Ruth Jessen, former LPGA standout

Her mother was a circulation manager for the Post-Intelligencer, which meant Ruth Jessen often was rousted out of bed at 1 a.m. to help make deliveries.

Soon this newspaper was writing about her intriguing activities during the daylight hours -- that of a naturally gifted golfer making things happen in a hurry.

At 19, Jessen became the youngest player on the LPGA Tour. Three years later, she won for the first time. By 1964, she was a golf headliner, winning five times that season and finishing second on five other occasions, including losing the U.S. Open in a playoff.

"I was putting very well, that was the biggest thing," said Jessen, who used an unorthodox straddle stance on the greens, setting up with her feet as much as four feet apart. "The wider I got, the better I putted. It was like doing the splits. It was like getting down and reading the green when I did it, because I could really see the line."

However, Jessen couldn't envision everything that lay in front of her. An almost certain Hall of Fame career didn't materialize as Jessen's health broke in a decidedly different direction.

She lost feeling in her left arm because of nerve damage, possibly caused by years of hitting off mats. She suffered a neck injury when a concession tent pole collapsed on her during a freak windstorm in Massachusetts, losing feeling in her arm again. At 32, she was diagnosed with uterine cancer. She underwent 14 surgeries.

The last of her 11 LPGA victories came in 1971 at the Sears Women's World Classic in Port St. Lucie, Fla., an outcome so inspiring she later received the Ben Hogan Award as the comeback golfer of the year.

"I figured I got to play 10 years of the 20 I was out there," said Jessen, who finished with $158,816 in career earnings. "Every time I had surgery, it took a year to get over it."

Jessen, 69, has spent the entire summer in her hometown, something that might become a regular occurrence. She's visited with her sisters, Sharon and Marilyn, and brother, Wayne, fished and swam, gave the occasional golf lesson to family members or friends, and enjoyed what she says is the first real vacation she can remember.

For three decades, Jessen has been a golf instructor in Scottsdale and Pinetop, keeping homes in each of these Arizona communities while alternating seasonal teaching jobs. Recently, she gave up the latter, wanting to downsize. She doesn't play golf anymore, with a serious ear infection causing her permanent balance problems.

Jessen used to have all of the magical shots. She grew up a half-block from the now-defunct Meadowbrook Golf Course, hunting for golf balls and getting in her first swings. She honed her game and a wieldy reputation at Jackson Park and Inglewood Country Club. At Roosevelt High School, the principal used to let her out of class early if she would agree to play golf with his buddies. She held her own in the golden era of Northwest women's golf, competing against the likes of Joanne Carner, Ann Sander and Pat Lesser-Harbottle, winning several regional titles.

Briefly attending Seattle University and playing on the men's team, she turned pro shortly after competing alongside LPGA star Patty Berg in a nine-hole golf clinic at Jackson Park.

"When I got to play with Patty, I just knew I could play (on tour)," she said. "Patty wanted to try my driver because I was outhitting her."

Jessen shot 64 twice in LPGA competition and had five holes-in-one.

Even with her repeated health setbacks, there are no regrets. The bottom line was she could play with the best and was able to show it.

"I feel fortunate because who knows what I would have done without the game of golf," Jessen said. "I probably never would have gone out of the state of Washington."

She might still be delivering the P-I.

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