Inkster Looks to Add to Her Legacy at 6th U.S. Senior Women’s Open

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What a wonderful bookend a victory in the 6th U.S. Senior Women’s Open would provide to the remarkable USGA legacy of Juli Inkster. A title would stamp a bold exclamation point to a career kick-started with three consecutive U.S. Women’s Amateur championships (1980-82) and a Curtis Cup appearance for the United States in 1982 before turning pro. Quite simply, Inkster has authored five decades of brilliance.

And she has done it with a passion and competitive drive that has made her a fan favorite as well as a consistent winner at every level. Inkster’s seven LPGA Tour major championships, including a pair of U.S. Women’s Open titles in 1999 and 2002, the career grand slam and those three U.S. Women’s Amateur victories, earned her induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2000. In 2022, she received the Bob Jones Award, the highest honor bestowed by the USGA.

At 64, Inkster remains the same fiery competitor she was when she burst on the scene 44 years ago. Recently, she switched to a long putter in hopes of fixing the one part of her game not performing at the level she’d like. And she arrives at Fox Chapel Golf Club fully expecting to be in the mix come Sunday in yet another major championship.

“Yeah, threw it in about three, four months ago,” Inkster said Tuesday about the long putter. “Sometimes you just need to really switch it up, so I really – I've been putting bad for five years, so I feel a little more comfortable with it. It's going to be a good test for me, but if I putt decent I think I'll have a good week”

Inkster, a meticulous planner when it comes to analyzing a golf course, has done her homework on Fox Chapel and has an idea of what she’ll need to do.

“You have to drive the ball straight,” she said. “Can't play out of the rough. The bunkers are very penalizing. I think it tests all aspects of your game: driving, iron play and short game.”

But she sees the championship being decided on the greens.

“You could hit 18 greens out here and shoot 80,” Inkster said. “It's just really about getting it in the right spot and taking advantage when you have a chance and playing safe when you just need to two-putt. Yeah, it's going to be a good test. I didn't expect anything different.”

Of all the remarkable achievements by Inkster, the one of which she is most proud is that she won those three U.S. Women’s Amateurs and three of her LPGA Tour major championships before she gave birth to her daughters, Hayley in 1990 and Cori in 1994, and then won four more majors, including U.S. Women’s Opens in 1999 and 2002, after becoming a mom.

“I look back and probably my greatest feat is traveling with two kids on the road and playing well,” she said. “I had a great support system. I had a nanny that traveled with me for 13 years, so the kids really know if I wasn't there she was there or Brian [her husband since 1980] was there. I made it a pact never to be away from the kids more than ten days. It was a lot of work. I spent a lot of days just in my golf clothes the whole day because when I'd get home I would put my mom hat on or when I get up I put my mom hat on. We went to every park, every museum in the country. I have great relationship with my kids now. I'm going to be a grandma, and so a lot of things have changed. All for the good.”

A victory this week would give Inkster her third different USGA championship, putting her name in the same sentence with Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, JoAnne Carner, Carol Semple Thompson and Jill McGill. She’s been close in the U.S. Senior Women’s Open several times, finishing second in 2018 and 2019, and T-5 in 2022.

“I mean, this is the one I worked for,” Inkster said. “I would love to win this thing. I know I'm not getting any younger. The girls are 50; I'm 64; 14 years is a lot of years. I still love to compete, but I've gotten to a point where I don't like to set my alarm, so it's kind of hard to compete when you don't like to set your alarm. I enjoy playing. The competition, not so much anymore. I love the banter of playing. But I've done the grind for so long. These tournaments are great, but I'm pretty happy when they're over with, too.”

That said, make no mistake about it: What would really make her happy is another USGA championship. From a college kid at San Jose State winning the U.S. Women’s Amateur to a mom on tour and now as soon-to-be Grandma Juli, this is a woman who loves golf – and loves winning. And when the bell rings on Thursday for the opening round, she’ll be grinding as hard as anyone else out there.

Ron Sirak is a Massachusetts-based freelance writer whose work has previously appeared on USGA websites.