15 top female golfers: An ode to the veterans and rising stars of the green

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Golf has agelong been a male-dominated sport, but pistillate golfers person made an undeniable impact, shaping the athletics with their accomplishment and resilience. Legends similar Annika Sörenstam acceptable the standard, portion stars similar Nelly Korda and Rose Zhang proceed to propulsion the athletics forward. From seasoned veterans to rising stars, these top pistillate golfers are making past connected the green.

Karrie Webb (L), Nelly Korda (C) and Annika Sörenstam (R).

Key takeaways

The blend of veterans and rising stars keeps women's play breathtaking and highly competitive.
Veterans similar Annika Sörenstam and Kathy Whitworth acceptable records that stay unmatched today.
Rising stars similar Rose Zhang and Atthaya Thitikul are shaping the aboriginal of women's golf.

Top pistillate golfers

When compiling this database of apical pistillate golfers, we considered the player's statistical show specified arsenic large wins, LPGA victories, World No. 1 rankings arsenic cardinal criteria. We besides considered longevity successful the sport.

Golfer	Year turned pro	Professional wins	LPGA Tour wins
Kathy Whitworth	1958	98	88
Mickey Wright	1954	90	82
Annika Sörenstam	1992	94	72
Patty Berg	1940	63	60
Karrie Webb	1994	57	41
Babe Didrikson Zaharias	1947	48	41
Nancy Lopez	1977	48	48
Lorena Ochoa	2002	30	27
Inbee Park	2007	33	21
Betsy King	1977	34	34
Lydia Ko	2013	26	20
Nelly Korda	2016	12	9
Ayaka Furue	2019	9	2
Atthaya Thitikul	2020	5	2
Rose Zhang	2023	2	1

Veterans pistillate golfers

These legendary golfers person built singular careers, winning aggregate tournaments and inspiring aboriginal generations with their talent, dedication, and perseverance.

1. Kathy Whitworth

Kathy Whitworth successful Orlando, Florida, United States.

Full name: Kathrynne Ann Whitworth
Date of birth: 27 September 1939
Date of death: 24 December 2022
Age astatine the clip of death: 83
Place of birth: Monahans, Texas, United States

Kathy Whitworth was 1 of the top pistillate golfers of each time. She won 88 LPGA Tour tournaments, much than anyone other connected the LPGA oregon PGA Tours. She was named LPGA Player of the Year 7 times.

Whitworth was besides a runner-up 93 times, giving her 181 top-two finishes. In 1981, she became the archetypal pistillate to scope vocation net of $1 cardinal on the LPGA Tour. Kathy is simply a subordinate of the World Golf Hall of Fame.

2. Mickey Wright

Full name: Mary Kathryn "Mickey" Wright
Date of birth: 14 February 1935
Date of death: 17 February 2020
Age astatine the clip of death: 85
Place of birth: San Diego, California, United States

Mickey Wright played play connected the LPGA Tour. She became a subordinate of the circuit successful 1955 and won 82 LPGA Tour vocation events including 13 large championships. Mickey was known for having 1 of the champion swings successful golf.

Wright dominated the athletics successful the 1950s and 1960s, spending years arsenic the world’s apical player. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame and is remembered arsenic a existent fable of women's golf.

3. Annika Sörenstam

Annika Sörenstam successful Orlando, Florida.

Full name: Annika Charlotta Sörenstam
Date of birth: 9 October 1970
Age: 54 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Bro, Stockholm County, Sweden

Annika Sörenstam is regarded arsenic 1 of the champion pistillate Golfers successful history. Throughout her career, she has won 94 planetary nonrecreational tournaments, making her the pistillate golfer with the astir wins. She has besides won 72 authoritative LPGA tournaments, including 10 majors and 24 different planetary tournaments.

Annika won 8 Player of the Year awards and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame successful 2003. In 2003, she besides made past arsenic the archetypal pistillate successful 58 years to vie successful a PGA Tour event. Annika retired successful 2008 and has since been 1 of the most influential people successful the athletics done coaching, people design, and advocacy for women's golf.

4. Patty Berg

Full name: Patricia Jane Berg
Date of birth: 13 February 1918
Date of death: 10 September 2006
Age astatine the clip of death: 88
Place of birth: Fort Myers, Florida, United States

Patty Berg was an American nonrecreational golfer who won much than 80 tournaments, including a grounds 15 large women’s championships, the astir successful women's play history. She was the archetypal president of the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA).

Patty was the inaugural victor of the U.S. Women's Open successful 1946 and amassed 60 nonrecreational victories passim her career. She passed distant connected 10 September 2006 and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

5. Karrie Webb

Karrie Webb successful Singapore, Singapore.

Full name: Karrie Anne Webb
Date of birth: 21 December 1974
Age: 50 years aged (as of 2024)
Place of birth: Ayr, Australia

Karrie Webb is 1 of the astir accomplished pistillate golfers successful history, with 57 nonrecreational wins, including 41 LPGA Tour victories and 7 large championships. She began her nonrecreational golfing vocation successful 1994 playing connected the Ladies European Tour.

Currently, she plays chiefly connected the U.S.-based LPGA Tour and besides turns retired erstwhile oregon doubly a twelvemonth connected the ALPG Tour Tour successful Australia. Karrie was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame successful 2022 arsenic an Athlete Member for her publication to the athletics of golf.

6. Babe Didrikson Zaharias

Full name: Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias
Date of birth: 26 June 1911
Date of death: 27 September 1956
Age astatine the clip of death: 45
Place of birth: Port Arthur, Texas, United States

Babe Didrikson Zaharias was a fashionable athlete who excelled successful golf, basketball, baseball, and way and field. She turned nonrecreational successful 1947 and won 48 nonrecreational tournaments, including 41 LPGA Tour victories and 10 large championships.

Before her play career, she was an Olympic way and tract star, winning 2 golden medals astatine the 1932 Olympics. As a co-founder of the LPGA successful 1950, she played a cardinal relation successful shaping women's golf.

7. Nancy Lopez

Nancy Lopez astatine a luncheon successful New York.

Full name: Nancy Marie Lopez
Date of birth: 6 January 1957
Age: 68 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Torrance, California, United States

Nancy Lopez is 1 of the astir fashionable and palmy play players. She became a subordinate of the LPGA Tour successful 1977 and won 48 LPGA Tour events, including 3 large championships.

Known for her lukewarm property and beardown competitory spirit, Lopez helped turn women's play and inspired galore young players. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame successful 1987.

8. Lorena Ochoa

Full name: Lorena Ochoa Reyes
Date of birth: 15 November 1981
Age: 43 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Guadalajara, Mexico

The nonrecreational Mexican erstwhile nonrecreational golfer played connected the U.S.-based LPGA Tour from 2003 to 2010. Considered the champion pistillate golfer of each time, she was ranked No. 1 successful the satellite for 158 weeks (from 2007 to 2010), a grounds astatine the time.

Lorena won 27 LPGA Tour titles, including 2 large championships. She besides won 4 LPGA Player of the Year awards and was known for her precision, consistency, and sportsmanship. Shockingly, she retired successful 2010 astatine conscionable 28 years old,

9. Inbee Park

Inbee Park astatine the Olympic Golf Course connected 20 August 2016 successful Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Full name: Inbee Park
Date of birth: 12 July 1988
Age: Seoul, South Korea
Place of birth: Seoul, South Korea

Inbee Park professionally began playing play successful 2007 and has since amassed 33 nonrecreational wins, including 21 LPGA Tour victories and 7 large championships. She has been the number-one subordinate successful the Women's World Golf Rankings for 4 abstracted runs.

Park became the youngest victor of the U.S. Women’s Open (2008) astatine conscionable 19 years old. She dominated the athletics successful 2013, winning 3 consecutive majors and securing the LPGA Player of the Year award. In 2016, she made past by winning Olympic golden successful Rio.

10. Betsy King

Betsy King astatine DuPont Country Club, Wilmington, Delaware.

Full name: Betsy King
Date of birth: 13 August 1955
Age: 69 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Reading, Pennsylvania, United States

Betsy King is simply a erstwhile satellite No. 1 golfer and 1 of the astir palmy players successful LPGA history. Throughout her career, she won 34 nonrecreational tournaments, including 34 LPGA Tour victories and 6 large championships.

King won LPGA Player of the Year 3 times (1984, 1989, 1993) and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame successful 1995.

Rising pistillate play stars

These young golfers are making a sanction for themselves with unthinkable talent, beardown performances, and large tourney wins. They correspond the aboriginal of women’s golf.

1. Lydia Ko

Lydia Ko astatine St Andrew's Old Course successful St Andrews, Scotland.

Full name: Dame Lydia Ko
Date of birth: 24 April 1997
Age: 27 years aged (as of 2024)
Place of birth: Seoul, South Korea

Lydia Ko is 1 of the astir talented and record-breaking golfers successful modern history. She commenced her nonrecreational vocation successful 2013 and has won 26 nonrecreational tournaments, including 20 LPGA Tour victories and 2 large championships.

Ko became the youngest subordinate ever to triumph an LPGA lawsuit astatine 15 years aged (2012) and aboriginal became the youngest satellite No. 1 astatine property 17 (2015). She won LPGA Player of the Year successful 2015 and 2022. Ko besides won an Olympic metallic medal successful 2016 and a bronze medal successful 2021.

2. Nelly Korda

Full name: Nelly Korda
Date of birth: 28 July 1998
Age: 26 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Bradenton, Florida, United States

Nelly Korda is 1 of the top-rising players successful women’s play today. She plays connected the LPGA Tour, wherever she has won the LPGA Tour 14 times and reached fig 1 successful the Women's World Golf Rankings.

Korda won the golden medal astatine the 2020 Summer Olympics successful Tokyo, Japan, making past for Team USA. Her older sister, Jessica Korda, is besides a nonrecreational golfer and influencer.

3. Ayaka Furue

Ayaka Furue astatine Evian Resort Golf Club successful Evian-les-Bains, France.

Full name: Ayaka Furue
Date of birth: 27 May 2000
Age: 24 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Kobe, Kansai, Japan

Ayaka Furue is besides different rising pistillate golfer known for her clip connected the LPGA. She started playing play astatine the property of 3 and turned nonrecreational successful 2019. She played connected the LPGA of Japan Tour wherever she has 8 wins and presently plays connected the LPGA Tour.

Ayaka won her first LPGA Tour title connected 31 July 2022, astatine the Trust Golf Women's Scottish Open. She won her archetypal large astatine the 2024 Evian Championship.

4. Atthaya Thitikul

Jeeno Thitikul astatine Sentosa Golf Club successful Singapore.

Full name: Atthaya Thitikul
Date of birth: 20 February 2003
Age: 22 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Ban Pong district, Ratchaburi, Thailand

Atthaya Thitikul turned nonrecreational successful 2020 and has already won 5 nonrecreational tournaments, including 2 LPGA Tour victories. She made past successful 2017 by becoming the youngest-ever victor of a nonrecreational tourney astatine conscionable 14 years aged connected the Ladies European Tour. In 2022, she reached satellite No. 1 astatine conscionable 19 years old.

In 2022, Atthaya reached satellite No. 1 successful the women’s play rankings astatine lone 19 years old. She presently plays connected the U.S.-based LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour.

5. Rose Zhang

Rose Zhang astatine Upper Montclair Country Club successful Clifton, New Jersey.

Full name: Rose Zhang
Date of birth: 24 May 2003
Age: 21 years aged (as of 2025)
Place of birth: Arcadia, California, United States

Rose Zhang began her nonrecreational play vocation successful May 2023 and won her LPGA Tour debut astatine the Mizuho Americas Open. Before that, she won the 2020 U.S. Women's Amateur and became the first woman to triumph the NCAA Division I Championship twice, successful 2022 and 2023.

Rose participated successful the 2019 U.S. Women's Open and was connected the golden medal squad astatine the 2019 Pan American Games.

Who is considered the top pistillate golfer of each time?

Many radical accidental Annika Sörenstam is the top pistillate golfer ever due to the fact that she won 72 LPGA tournaments and 10 large championships.

Who is the richest pistillate golfer?

Annika Sörenstam holds the grounds for the highest vocation earnings successful women's golf, with $22,583,693 from 1994 to 2023.

Which pistillate golfer has won the astir tournaments?

Kathy Whitworth holds the grounds for the astir tourney wins successful women's golf. She won 88 LPGA Tour titles, the astir by immoderate golfer—male oregon female—in history.

Who are the apical 10 pistillate golfers of each time?

Below are the apical 10 pistillate golfers of each clip are ranked based connected their achievements, large wins, and interaction connected the sport.

Annika Sörenstam
Mickey Wright
Kathy Whitworth
Patty Berg
Babe Didrikson Zaharias
Louise Suggs
Nancy Lopez
Karrie Webb
Lorena Ochoa
Se Ri Pak

The satellite of play is filled with apical pistillate golfers, some veterans and rising stars. Legends similar Annika Sörenstam, Karrie Webb, and Nancy Lopez person made past with their accomplishment and dedication, inspiring caller generations. At the aforesaid time, rising stars similar Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko, and Atthaya Thitikul are shaping the aboriginal of the athletics with their endowment and determination.

Legit.ng precocious shared an insightful station highlighting the best NBA players ever. Teams continuously root caller endowment done the NBA Draft, developmental leagues, and planetary scouting, portion players gully inspiration from legendary champions.

Exceptional sportsmanship, elite performance, and dedication to assemblage interaction are indispensable for earning specified recognition. Read connected to uncover the athletes who person shattered benchmarks of excellence successful basketball.

Source: Legit.ng

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