Susie Maxwell Berning, a three-time champion of the United States Women’s Open golf tournament who was known for her tenacity on the fairway and her grace off it, died on Wednesday at her home in Indiowinning plus, in Southern California. She was 83.
Her daughter Cindy Molchany confirmed the death. She said her mother had had lung cancer for two years.
Emerging from Oklahoma City in the 1960s, when women’s professional golf was still a developing sport (she later estimated that there were only about 70 golfers on the tour at the time), Berning built a glittering career. She shone brightest when the stakes were highest. Four of her 11 wins on the L.P.G.A. tour were in major tournaments, including the Western Open in 1965.
The three others were U.S. Open wins in 1968, 1972 and 1973. Berning was one of just six women to win three or more, along with Betsy Rawls, Babe Didrikson Zaharias, Hollis Stacy, Annika Sorenstam and Mickey Wright — all members of the World Golf Hall of Fame. In 2021, Berning finally joined them in the Hall, which honors both male and female stars of the sport. She was inducted in the same class as Tiger Woods.
ImageBerning spoke at her induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. She was inducted in the same class as Tiger Woods.Credit...Sam Greenwood/Getty ImagesFull recognition of her accomplishments came slowly in large part because her career was abbreviated, as she consistently prioritized family.
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