Donna Caponi
Donna Caponi | |||||||
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Personal information | |||||||
Full name | Donna Caponi-Byrnes | ||||||
Born | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | January 29, 1945||||||
Height | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) | ||||||
Sporting nationality | ![]() | ||||||
Residence | Tampa, Florida, U.S. | ||||||
Spouse | Ken Young (1971–81) Ted Byrnes (2006–) | ||||||
Career | |||||||
Turned professional | 1965 | ||||||
Former tour(s) | LPGA Tour (joined 1965) | ||||||
Professional wins | 29 | ||||||
Number of wins by tour | |||||||
LPGA Tour | 24 | ||||||
Other | 5 | ||||||
Best results in LPGA major championships (wins: 4) | |||||||
Western Open | 21st: 1967 | ||||||
Titleholders C'ship | 12th: 1966 | ||||||
ANA Inspiration | T13: 1985 | ||||||
Women's PGA C'ship | Won: 1979, 1981 | ||||||
U.S. Women's Open | Won: 1969, 1970 | ||||||
du Maurier Classic | 3rd: 1980, 1982 | ||||||
Achievements and awards | |||||||
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Donna Caponi-Byrnes (born January 29, 1945) is an American LPGA Tour professional golfer. She became a member of the tour in 1965 and won four major championships and 24 LPGA Tour career events. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Amateur career[]
Caponi was born in Detroit, Michigan. She started playing golf at the age of 5. She learned golf from her father, Harry, and won the Los Angeles Junior title in 1956. She tied for 21st as an amateur at the 1964 Hillside House Ladies' Open on the LPGA Tour.
Professional career[]
Caponi joined the LPGA Tour in 1965. She won her first tournament in 1969 at the U.S. Women's Open. She is one of 14 players to make the U.S. Women’s Open her first LPGA victory. She would repeat as champion in 1970. Only Mickey Wright had ever won back-to-back U.S. Women's Opens before Caponi, who also matched Wright's 72-hole scoring record of 287. She would go on to win a total of 24 events on the LPGA Tour, including four major championships.
Caponi was named Female Player of the Year by Golf Writers Association of America in 1981. She finished in the top ten on the money list ten times between 1968 and 1981, including second-place finishes in 1976 and 1980. She retired from full-time competition in 1988. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2001. In 2009, she was the recipient of the PGA First Lady of Golf Award.[1]
She is currently an announcer on the Golf Channel, covering the Champions Tour.
Personal life[]
From 1971 to 1981, Caponi was married to Ken Young and was known as Donna Caponi Young. After her divorce in 1981, she changed her name back to Donna Caponi.[2] She married her longtime boyfriend Edward "Ted" Byrnes on July 29, 2006, and changed her name to Donna Caponi-Byrnes.
Professional wins (29)[]
LPGA Tour wins (24)[]
Legend |
LPGA Tour major championships (4) |
Other LPGA Tour (20) |
No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jun 29, 1969 | U.S. Women's Open | +2 (74-75-76-69=294) | 1 stroke | ![]() |
2 | Sep 21, 1969 | Lincoln-Mercury Open | −2 (74-68-72=214) | Playoff | ![]() |
3 | May 24, 1970 | Bluegrass Invitational | −2 (72-70-72=214) | 1 stroke | ![]() |
4 | Jul 5, 1970 | U.S. Women's Open | +3 (69-70-71-77=287) | 1 stroke | ![]() ![]() |
5 | May 20, 1973 | Bluegrass Invitational | −3 (72-72-72=216) | 2 strokes | ![]() |
6 | Feb 2, 1975 | Burdine's Invitational | −8 (70-71-67=208) | 3 strokes | ![]() |
7 | May 11, 1975 | Lady Tara Classic | −5 (72-70-72=214) | 1 stroke | ![]() ![]() |
8 | Jun 13, 1976 | Peter Jackson Classic | −4 (72-73-67=212) | Playoff | ![]() |
9 | Sep 19, 1976 | Portland Classic | −2 (72-71-74=217) | Playoff | ![]() |
10 | Sep 26, 1976 | The Carlton | −6 (69-69-72-72=282) | 5 strokes | ![]() ![]() |
11 | Nov 3, 1976 | LPGA/Japan Mizuno Classic | −5 (74-71-72=217) | 4 strokes | ![]() |
12 | Sep 17, 1978 | The Sarah Coventry | −10 (72-71-68-71=282) | 5 strokes | ![]() |
13 | Oct 22, 1978 | Houston Exchange Clubs Classic | −9 (70-68-69=207) | 3 strokes | ![]() |
14 | Jun 10, 1979 | LPGA Championship | −9 (69-70-70-70=279) | 3 strokes | ![]() |
15 | Mar 23, 1980 | LPGA National Pro-Am | −2 (71-74-71-70=286) | 1 stroke | ![]() |
16 | Apr 6, 1980 | Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner's Circle | −13 (71-67-66-71=275) | 2 strokes | ![]() |
17 | May 25, 1980 | Corning Classic | −7 (66-72-69-74=281) | 2 strokes | ![]() |
18 | Sep 14, 1980 | United Virginia Bank Classic | −11 (70-67-66-74=277) | 4 strokes | ![]() |
19 | Sep 21, 1980 | ERA Real Estate Classic | −9 (75-68-71-69=283) | 5 strokes | ![]() |
20 | Mar 22, 1981 | LPGA Desert Inn Pro-Am | −3 (74-75-69-68=286) | 3 strokes | ![]() |
21 | Apr 12, 1981 | American Defender/WRAL Golf Classic | −8 (71-65-72=208) | 1 stroke | ![]() |
22 | Jun 14, 1981 | LPGA Championship | −8 (69-68-70-73=280) | 1 stroke | ![]() ![]() |
23 | Jul 19, 1981 | WUI Classic | −6 (71-69-69-73=282) | 2 strokes | ![]() |
24 | Aug 2, 1981 | Boston Five Classic | −12 (69-68-68-71=276) | 6 strokes | ![]() |
- Note: Caponi won the Peter Jackson Classic (which became the du Maurier Classic) and the Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner's Circle (now known as the Kraft Nabisco Championship) before they became major championships.
LPGA Tour playoff record (3–5)
No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1969 | Lincoln-Mercury Open | ![]() |
Won with par on first extra hole |
2 | 1974 | Lady Tara Classic | ![]() ![]() |
Spuzich won with par on fifth extra hole Whitworth eliminated by par on third hole |
3 | 1976 | Peter Jackson Classic | ![]() |
Won with par on first extra hole |
4 | 1976 | Portland Classic | ![]() |
Won with birdie on second extra hole |
5 | 1979 | Women's Kemper Open | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Carner won with par on second extra hole Caponi, Lopez, and Stephenson eliminated by par on first hole |
6 | 1980 | West Virginia LPGA Classic | ![]() |
Lost to birdie on third extra hole |
7 | 1981 | Florida Lady Citrus | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Daniel won with birdie on second extra hole Hill, Rizzo, and Sheehan eliminated by par on first hole |
8 | 1981 | Inamori Classic | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Stacy won with birdie on first extra hole |
Other wins (5)[]
- 1975 Colgate European Open
- 1976 Wills Qantas Australian Ladies Open
- 1978 Ping Classic Team Championship (with Kathy Whitworth)
- 1980 Portland Ping Team Championship (with Kathy Whitworth)
- 1981 Portland Ping Team Championship (with Kathy Whitworth)
Major championships[]
Wins (4)[]
Year | Championship | Winning score | Margin | Runner(s)-up |
---|---|---|---|---|
1969 | U.S. Women's Open | +2 (74-76-75-69=294) | 1 stroke | ![]() |
1970 | U.S. Women's Open | +3 (69-70-71-77=287) | 1 stroke | ![]() ![]() |
1979 | LPGA Championship | −9 (69-70-70-70=279) | 3 strokes | ![]() |
1981 | LPGA Championship | −8 (69-68-70-73=280) | 1 stroke | ![]() ![]() |
See also[]
References[]
- ^ a b Ferncroft Country Club, Ferncroft CC Member Donna Caponi-Byrnes Receives PGA First Lady of Golf Award Accessed November 23, 2011.
- ^ NY Times News Service, Donna Caponi starting over again August 24, 1981. Accessed November 23, 2011.
External links[]
- Donna Caponi at the LPGA Tour official site
- Donna Caponi at the Legends Tour official site (also at former site)
- Donna Caponi at golf.about.com at the Wayback Machine (archived February 16, 2007)
- American female golfers
- LPGA Tour golfers
- Winners of LPGA major golf championships
- World Golf Hall of Fame inductees
- Women sports announcers
- Golfers from Detroit
- Golfers from Tampa, Florida
- 1945 births
- Living people
- 21st-century American women