Smriti "Simi" Mehra (born 21 May 1972) is the first woman from India to become a member of the world's leading golf tour for women, the US-based LPGA Tour. She is recognized as "a pioneer and a pillar for women's golf in India."[1] She was born in Kolkata, and attended University of Calcutta before turning professional in 1994.
| Smriti Mehra | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Mehra during the 2010 Women's British Open | |
| Personal information | |
| Nickname | Simi |
| Born | 12 May 1972 Kolkata, West Bengal, India |
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) |
| Sporting nationality |  India |
| Career | |
| College | University of Calcutta |
| Turned professional | 1994 |
| Former tour(s) | LPGA Tour (1997–2008) Futures Tour (1994–2006) |
| Professional wins | 4 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| Ladies Asian Golf Tour | 1 |
| Epson Tour | 3 |
| Best results in LPGA major championships | |
| Chevron Championship | DNP |
| Women's PGA C'ship | CUT: 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003 |
| U.S. Women's Open | T53: 2001 |
| du Maurier Classic | T27: 1998 |
| Women's British Open | CUT: 2001 |
Mehra won once on the second tier Futures Tour in 1996 to win promotion to the main LPGA Tour, which she played from 1997–1999, and from 2001-2004. She underwent shoulder surgery in 2005 and played on the Futures Tour in 2006 in the hope of regaining her place at the top level.
In October 2005, Mehra played LPGA Tour golfers Heather Daly-Donofrio, Hilary Lunke and Celeste Troche in the first Women's Professional Skins Game in India to demonstrate top level women's golf in her home country.
In 2012, Mehra was named the "Player of the Year" at the Hero-WGAI awards function. She was credited with being part of the team that stabilised the women's pro tour. She played in all 15 events and won seven of them.[2]
In addition to her own athletic accomplishments, Mehra impacted the golf world by co-founding the Women's Golf Association of India in order to offer Indian women golfers the opportunity to make golf a career.
Personal
editMehra learned to play golf at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club, inspired by her mother, Billy, who had been a leading amateur golfer in Southeast Asia. Mehra spends her free time teaching disadvantaged children through the Golf Foundation of India.[3]
Amateur wins
edit- 1993 Malaysian National Championship
- 1994 Indian National Match Play Championship, Indian National Stroke Play Championship
Professional wins (4)
editFutures Tour wins (3)
edit- 1996 Green Mountain National FUTURES Golf Classic
- 2004 Frye Classic, Hunters Oak FUTURES Golf Classic
Ladies Asian Golf Tour wins (1)
edit- 2003 Malaysia Ladies Open
Team appearances
editProfessional
- World Cup (representing India): 2008
References
edit- ^ "Vani, Sharmila will join Aditi as Indian women's golf gains more attention". Women's Indian Open. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
- ^ "Smriti Mehra is Women's Professional Golf Player of the Year". Times of India. 11 April 2012.
- ^ "International Impact: Evian Masters wildcards Mariajo Uribe, Smriti Mehra, and Maria Verchenova all hail from different countries and are making their mark on the sport". Golf Digest. 23 July 2010.
External links
edit- Smriti Mehra at the LPGA Futures Tour official site (archived)
- LPGA.com article about Mehra and Indian golf