1981 Ladies European Tour

The 1981 Ladies European Tour was the third season of golf tournaments organised by the Women's Professional Golfers' Association (WPGA), which later became the Ladies European Tour (LET).[1] There were 13 tournaments on the schedule including four Carlsberg sponsored events and the Women's British Open, organised by the Ladies' Golf Union.

For the 1982 season, the majority of tournaments were increased to 54-holes, having previously been held over 36-holes. This included the Carlsberg events, which were reduced in number, from ten down to four, in order to increase the prize funds at each event. Total prize money on the tour was planned to rise to £250,000 in 1981,[2] but the tour suffered financially during the season as several tournaments were cancelled after sponsors withdrew their support.[3]

The Order of Merit was won by Jenny Lee Smith, who dominated the season with three wins and four runner-up finishes; her £13,518 in prize money put her more than £5,000 clear of runner-up Cathy Panton.[4] The Carlsberg European Championship overall title was won by Panton, who won two of the four events.[5]

Tournaments

The table below shows the 1981 schedule.[6] The numbers in brackets after the winners' names show the number of career wins they had on the Ladies European Tour up to and including that event. This is only shown for members of the tour.[7]

DateTournamentLocationWinnerScoreMargin of
victory		Runner(s)–upWinner's
share (£)		Ref
1 MayCarlsberg Championship – St PierreWales Mickey Walker (3)222 (+6)2 strokes Sue Latham1,500[8]
11 MaySports Space ChampionshipEngland Jenny Lee Smith (6)72 (−1)2 strokes Christine Langford
Cathy Panton		600[9]
22 MayCarlsberg Championship – Queen's ParkEngland Cathy Panton (4)223 (+1)1 stroke Christine Langford1,500[10]
30 MaySmirnoff Ulster OpenNorthern Ireland Sarah LeVeque (1)228 (E)Playoff Christine Langford600[11]
6 JunUnited Friendly TournamentEngland Sarah LeVeque (2)220 (+7)8 strokes Sherrin Galbraith
Cathy Panton		[12]
19 JunCarlsberg Championship – MoortownEngland Cathy Panton (5)213 (−9)3 strokes Jenny Lee Smith1,500[13]
28 JunVolvo International TournamentSweden Beverly Lewis (1)147 (+5)3 strokes Kärstin Ehrnlund
3 JulMcEwan's Lager Welsh ClassicWales Jenny Lee Smith (7)216 (E)2 strokes Muriel Thomson1,500[14]
24 JulElizabeth Ann ClassicEngland Muriel Thomson (4)293 (+1)1 stroke Jenny Lee Smith1,500[15]
1 AugWomen's British OpenEngland Debbie Massey (n/a)295 (−1)4 strokes Belle Robertson (a)5,600[16]
8 AugLadies Irish OpenIrelandCancelled[3]
14 AugCarlsberg Championship – GleneaglesEngland Dale Reid (2)2191 stroke Jenny Lee Smith1,500[5]
21 AugHitachi WPGA ChampionshipEnglandCancelled[3]
13 SepMoben Kitchens ClassicEngland Dale Reid (3)213 (−6)6 strokes Jenny Lee Smith900[17]
18 SepBarnham Broom ChampionshipEnglandCancelled[3]
17 OctLambert & Butler MatchplayEngland Jenny Lee Smith (8)3 and 2 Beverly Lewis3,000[18]

Major championship in bold.

Order of Merit

The Order of Merit was sponsored by Hambro Life and based on prize money won throughout the season.[4]

#PlayerMoney (£)Events
1 Jenny Lee Smith13,51811
2 Cathy Panton8,410
3 Muriel Thomson8,14313
4 Dale Reid7,321
5 Beverly Lewis6,534
6 Christine Langford5,290
7 Mickey Walker4,844
8 Jane Chapman4,583
9 Maxine Burton4,120
10 Sue Latham4,118

See also

References
  1. LET Tour Guide 2013. Ladies European Tour. 2013. p. 195.
  2. Plumridge, Christopher (9 December 1980). "Women's circuit is booming". The Guardian. London, England. p. 21. Retrieved 24 September 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Hennessy, John (17 March 1981). "Bleak prspect of drop in prize money for women". The Times. p. 11. Retrieved 24 September 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
  4. Hennessy, John (20 October 1981). "Miss Lee keeps her bank manager happy". The Times. p. 23. Retrieved 28 September 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
  5. "Reid wins — Panton champion". Glasgow Herald. 15 August 1981. p. 18. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  6. Past Tournament Winners, Ladies European Tour, GolfToday
  7. Ladies European Tour – 1981 Winners
  8. "Miss Walker uses U.S. experience". Glasgow Herald. 2 May 1981. p. 16. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  9. "New stance suits Miss Lee-Smith". Glasgow Herald. 12 May 1981. p. 29. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  10. "Cathy is home with steady 77". Glasgow Herald. 23 May 1981. p. 16. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  11. Hennessy, John (1 June 1981). "Miss Langford drives out". The Times. p. 8. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
  12. "Miss Panton second—but eight behind". Glasgow Herald. 8 June 1981. p. 15. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  13. "Fifth win for Miss Panton". Glasgow Herald. 20 June 1981. p. 16. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  14. "Classic ace for Muriel". Aberdeen Press and Journal. 4 July 1981. p. 20. Retrieved 29 September 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  15. "Muriel takes the low road". Glasgow Herald. 25 July 1981. p. 14. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  16. "Debbie pulls away from the field". Glasgow Herald. 3 August 1981. p. 15. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
  17. "Runaway victory for Dale Reid". Aberdeen Press and Journal. 14 September 1981. p. 15. Retrieved 29 September 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  18. "Sports briefs from home and abroad | Golf". Glasgow Herald. 19 October 1981. p. 15. Retrieved 30 September 2020 – via Google News Archive.
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