World Golf Hall of Fame member Judy Rankin and NBA Orlando Magic Senior Vice President Pat Williams will keynote the general sessions at the 2011 Golf Industry Show Feb. 9-10, in Orlando.
Rankin will present "Lessons from the Links," at the Feb. 9 General Session to open the trade show. She won the Colgate European Open in 1974 and 1977 (forerunner of the Women's British Open), the 1976 Colgate Dinah Shore Winner's Circle (currently the Kraft Nabisco), and the 1977 Peter Jackson Classic (later renamed the duMaurier), three events that would later be elevated to major status, but they are not counted as majors in the years in which she won.
Rankin is a three-time winner of the LPGA Vare Trophy, two-time LPGA Player of the Year, two-time Golf Writers Association of America Female Player of the Year, and two-time LPGA Tour Money Winner. She turned pro in 1962 at age 17 and accumulated 28 professional wins, including 26 LPGA tour victories. Rankin finished in the top 10 on the money list 11 times between 1965 and 1979.
Rankin was forced to retire from full-time competition too early at the age of 38 due to chronic back problems. She then embarked on a highly successful television career as a golf commentator, which included being the first woman to work full-time on broadcasts of men's events. She captained the victorious American teams in the 1996 and 1998 Solheim Cups. Rankin served as an LPGA board member and president from 1976-77.
Rankin has received both the Patty Berg Award and the William and Mousie Powell Award from the LPGA, the First Lady of Golf Award from the PGA of America, and the Richardson Award from the Golf Writers Association of America. She was inducted into both the LPGA Tour Hall of Fame and the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2000. Rankin received the USGA's highest honor in 2002, the Bob Jones Award, and the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America's highest honor in 2010, the Old Tom Morris Award.
A breast cancer survivor, Rankin was honored in 2007 by the Golf Writers Association of America with the Ben Hogan Award and the Komen Award from the LPGA.
Williams will present "The Magic of Teamwork," at the Feb. 10 General Session to tee up the final day of the Golf Industry Show. As one of America's top motivational, inspirational, and humorous speakers, he has addressed thousands of executives in organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies and national associations to universities and nonprofits. Williams has also authored more than 55 books.
After serving seven years in the U.S. Army, Williams spent seven years in the Philadelphia Phillies organization, two as a minor league catcher and five in the front office. He also spent three years in the Minnesota Twins organization. Since 1968, Williams has been in the NBA as general manager for teams in Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and now the Orlando Magic, which he co-founded in 1987. In 1996, Williams was named as one of the 50 most influential people in NBA history by Beckett's, a national publication.
Williams and his wife, Ruth, are the parents of 19 children, including 14 adopted from four nations, ranging in age from 24 to 37. For one year, 16 of his children were all teenagers at the same time. Williams teaches an adult Sunday school class at First Baptist Church of Orlando and hosts three weekly radio shows. In the last 13 years, he has completed 54 marathons, including the Boston Marathon 12 times, and also climbed Mount Rainier.
Williams is a member of the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame after catching for the Demon Deacon baseball team, which won the 1962 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship. Raised in Wilmington, Del., he is also a member of the Delaware Sports Hall of Fame.
The Golf Industry Show is an innovative trade show designed for the owners/operators of golf facilities and the professional members of the golf course industries. The event combines education, networking and solutions for golf course superintendents, owners, operators, architects, builders, equipment managers and others. The Golf Industry Show is presented by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) and the National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA), along with participating partners the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA), the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA), the United States Golf Association (USGA), the National Golf Foundation (NGF), and the International Golf Course Equipment Managers Association (IGCEMA).
For more information contact:
Jeff Bollig, GCSAA Senior Director of Marketing and Communications, 800-472-7878 ext. 4430
Joe Rice, NGCOA Chief Marketing Officer, 800-933-4262 ext. 222
