participants are chosen based upon their performance in national a ...

at Pinehurst in 1952, the Canadian Women's Amateur in 1953, and then in 1954, she defeated Mickey Wright in the finals to win the

U.S. Women's Amateur The U.S. Women's Amateur is the leading golf tournament in the United States for female amateur golfers. It is played annually and is one of the 13 United States national golf championships organized by the United States Golf Association (USGA). F ...

. Her playing brought an invitation to the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington, D.C., NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. preside ...

and President Dwight Eisenhower became a great friend. In 1955, Romack finished second to

Jessie Valentine Jessie Valentine (née Anderson) (18 March 1915 – 6 April 2006) was a Scottish amateur golfer who won the British Ladies Amateur in 1937, 1955 and 1958. In 1937, after winning the British Ladies title at Turnberry she was the world number ...

in the British Ladies Amateur played at the Royal Portrush Golf Club in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. North ...

. Her golfing performances earned her the cover of ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twice ...

'' on April 16, 1956. In May 1957, she married Edward Wayne "Bud" Porter, an associate golf professional at course in her native Sacramento. Romack was the runner-up to

Anne Quast Anne Quast (born August 31, 1937) is an American amateur golfer. She won the U.S. Women's Amateur three times (1958, 1961, 1963) and was runner-up three times (1965, 1968, 1973). She was married several times and played as Anne Decker, Anne Wel ...

in the 1958 U.S. Women's Amateur. A member of the U.S. Curtis Cup team in 1954, 1956, and 1958, Romack joined the

LPGA Tour The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of wee ...

in 1958. Her only official tour win was the 1963

Rock City Ladies Open The Rock City Ladies Open was a golf tournament on the LPGA Tour, played only in 1963. It was played at the Valleybrook Golf & Country Club in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Barbara Romack won the event in a playoff over Shirley Englehorn Shirley Ruth ...

. She won on the senior tour and remained involved with the game of golf throughout her life. She worked for the USGA as a volunteer. At one time she served as vice-president of the LPGA. On February 21, 1968, Romack was on a

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along wi ...

flight when it was hijacked by Lawrence Rhodes. After three hours, Romack and the rest of the passengers were released. Romack died in October 2016, aged 83.

Amateur wins

*1952

, California State Women's Amateur *1953 Canadian Women's Amateur *1954

, California State Women's Amateur *1956 California State Women's Amateur *1958 California State Women's Amateur *South Atlantic Amateur (three times)

Professional wins

LPGA Tour wins (1)

LPGA Tour playoff record (1–0)

Other wins

*1960

Leesburg Pro-Am The Tippecanoe Open was a golf tournament on the LPGA Tour from 1959 to 1961. It was played at the Tippecanoe Lake Country Club in Leesburg, Indiana. It was an unofficial event in 1959 and 1960. Winners ;Tippecanoe Open *1961 Kathy Cornelius ;Lees ...

Team appearances

Amateur * Curtis Cup (representing the United States): 1954 (winners), 1956, 1958 (tie)

References

External links

*
Golfer has helped mold next generation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Romack, Barbara American female golfers LPGA Tour golfers Winners of ladies' major amateur golf championships Golfers from Sacramento, California People from The Villages, Florida Hijacking survivors 1932 births 2016 deaths 21st-century American women