The best golfer from every U.S. state

Montana: Alice Ritzman

Montana doesn’t have a great number of golfing greats to call their own, at least with deeply tied roots to the state. With that said, Alice Ritzman undoubtedly has Big Sky Country running in her blood as a native of Kalispell. She then went on to attend Eastern Montana College for that part of her golfing career, thus strengthening her ties to the Treasure State. With that said, she also made her mark on the golf course as well.

Early in her life, what she was able to accomplish as a junior golfer was nothing short of dominant. She was able to win the Montana Junior Championship on three separate occasions, setting her on the path to success early. Moreover, Ritzman was able to capture the Montana State Women’s Amateur Championship twice in her career, doing so in back-to-back years in 1972 and 1973 before turning pro after her collegiate play.

Ritzman was unfortunately never able to win on the LPGA Tour, where she played from 1978-98. However, that doesn’t mean that she never came close as she famously lost in a playoff on three separate occasions for the best finishes of her career, in which she played 401 LPGA events.

Even without the wins, Ritzman was still able to put her stamp on golfing history, specifically setting an LPGA record that still remains. In 1979, just after joining the tour, she caught fire at the 1979 Colgate European Open and set the record for most eagles in a single round by an LPGA player, putting double-circles on her card three times.