📍Roswell, NM, USA
1957 – 1975“Nancy Lopez was born in Torrance, California, in January 1957, to Mexican-American parents, Domingo and Marina, and grew up in Roswell, a farming and ranching town in the high desert of south-eastern New Mexico. Her father owned an auto-body repair shop, and when her mother suffered chest pains, Domingo suggested she take up golf for her health. The family played at the municipal course in Cahoon Park, and Nancy tagged along. At about eight, her father cut down an old club for her and started teaching her. He was her only coach, and his advice was simple: play happy. Money was tight, and the family made sacrifices to pay for her golf, while her father dug a hole in the backyard and filled it with sand so she could practise bunker shots, because the municipal course had none. Because the family was of Mexican descent, they were not allowed to join the Roswell Country Club, and she had to travel to tournaments far away. She won her first peewee tournament at nine, and at twelve she won the New Mexico Women's Amateur. At Goddard High School in Roswell there was no girls' golf team, so she played on the boys' team, leading it to two state championships. She finished second in the US Women's Open as an amateur at eighteen, studied at the University of Tulsa, and turned professional in 1977. In 1978, as a rookie, she won nine tournaments, including five in a row, and she went on to win 48 LPGA events and three majors. Roswell honoured her by naming a golf course after her.”
🗺️ Approximate location today
📍 Street view today