What Is the Old Morris Awards & Is Dottie Pepper the Only LPGA Pro to Win It?

The year 2024 has started with drumrolls of changes surrounding the golf world, especially for the LPGA Tour! The season started with the female Tour getting prize money worth $12 million for the US Open and then a beneficial change in rules for amateurs. But the merriness is now extending to the former Tour stars as well.

Recently, Dottie Pepper was awarded the Old Morris Award. She was nominated for the prestigious award in November 2023. After her victory, the question arises: Is Pepper the first woman to achieve this feat?

Is Dottie Pepper’s recent accomplishment also a historic one?

The short answer to this is no. Even though it is a big victory for Pepper, she is not the first one to secure the highly coveted award. If you are to keep count, Dottie Pepper’s recent accomplishment makes her the seventh woman to win this award out of a total pool of 42 winners over the years.

But what is the Old Tom Morris Award anyway? Well, this award has been put in place as a pinnacle for those outside of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (widely known as GCSAA). It is a high level of recognition bestowed upon those individuals from the golf fraternity whose efforts contribute to the welfare of the game. These efforts are to be in line with those of the ScotThomas Mitchell Morris aka Old Tom Morris, a legend who displayed continued lifetime commitment to the game.

Therefore, this award celebrates his legacy of giving something back to the holistic sport. Before the former LPGA sensation, there have been seven other LPGA pros who have won the award. The other Tour recipients of the honor are Patty Berg, Dinah Shore, Nancy Lopez, Judy Rankin, Annika Sorenstam, and Renee Powell. Out of all these, American, Patty Berg was the first woman to accomplish this groundbreaking feat.

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The 42nd edition of the honorary Old Tom Morris Award has Dottie Pepper as its recipient. The story of how she found out about getting the award is surely an interesting one!

What does the former LPGA Tour star have to say about her achievement?

When she was called about the award, she thought that she was being invited to cover someone else getting the award. But later, when it was clarified that she was the winner, she was joyfully surprised. “It’s pretty cool. No, it’s very cool,” was her reaction when she got to know that the accolade was hers to keep this year. But why was she given this acknowledgment after 20 years of retiring from competitive golf?

Well, the answer may be hidden in her continued love for the game. Congratulating the 58-year-old, GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans said, “Dottie Pepper has had a standout career as both a major champion and a golf reporter. But she also has a deep appreciation for what goes into making the game happen and the work that superintendents do, which is why Dottie Pepper is an ideal recipient of the Old Tom Morris Award.”

It is safe to say it is her long years of hard work, perseverance, and admiration to advance the game that has landed this TV golf personality this major honor.

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