Penny B. Grice-Whittaker (née Grice, 11 October 1964)[1] is a former English golfer turned singer. As an amateur golfer, Grice-Whittaker won multiple events in England and was a bronze medalist for the Great Britain and Ireland team at the 1984 Espirito Santo Trophy. She also participated at the Curtis Cup that year for Great Britain before turning professional in 1985. As a professional golfer, Grice-Whittaker won her first Ladies European Tour event at the 1986 Belgian Ladies Godiva Open. She later won additional LET events in 1991 at the Weetabix Women's British Open and Longines Classic. On the Australian Ladies Professional Golf Tour, Grice-Whittaker won the 1992 Hisiki Ladies Queensland Open. After retiring from golf in 1998, Grice-Whittaker became a member of the female musical duo Bits-n-Pieces in the early 2000s.
| Penny B. Grice-Whittaker | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Born | 11 October 1964 Sheffield, England |
| Sporting nationality |  England |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 1985 |
| Former tour(s) | Ladies European Tour |
| Professional wins | 4 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| Ladies European Tour | 3 |
| ALPG Tour | 1 |
Early life
editIn 1964, Grice-Whittaker was born in Sheffield, England. She began to play golf when she was thirteen.[2]
Amateur career
editGrice-Whittaker began her amateur career as a runner-up at the 1981 Girls Amateur Championship.[3] As an amateur, Grice-Whittaker won her first amateur events in Yorkshire between 1981 and 1983.[4] At events held by England Golf, Grice-Whittaker won the 1983 English Girls' Open Championship and the 1984 English Women's Strokeplay.[5][6] In amateur team events held in 1984, Grice-Whittaker was a participant at the Curtis Cup and a bronze medalist at the Espirito Santo Trophy for the Great Britain and Ireland team.[7][8]
Professional career
editAfter turning professional in 1985, Grice-Whittaker played on the Ladies European Tour. Her first win was at the 1986 Belgian Ladies Open with a course record of seventeen under par.[4][9] During the 1990s, additional European wins for Grice-Whittaker came at the 1991 Women's British Open and the 1991 Longines Classic. Outside of the LET, Grice-Whittaker won the 1992 Hisiki Ladies Queensland Open on the Australian Ladies Professional Golf Tour.[10][11]
Private life
editIn 1998, Grice-Whittaker ended her golf career to become a singer. In the early 2000s, she started singing as a member of the female musical duo Bits-n-Pieces.[12]
On 8 October 2021, Grice-Whittaker appeared on The Chase. Chaser Paul Sinha remarked that she was the first person he'd faced on the show with a bigger Wikipedia entry than he had - aside from the Celebrity edition.
Professional wins (4)
editLadies European Tour wins (3)
editALPG Tour wins (1)
editTeam appearances
editAmateur
- European Lady Junior's Team Championship (representing England): 1982, 1983 (winners), 1984, 1986[13][14][15][16]
- Curtis Cup (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1984
- Espirito Santo Trophy (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1984
- European Ladies' Team Championship (representing England): 1983
- Women's Home Internationals (representing England): 1983, 1984 (winners)
References
edit- ^ "Grice-Whittaker, Mrs Penny (nee Grice)". Women Golfers' Museum. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
- ^ "Jane aims for repeat". The Guardian. 22 August 1981. p. 20.
- ^ "Grice has potential". The Guardian. 24 August 1981. p. 16.
- ^ a b "Famous Golfers: G". Women Golfers Museum. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
- ^ "English Girls' Open Championship". England Golf. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
- ^ "English Women's Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship". England Golf. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
- ^ Kahn, Liz (9 May 1985). "Curtis Cup duo in the lead". The Guardian. p. 27.
- ^ "Women's Records". International Golf Federation. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
- ^ "Whittaker wins Belgian Open". The Index-Journal. 23 June 1986. p. 12.
- ^ Gregg, Kim (10 February 1992). "Late run wins it for Grice-Whittaker". The Age. p. 30.
- ^ "1992 Hisiki Ladies Queensland Open". Australian Ladies Professional Golf. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
- ^ Mair, Lewine (12 February 2002). "Swapping clubs to become the newest swinger in town". Daily Telegraph. p. 6.
- ^ "Mästerskap, JEM Flickor" [Championships, European Lady Junior's Team Championship]. Svensk Golf (in Swedish). No. 6/1983. August 1983. pp. 59, 78. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
- ^ Persson, Lars-Åke (August 1984). "Guldtjejerna" [The Golden Girls]. Svensk Golf (in Swedish). No. 8/1984. pp. 20–21. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
- ^ "Scots girls crash". Daily Record (Scotland). 12 July 1986. p. 30 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Persson, Lars-Åke (August 1986). "Svenskt favoritfall i flickornas JEM" [Swedish favourites fell in European Lady Junior's Team Championship]. Svensk Golf (in Swedish). No. 8/1986. pp. 68–69. Retrieved 25 December 2022.