Sports Then and Now

Cheyenne Woods is part of the next generation of LPGA stars.

While the world watched a varied mix of male and female athletes from countries across the world competing for the ultimate glory at last year’s Olympic Games in London, it’s hard to think of a professional sport that’s not dominated by men. Though increasing numbers of women enjoy such traditionally male-centric sports as football, motor racing, ice hockey and basketball and compete more than competently at a professional level, the focus of the world’s sports enthusiasts remains solely centred on men.

For a long time, it’s been the same for one of the most traditionally-minded sports around – golf. Indeed, on the more conservative edges of the sport, you still might find men-only clubs – albeit a tiny number around 1%. Yet things are shaking up for women who play the game in a big way.

Take, for example, one famous name – Cheyenne Woods, niece of none other than the legendary Tiger. She’s 24 years old – the same age her famous uncle was when he finished the season with eight wins – and the daughter of Tiger Woods’ half-brother, Earl Dennison Woods Jr. Like many a famous relative, she’s eager to step out of the shadow of the family name and make her own name for herself in women’s professional golf. Having grown up surrounded by golf, and coached in the sport by Tiger’s father Earl, she already has more than 30 amateur titles to her name. Now she faces her first full pro season, having entered the prestigious Ladies European Tour.

Read the rest of this entry →

Babe Didrikson Zaharias was the most successful female athlete of her generation.

The LPGA will crown its 2011 champion later today, but it was on this date 100 years ago that one of the catalysts for the LPGA and the greatest female athlete of all-time was born.

Though there have been many great female athletes, none has ever been able to duplicate the athletic prowess or cross into the world of men’s sports with quite as much success as Babe Didrikson Zaharias.

Whether competing in basketball, baseball track and field or golf, Zaharias wasn’t just considered to be “pretty good for a girl”, she was generally recognized as being a special athlete.

While Zaharias first enjoyed success in basketball, leading her team to a 1931 AAU Championship, it was track and field where she initially gained a larger following.

In the Spring of 1932 she entered the Amateur Track and Field Championships in Evanston, Illinois as the lone team member for the Employers Casualty Insurance Company of Dallas, Texas. Competing against teams that included as many as 22 women, the “one-woman track team” dominated the competition.

Zaharias won five events (broad jump, shot-put, javelin, 80-meter hurdles and the baseball throw) and tied for first in the high jump. She earned 30 total points in the team competition to finish well in front of the second place Illinois Women’s Athletic Club, which had 22 athletes and scored 22 points.

As a result of her amazing one-woman performance, Zaharias qualified for three events at the 1932 Summer Olympics, which were held in Los Angeles. She won the Olympic Gold Medal in the 80-meter hurdles and javelin and finished second in the high jump. Read the rest of this entry →