Beth Daniel
A dominant force in women's golf who combined powerful ball-striking with a fierce competitive will to claim Player of the Year honors three times.
Born 1956 (age 70)·American professional golfer·Birthday: October 14·Baby Boomers
Biography
Beth Daniel arrived on the LPGA Tour with the confidence of an amateur champion and the game to back it up. Winning Rookie of the Year in 1979, she quickly established herself as one of the tour's longest and most aggressive hitters. Her breakthrough season in 1990 was a tour de force: she won seven times, including her lone major at the LPGA Championship, and dominated the money list. Daniel's career was marked by both sustained excellence and frustrating injuries, but her resilience always brought her back to the winner's circle. Known for her intensity and straightforward demeanor, she was a leader who helped elevate the tour's profile. Her legacy is that of a complete player whose technical prowess and mental toughness made her the one to beat for over a decade.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Beth was born in 1956, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Beth Was Born
The biggest hits of 1956
#1 Movie
The Ten Commandments
Best Picture
Around the World in 80 Days
#1 TV Show
I Love Lucy
Beth's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1956Born
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1961Started school
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1969Became a teenager
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1972Could drive
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1974Could vote
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1977Turned 21
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1986Turned 30
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1996Turned 40
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2006Turned 50
Twitter launches; Pluto reclassified as dwarf planet
Gas: $2.59/galHome: $174,700Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Bad Day" — Daniel PowterBest Picture: The Departed
2016Turned 60
Donald Trump elected president; Brexit vote
Gas: $2.14/galHome: $181,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Love Yourself" — Justin BieberBest Picture: Moonlight
2026Turned 70
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won 33 LPGA Tour events, including the 1990 LPGA Championship, her sole major victory.
- Named LPGA Player of the Year three times (1980, 1990, 1994) and won the Vare Trophy for lowest scoring average three times.
- Was the leading money winner on the LPGA Tour in 1980 and again in 1990.
- Inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2000 and captained the victorious 2005 and 2007 U.S. Solheim Cup teams.
Did You Know?
She was a member of the U.S. team that won the inaugural Curtis Cup match played in Great Britain & Ireland in 1978.
Daniel struggled with putting for much of her career, making her ball-striking achievements even more impressive.
She attended Furman University, where she was an All-American golfer.
After retiring, she worked as a golf analyst for television broadcasts.
“I never aimed to be the best; I aimed to hit every shot exactly as I saw it.”
