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You can call her Dr. Renee Powell now.
PGA Professional Renee Powell of East Canton, Ohio, the 2003 PGA First Lady of Golf, became the first female golfer and ninth overall professional in history to be conferred with an honorary doctor of laws (LLD) degree from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
The PGA head professional at Clearview Golf Club in East Canton, Ohio, Powell was honored before an audience at St. Andrews’ Younger Hall that included PGA of America President Brian Whitcomb and LPGA Commissioner Carolyn Bivens. Powell, 62, holds dual membership in The PGA of America and LPGA and was the second of three African-Americans to compete on the LPGA Tour.
“This is a historic day for golf, and I am honored to be among those who can pay tribute to Renee Powell and her impact upon the game,” Whitcomb said. “The R&A opened their doors to honor Renee, and it couldn’t have been any better. It was truly special in all respects and the game of golf hit on all the high notes today.”
Prior to being conferred with her degree, Powell was introduced by Professor Alan Cairns, who paid homage to Powell’s life work of building diversity in the game and her personal struggle early in her playing career to achieve human rights.
“Renee has received many honors from the world of golf, too many to list here, but amongst the most notable is her First Lady of Golf award by The Professional Golfers Association of America in 2003,” Cairns said. “Situated as it is, it is natural for the University of St Andrews to confer honors on eminent golfers from time to time. However, in Renee Powell we honor someone whose achievements transcend the world of golf and move into much broader issues of human rights, racial equality and the treatment of disadvantaged members of society.”
Joining in the celebration was Renee’s father, William Powell, 91, a PGA Life Member and who remains the only African-American to own, operate and build a golf course in the United States.
“It was a wonderful day, and to have my father with me made that much better,” Renee Powell said. “This is such a major highlight of my life, and it keeps getting better and better. St. Andrews does things in an extra special way. To have had Brian Whitcomb and Carolyn Bivens be here to represent the organizations of which I am a member, has made this an extraordinary experience.”
Powell began playing golf at the age of three through her father, William, and began playing competitive golf at age 12. After becoming a champion at national junior level, she turned professional in 1967. During her 13-year professional career, she competed in more than 250 tournaments worldwide.
Since 1980, Powell has been a PGA Teaching Professional in the U.S. Today, she guides Clearview Golf Course, which her father, a U.S. Army veteran, built in 1946. Powell’s youngest brother, Larry, is course superintendent and a long-time member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America.
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Bob Denney is The PGA of America’s Senior Association Writer