The Queens of Virginia Golf by Kevin Casey
The century-long history of women ’ s golf in Virginia is rich and varied , with characters and story lines evolving from the earliest days of golf in the Commonwealth . An impressive array of champions and leaders have emerged ; taken together , they are the Queens of Virginia Golf .
THE EARLY YEARS The best measure of Virginia ’ s women golfers for much of the 20th century was the Virginia Women ’ s Amateur Championship , first held in 1922 at the Homestead Resort . Won by Mrs . J . W . Zimmerman , it was no doubt an intimate affair , bringing together the new sport ’ s relatively few good women golfers in Virginia .
As the game grew in popularity through the 1920s , several good players proved capable of taking home the state title . However , it was not until 1934 that Virginia ’ s first truly dominant woman golfer emerged — Lily Harper ( later Lily Harper Martin ).
In 1934 , Martin ran off a string of four consecutive victories in the VSGA Women ’ s Amateur . She took a break in 1938 but began another streak , from 1939 – 1941 . Her total of seven Women ’ s Amateur championships tops the list of winners , providing a glimpse into what Martin could have achieved with more tournament opportunities .
Martin was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame , joining her brother , professional golfer Chandler Harper , in 1995 . In 2022 , she joined Chandler in the Virginia Golf Hall of Fame as well .
PASSING THE TORCH In 1950 , a relatively new player introduced herself to the field in the Women ’ s Amateur . Mary Patton Janssen finished as the runner-up in her first appearance in the finals , losing a convincing 8 and 7 . She reprised her runner-up role the following year , losing this time 10 and 8 on her home course , Charlottesville ’ s Farmington Country Club .
That same player won six consecutive VSGA Women ’ s Amateurs from 1957 to
1962 . Three of Janssen ’ s victories ( 1958 – 1960 ) may be considered a measure of revenge over those two earlier losses . Janssen won by the top three widest margins in tournament history : 12 and 11 , 13 and 11 and 15 and 13 , followed by a less ferocious 8 and 6 victory at her home course , Farmington , in 1961 .
In one year , 1956 , she competed as a finalist in the national amateur championships of four nations : Great Britain , Canada , France and Cuba . In her 12-year career , Janssen won 21 championships , including the 1953 Mid-Atlantic Amateur and the 1958 Eastern Amateur .
At the end of 1962 , at age 37 , Janssen retired from competitive golf . But her influence didn ’ t end there . As reported at the time by the VSGA , Janssen ’ s sixth Women ’ s Amateur title in 1962 was earned over college student Robbye King ( later Robbye King Youel ).
Like her mentor , Janssen , Youel competed outside Virginia , with wins in the Virginia , District of Columbia , Maryland and Middle Atlantic women ’ s amateur championships . In contrast to Janssen , she had a lengthy career , winning her first VSGA title in 1963 and her last — the VSGA Senior Women ’ s Stroke Play championship — in 2003 .
Now known as Robbye Unger , she was a leader in the VSGA Women ' s Division , which integrated fully with the VSGA in 2015 . In 1997 , she was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame . In 2018 , she was inducted into the Virginia Golf Hall of Fame .
LEFT : Mary Patton Janssen RIGHT : Lily Harper Martin
VSGA ARCHIVES
12 V IRGINIA G OLFER | M ARCH / A PRIL 2023
THE PROFESSIONAL ERA Two of the young golfers encouraged by the VSGA Women ’ s Division and Youel were Donna Andrews and Kandi Kessler Comer , who went on to excellent professional careers .
Andrews won her first VSGA Junior Girls ’ Championship in 1983 , starting a seven-year run of excellence in Virginia events . By the time she turned
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