(upbeat music begins) ♪ ♪ ♪ Jim Welch> One of the most popular sports worldwide is golf.

The accessibility of beautiful courses everywhere make golf available to anyone interested in taking up the challenge.

It's as sociable a game as it is relaxing and sporty.

Even with the pressure of competition, a game of golf looks almost casual and leisurely.

♪ But when most golfers are just getting up and beginning their day, this golfer is already busy at work.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ (easy listening music begins) Born, Elizabeth Earle Rawls on May 4th, 1928 in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Betsy Rawls and her family moved to the small town of Burnet, Texas, when Betsy was a year old.

It was here that she spent her childhood.

Betsy was athletically inclined from an early age, excelling in football and baseball as a youngster.

Then tennis during her high school years.

It wasn't until 1945, her senior year in high school, that she played her first game of golf under her father's supervision.

17 year old Betsy decided she liked the game and began to develop a determination for perfection that came to exemplify her golf game and her life.

Betsy graduated as valedictorian of her high school class in Arlington, Texas.

Then, after a year at North Texas Junior College, she moved with her family to Austin, where she entered the University of Texas as a physics major.

It was during this time that she competed in and lost her first golf tournament.

Recently, we visited with Betsy Rawls at the Bent Tree Country Club in Sarasota, Florida to find out more about her career in golf and that first tournament loss.

It was a big disappointment, I'm sure, but what impact did it have?

Betsy> Well, it motivated me, I guess you would say.

I had never played competition.

I did not know anything about it.

All I had done, was to play a few rounds that, well, Arlington, the course there and practice a little bit.

And so I sort of got a taste of competition and got the thrill of it.

And like everyone else who plays golf competition, I got hooked on it.

And it really made me more determined to, to become proficient.

I didn't like getting beat.

It was...

I really had been pretty good at most things I had tried, and that was a new experience for me.

And so it, made me want to practice and, win matches and win tournaments.

So I went home and started working on golf.

Jim> Who helped?

Betsy> Well, I did it alone for a little while, and then I, decided it was, that I should take lessons.

So I looked up a pro in Austin, Harvey Penick who had a good reputation, great reputation, and still does.

He's one of the outstanding teachers in the country.

And, I called him up and went out for a lesson at the Austin Country Club, and... he gave me my first lesson and charged me 3 dollars for it.

And then I went, told me to come back next week and I went back and, I started to pay him, He said, "No, we're just reviewing what we went over last week."

And so he said, "Come back next week."

And we've been going on that 3 dollars for 30 years now.

(laughter) That's all he would ever take.

And he really helped me.

He started with just the basic fundamentals.

Like I think he, changed my grip first of all.

And I worked on the grip for a week and went back and he changed something else.

And he just slowly built my golf swing.

That's the way he teaches.

And, it took a long time, and I slowly progressed and then played tournaments during the summer, while I was in college.

Jim> Did you get discouraged?

Betsy> Golf is so exciting to work on that it's really hard to get discouraged.

It's fun to work on and I really enjoy it.

I would stay out on the practice tee all day long in Texas in the 100 degree weather, and just hit balls and hit balls and never get tired of it.

And it was, it was really fun.

Okay, Jim, you ready to go play?

Let's go to the first tee.

♪ Jim> During Betsy's three years at the University of Texas, she divided her time between golf and studies.

Her efforts in both areas netted outstanding results.

She won several tournaments prior to her graduation in January 1950.

A member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Immediately after her graduation, Betsy left to play her first full year on the women's circuit as an amateur.

She won several tournaments, quickly earning a reputation as a tough competitor and a scrambler.

In 1951, after only one year as an amateur, she turned professional and won the USGA Open.

Firmly establishing her ability to compete with the best.

♪ Announcer> The Women's Open.

That's Jackie Pung teeing off.

The gallery at Rochester, New York Country Club watches Betsy Rawls.

Miss Rawls shoots brilliant golf in the playoff round.

♪ Mrs. Pung bows to the pressure of the title bid.

On the final hole, golf fans following the U.S. Women's Open competition, thrilled to the decisive performance of 25 year old Betsy Rawls.

♪ Betsy holds out for the crown and Mrs. Pung, National Amateur Queen, felicitates the new Women's Open Champion.

Two of the nation's feminine fairway finest.

And right now, Betsy is the best.

♪ Jim> This was the first of four Open wins, record unequaled by any other woman golfer.

Even the great Babe Zaharias.

Betsy> Well, I knew Babe very well.

I played a lot with her, every week of the world probably for 5 years.

I first met her when I was an amateur about 1949, and... then, got to know her very well when we were both professionals.

She was, an amazing woman.

Could do anything well.

She played the harmonica.

She was, she sewed well.

She was a good cook.

And she really could not stand to do anything badly.

And then hated to lose.

She was a terrible loser.

But I guess she didn't have enough experience at that.

She was a wonderful golfer, very strong could hit the ball a long way and had a beautiful touch around the greens.

That was really her...

The strongest part of her game was her short game.

She, never fully developed her potential, I don't think, because she started golf very late.

She was 28 or 30 before she took it up.

And I think she, would have been unbeatable had she started at an early age.

But, you know, she had that amazing streak as an amateur when she won 17 tournaments in a row.

And I don't think anybody will ever touch that record.

And that was match play.

And I think she probably excelled in match play because she was such an awesome figure.

I think she totally intimidated the people that she played against.

So, and as a pro, she had a good record, but she was not really the best pro we've ever had.

Mickey Wright is probably the best player that ever played the game.

Mickey> It's a real pleasure for me to be able to say a few words about my very good friend, Betsy Rawls.

She probably had more influence on my golf game than anybody else in golf, man or woman.

She taught me the importance of taking responsibility for yourself on the golf course.

And some of the outstanding attributes that I always found in her were her ability to articulate her ideas to, to anybody.

The discipline that she conducts her life with, she's been able to make a marvelous move from a great golfer to heading up our organization, setting up the golf courses, helping the sponsors run the tournament.

And I just believe that there's not a thing Betsy Rawls can't do if she wanted to.

Jim> Carol Dawson and Katherine Peterson, I believe.

Betsy> Oh, okay.

Yeah, they're probably about, Oh, a whole hole... out of position Jim.

Okay, I'll keep...

I'll speak to them when they come up on the tee.

Jack> Betsy this is Jack at the scoreboard.

Carol Dawson's group just went through ten.

And I think it's Debbie... and Katherine Peterson is the ones halfway up nine.

Betsy> Right, Jack, I do see Carol.

Thank you.

Jim> Appreciate you taking time from the qualifying today to be with us.

Betsy> Well, it's my pleasure, Jim.

I... first time I've played in months and months.

It's kind of nice to be out swinging a golf club.

Jim> Betsy, what were the conditions like in the early 50s on the tournament circles?

Betsy> Boy, it was different, Jim.

There were about, 15 of us, I guess, that played regularly and played all the tournaments.

And we played, for much less money, and we played fewer tournaments.

Everything was done on a smaller scale.

Some of our tournaments was, as little as 3,500 dollars in total prize money.

Now we play, of course, 200,000 dollar tournaments.

It was, it was fun and the players were much closer to each other then.

Of course, we got to know each other better, being such a small group.

And we did all the jobs ourselves.

The things that we hire done now we did ourselves.

We made pairings.

We kept statistics, we, set up the golf courses ourselves and made rulings on each other, did all those things.

And of course, we don't do anything now but play golf.

Our players, don't.

Jim> What were the attitudes like and have they changed from the early 50s?

Betsy> Oh, yes.

Nobody... Or very few people came to watch women's golf then.

They, they did not know much about women's golf.

We drew very small galleries.

I don't think any tournament really made money back then.

And now we have just huge galleries, as many as 20,000 in one day.

There's been a big change in that area.

Travel was much more difficult then.

Everybody drove.

And we'd get in the car Monday morning, drive to the next place, play a couple practice rounds and play another tournament.

The motels were, were few and far between, and most, most of the time we had to stay in downtown hotels and that was, that was certainly more inconvenient.

So everything was harder.

But, it was still fun.

And the golfers that played were ardent golfers.

They were out there strictly to play golf.

And now we have all the, the side benefits and it's much more glamorous, now.

We have the, our players have commercials and they're on TV, and they have endorsements and they make a lot of money on the side.

Jim> I know it's been a long time, but let's try it.

Betsy> Okay.

♪ ♪ ♪ (golf club swooshing) Well it's better than I expected.

♪ Alright Jim, let me see your swing.

(laughter) ♪ ♪ Jim> And I haven't had a practice swing.

Betsy> Okay.

Oh, Jim, you're nervous.

(laughter) ♪ (golf club swooshing) Well, not too bad.

♪ Jim> From 1951 to 1975, Betsy Rawls played professionally, winning a total of 55 trophies, earning almost 300,000 dollars and ranking fifth overall in women's golf.

She was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1960, and was twice All-American for Troubled Shots.

Betsy served on the tournament committee of the Ladies Professional Golf Association since its formation in 1950.

Her thorough knowledge of the rules of the game earned her a reputation as the circuit judge.

This expertise, along with her devotion to the game, prompted the LPGA Executive Board to ask her to become a tournament director.

At first, Betsy was hesitant about leaving the excitement of competition behind, but she did consent, and in 1975, at the age of 47, she took on the demanding job of directing LPGA tournaments.

♪ Betsy Cullen> I was very fortunate in my first year to, get acquainted with Betsy Rawls, and I must say she's had a rather good influence on my life.

Probably in the area of, teaching me self-discipline.

The life out here on tour is rather an unstructured... life.

We've really, no one tells us when to get up or when to go to bed or, whether we have to be at work or not.

And, I think I learned from her, pretty much how to organize my life and to, pick worthwhile goals and... sort of the means of achieving those goals.

And, I feel very fortunate that I met her so early in my career.

As far as her, contributions to the game of golf, there are so many, you know, she's done so many clinics and exhibitions for her sporting goods company through the year.

I think they did a, some company did a survey and said she was one of the most well known women pros.

She, I think probably though her greatest contribution has been to the LPGA.

She's terribly committed to its success.

And she has, probably all along, been the stabilizing effect on the tour, I would say.

Judy> My first introduction to Betsy Rawls was in 1959, and I had the privilege of playing a golf exhibition with her.

Needless to say, I was very impressed with her as an individual and as her golf game.

She was such an influence on me, when I finished college, I considered a pro career.

And I was fortunate to become a member of the same sporting goods staff, Wilson Sporting Goods.

Later, I realized that I was even more fortunate when I had the privilege of working golf clinics and exhibitions with her.

They were the same type as I first played with her back in 1959.

There's a lot of things that you can learn from being with a golfer, and by knowing a person like Betsy, as a person.

I think she's probably had the greatest influence on my career, not only from a golf standpoint, but also as a standpoint of a person.

I've worked 17 years now with Betsy, and there isn't any place in the country where they don't know of her ability and know her as her personality.

I probably know her in many different ways than the people that have just played competitive golf with her.

She's not only a great speaker and a great personality, but a real student of the game.

And when she decides to do so, we'll probably be one of the best teachers that we've ever had in golf.

Just recently, she retired from the LPGA, which was a great loss to our tour.

But after 25 years of outstanding tournaments and making many friends for herself and for the LPGA, she decided to retire.

I felt very pleased that I was able to talk to her and get her to consider a job as the Executive Director and Tournament Coordinator for the LPGA.

There just wasn't a person that we could have that knew more about the tour that was as intelligent and, really had the feeling for women's golf as Betsy Rawls.

Jim> What made you decide to retire from active competition?

Betsy> There comes a time when you have to quit playing golf.

And... although I could have played maybe a few years more, I, had the opportunity to go with the LPGA.

And, so after a lot of thought and a lot of trauma, I decided to quit playing and become Tournament Director for the LPGA.

And I think the reason that they offered me the job was that I had always done this sort of thing, as a player.

It seems that I had always been on the Tournament Committee and had been in charge of supervising course set ups.

And I had sort of been the one that was the rules expert, it seemed sort of natural that I would go into this.

And...

I thought long and hard about quitting, competitive golf.

It was a tough decision for me.

I had played for about 25 years, and there's nothing like playing golf for a living.

I think nothing really compares to it as far as being enjoyable and being interesting and challenging.

But, you know, you have to be realistic.

You just cannot play competitive golf for much past 50 years old.

And I was pretty close, getting pretty close to 50.

Jim> Do you miss it, miss playing?

Betsy> Oh, a little bit, yes.

And I think if I had quit and gone someplace and taken a job, another kind of a job, I would really have missed it.

But I'm still with, with golf tournaments.

I still have the same lifestyle that is, I travel all the time.

Jim> How do the winnings compare?

Betsy> Well, the men play for a lot more in total prize money than our players do.

But there are more men competing for it.

Individually, we're closing the gap with the men.

Judy Rankin, our leading money winner this past year, 150,000 dollars.

And that's, that's a lot.

And, it hasn't been too long since the men, some men's leading money winner won, about 150,000.

They're probably about, oh, six or eight years ahead of us as far as prize money goes.

Jim> Men play better than women?

Betsy> No, they're just stronger than women, that's all.

(laughter) They're not better players.

They hit the ball so much farther, and that's a big advantage in golf.

They should be playing for more money.

It's, a little more spectacular show, I suppose.

And we don't compare ourselves to the men.

We see no reason why that we should play for the same amount of money, because actually, we play for an awful lot of it.

Yes.

Let me see you chip it up.

(golf club knocking ball) Jim> Could you help me?

(laughter) Betsy> Of course.

Come on Jim.

I'll take you to the practice tee after while.

There are a few little things that we probably can straighten out.

Okay?

(laughter) Ah hah!

(laughter) Let me get my putter.

We have a lot of commercial sponsors now.

All of a sudden, our players and our tour's become good advertising for them.

People like Colgate, Palmolive, Sears has sponsored tournaments.

Sealy, Sarah Coventry, we... cars and cigarettes.

We have a lot of commercial sponsors and a lot of civic sponsors.

Civic organizations like Jaycee organizations sponsor tournaments for us.

And there are a lot of organizations formed strictly for the purpose of sponsoring a tournament.

Jim> You represented Wilson for a while.

Different sporting good companies.

Betsy> Yes.

Right.

Jim> What's involved in that?

Betsy> Well, we, I always did a lot of exhibition work for Wilson.

I would go to country clubs, to golf courses and put on a clinic, a demonstration and play nine holes with the local people.

And, when I first turned pro, we did a lot of that because we didn't have a lot of golf tournaments to play in.

And that was really, one way to make money, which was needed because you could hardly make a living from the prize money.

There just was not enough of it.

So, a lot of players did that back in the early, early days.

There's not a lot of that done now, but almost every player is is affiliated with a sporting goods company.

And they get the golf balls and clubs and gloves and equipment from them.

You gonna give me that?

Or do I have to putt it?

(laughter) Jim> You've got that.

Betsy> Oh, I'll putt it just for practice.

Just to stay in practice.

(ball falling in cup) Okay.

I got my par.

(putter knocking ball) Oh, Jim.

(laughter) Jim> The chicken's way out.

Betsy> Listen.

Okay, well...

Knock that one in.

Oh, my.

Jim, I think maybe we better keep playing.

You need a little help.

Jim> Betsy, what are your activities involving Tournament Director, LPGA?

Betsy> Oh, geez.

There are a lot of activities.

I'm involved with helping sponsors set up the tournament.

That is, place leaderboards and concession stands and bleachers and see that the course is roped properly and that the marshals are organized and scorecards are ready, things like that.

And then when the tournament starts, I actually run the competition.

I see that the, players are paired.

That they tee off on time.

I set up the courses for play place pins and tees and, then I patrol play to see that they play fast enough and make rulings and things like that.

It's, it's a full day, believe me, during a tournament.

I get to the course usually about 7:00, and leave about 6:00 at night.

Jim> How many a year and where are they?

Betsy> We have about 35 tournaments a year, and they're all over the country.

And all over the world now.

It's really an international thing.

We play in England, Japan, Hong Kong, Australia, Philippines, all over.

It's really fun.

Jim> Today at Bent Tree, it's not a tournament, it's qualifying.

Would you define that?

Betsy> That's right.

We have two qualifying schools a year, in order to select players to come on tour.

Just anybody cannot come and play in an LPGA tournament.

They have to become a member.

And to become a member, they have to go through a qualifying school.

There are 48 players here and what we'll do is, we'll take the low 12 and ties in this tournament and, allow them to become members and allow them to play with us.

It's a difficult situation for these players because their whole future depends upon it.

It's probably the worst, the most pressure packed situation they'll see in golf.

And they're very nervous.

But we have some very good players here.

Jim> What types of rulings would you have to make?

You're on call.

Betsy> Well, if any time anyone is in doubt as to her rights or as to a rule that applies, she'll call for a ruling and I'll get my cart and go go make the ruling.

Had one minute ago, a ball was up in a palm tree stayed up there, and she wanted to know what to do with it.

So I had to go and check it out and tell her what to do.

Jim> Betsy, with all this activity, it doesn't leave much time for free time.

But what do you do when you get a chance to do it?

Betsy> No, I don't have much free time, but, I don't play golf much anymore.

So, I read a lot.

I, I like opera, and I do get a chance to go to an opera once in a while.

And I love to go to art galleries.

I spend most of my spare time, I would say, looking at art.

Jim> Let's walk back.

Betsy> Okay.

I'm ready.

Jim> Need a lot of lessons, that's for sure.

(laughter) Betsy> Oh Jim, you have you possibilities.

Golf's a tough game.

It takes a lot of time.

It's the hardest game in the whole world, I guess.

So, nobody ever conquers it.

Jim> Have you ever- Have you ever regretted choosing golf as a career?

Betsy> No, no I never have.

I have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.

You know, if I had it to do again, I choose golf again.

I've never gotten tired of playing golf.

I think I could have done it every day for 25 years.

I've never gotten bored with it.

Jim> What do you feel is your greatest accomplishment, Betsy, there's many but?

Betsy> Well, I've won, I think, 53 tournaments as a pro and, the ones that seem the most important are the four U.S.

Opens that I won, and two LPGA Championships.

But winning any tournament really is exciting.

And I had a, quite a bit of success, which is, I think makes it all worthwhile.

But as far as accomplishment, I don't know, it's, I think I've contributed something to golf and, and the fact that I have prepared myself for this kind of a job makes me feel very proud too.

Patty> When you think of Betsy Rawls, you think of four National Open Championships.

You think of two LPGA Championships.

You think of a lady that broke the record.

She won ten tournaments in 1959.

She's just been tremendous, a tremendous player and a tremendous person.

And, you know, there in South Carolina, the course that she, plays at, right on the first tee, they have something that's very important it says "To Betsy Rawls."

It's a weather, a weather, standard there.

And it has on it, it has "Betsy Rawls, a lady, an athlete, a golfer and a girl with a very brilliant mind."

And so Betsy Rawls has done a tremendous amount for golf.

She's done a tremendous amount for South Carolina, And she did a tremendous amount when she lived in the state of Texas.

But now in her new job as Tournament Director of the Ladies Professional Golf Association, she's been absolutely marvelous, wonderful.

We're very lucky to have her, and we're very happy to have her because she's not only a super person, but she is a super lady, super friend and a super player.