Leta Lindley

Leta Lindley
Lindley at the 2007 LPGA Championship
Personal information
Born (1972-06-01) June 1, 1972 (age 52)
Phoenix, Arizona
Height5 ft 4 in (1.63 m)
Sporting nationality United States
ResidencePalm Beach Gardens, Florida
Spouse
Matt Plagmann
​
(m. 1996)​
Children2
Career
CollegeUniversity of Arizona
Turned professional1994
Current tour(s)Legends of the LPGA
Former tour(s)LPGA Tour
Professional wins4
Number of wins by tour
LPGA Tour1
Other3
Best results in LPGA major championships
Chevron ChampionshipT9: 2002
Women's PGA C'ship2nd: 1997
U.S. Women's OpenT5: 1995
du Maurier ClassicT23: 2000
Women's British OpenT38: 2008
Achievements and awards
NGCA Players Hall of Fame2006
Heather Farr Player Award2008

Leta Lindley (born June 1, 1972) is an American professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour between 1995 and 2012, and currently plays on the Legends of the LPGA circuit. She was runner-up at the 1997 LPGA Championship and won the 2008 LPGA Corning Classic. She has won three Legends of the LPGA tournaments, including her first career major, the 2024 U.S. Senior Women's Open.[1]

Early life and amateur career

Lindley's first golf job was painting stripes on range balls as an 11-year-old. She played collegiate golf at the University of Arizona, where she briefly roomed with Annika Sörenstam.[2] She was a four-time All-American, three-time Academic All-American, and finished third at the 1993 NCAA Championship. She was a Honda Sports Award finalist twice, and lost out to Vicki Goetze in 1992 and Charlotta Sörenstam in 1993. In addition, she was the medalist at the 1994 U.S. Women's Amateur. Lindley turned professional in the summer of 1994 after graduating with a degree in communications.[3]

Professional career

Lindley had a long and successful career on tour, and earned non-exempt status for the 1995 LPGA Tour season by finishing tied 52nd at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament. In her rookie season, she tied for third at the State Farm Rail Classic and tied for fifth at the 1995 U.S. Women's Open.[3]

In 1997, she recorded her career-best major finish with at the McDonald's LPGA Championship, where she lost a playoff to Christa Johnson on the second hole. She recorded her first LPGA career hole-in-one during the second round of the Edina Realty LPGA Classic.[3]

In 1999, she was runner-up at the City of Hope Myrtle Beach Classic. She crossed the $1 million mark in career earnings in 2000 and the $2 million mark in 2005. After almost 15 years on tour, she won the 2008 Corning Classic in her 295th LPGA Tour start. She crossed the $3 million mark in career earnings and retired from full-time competition at the end of the 2012 season, ranking among the top 60 all-time LPGA money winners, despite having only one win.[2]

After recording runner-up finishes in 2022 and 2023, she won the U.S. Senior Women's Open in 2024.[4]

Personal life

Lindley's husband, Matt Plagmann, caddied for her; her son Cole (born 2004), and daughter Reese (born 2006) traveled with the couple.[2]

Amateur wins

Professional wins (4)

LPGA Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner-up
1 May 25, 2008 LPGA Corning Classic −11 (73-67-70-67=277) Playoff South Korea Jeong Jang

LPGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1997 McDonald's LPGA Championship United States Christa Johnson Lost to par on second extra hole
2 2008 LPGA Corning Classic South Korea Jeong Jang Won with birdie on first extra hole

Legends of the LPGA wins (3)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner-up
1 Jul 12, 2023 St Johns Challenge −7 (65) 2 strokes United States Nicole Jeray
2 Nov 8, 2023 Cove Cay Legends −14 (65-65=130) 7 strokes United States Moira Dunn-Bohls
3 Aug 4, 2024 U.S. Senior Women's Open −9 (69-71-71-64=275) 2 strokes Japan Kaori Yamamoto

Results in LPGA Majors

Tournament 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
Nabisco Dinah Shore T54 CUT T27
LPGA Championship CUT 2 CUT T26 T12
U.S. Women's Open T5 CUT CUT T20 T46
du Maurier Classic T53 CUT T66 CUT CUT T23
Tournament 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Kraft Nabisco Championship T48 T9 27 T35 T30 WD CUT T29 78
LPGA Championship T17 T25 CUT T25 T30 T65 T45
U.S. Women's Open T43 CUT T22 T19 T50 T53 CUT T21
Women's British Open ^ CUT CUT T38

^ The Women's British Open replaced the du Maurier Classic as an LPGA major in 2001.

  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
T = tied

References

  1. ^ "Third Time's the Charm: Lindley Charges to Title at Fox Chapel". USGA. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Nichols, Beth Ann (August 4, 2024). "'Underdog' Leta Lindley rides hot putter to U.S. Senior Women's Open title with record final round". Golfweek. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "Leta Lindley Bio". LPGA Tour. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  4. ^ Strege, John (August 4, 2024). "Leta Lindley avenges consecutive runner-up finishes in the U.S. Senior Women's Open with a comeback victory". Golf Digest. Retrieved August 5, 2024.