Janet Anderson

Her father, Francis was an outstanding athlete in his own right, good enough to earn a tryout from the Pittsburgh Pirates. Francis turned down the offer, choosing family over possible major-league stardom.
Janet eventually started playing golf when he could no longer play baseball at a competitive level, and the family joined Armco Country Club. Janet, the younger of two sisters, followed both of her parents to the golf course and quickly fell in love with the game. But she rarely competed outside the confines of the club. Her high school didn't have a golf team for boys or girls. She later attended Slippery Rock Teachers College in West Sunbury and played on the men's team. Anderson had aspirations of becoming a teacher until she first served as a substitute and didn't like the atmosphere so her career goals changed. At that time she started dating Armco's golf professional Chuck Alex. Anderson married Alex, who felt that Janet could become a professional player. In 1977, she dropped out of Slippery Rock to focus on golf. That summer she advanced to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Women's Amateur, losing to Nancy Hagen Hammer, 3 & 2. Later that year Anderson successfully navigated LPGA Tour Qualifying School.
Anderson's first couple of years on the LPGA Tour were uneventful, but she began showing promise in 1981 when she T-2nd at the Columbia Savings LPGA Classic and earned $66,663 for the year.
In 1982 Anderson's game progressively got better and she had her best finish of the year at the LPGA Championship finishing T-3rd thanks to a final round 67. Going into the U.S. Women's Open she wasn't considered one of the favorites even though she felt her game was in great shape, especially her driving abilities. She had a first round 70 and was only a shot back of leader JoAnne Carner. She followed with rouds of 73-72 and went into the final round just two back of Beth Daniel. Spurred on by a difficult family phone call that night, entered the final day feeling good. Playing in the second to last group, Anderson got off to a great start making birdies at 1 and 3, while JoAnne Carner and Beth Daniel were struggling. When Anderson birdied the 15th hole she just about wrapped things up but since she never looked at a leaderboard didn't know it. At the 18th tee, someone informed Anderson she had a five-shot lead. She was stunned at what she was hearing. "My hands were shaking so bad," Anderson told USGA writer David Shefter. "I took the club back and actually made contact with one hand. [The shot] was fine. It was right down the middle. That's all I needed. I knew I could make 6 from there and still win. It was a great feeling." Anderson carded a final-round 68, the best score of the week on the 6,342-yard layout. Only one other player (Lopez) bettered 70 that day. Anderson won by six strokes and was the only golfer to finish in red figures, carding a 5-under 283 to earn the first-place check of $27,315. Incredibly, Anderson would never win another tournament.
Unfortunately, her marriage ended and since Chuck was her only teacher, it took her over a year to find another instructor.
Anderson played full time on the LPGA between 1978 and 1997. She played in 427 events making 282 cuts. She had 43 top-ten finishes and earned $671,325 on the LPGA Tour. Her best year was 1982, she made $75,807. After 1985 she struggled on tour and made it work until 1998 when injuries and lack of desire to continue led her to retire. Her last Women's Open appearance, the final year of her 10-year exemption, had come in 1992 when she missed the cut at Oakmont Country Club in her western Pennsylvania backyard.
By then, Anderson had relocated to Phoenix and she was ready for the next phase of her life. Anderson had no idea where her life was headed after retiring from the LPGA Tour in 1998. Then the phone rang with a job offer. Would she be interested in working with juniors on a part-time basis at Cave Creek Golf Course, a municipal course in Phoenix? Seeking a new challenge, Anderson accepted. Before long she was giving 15 lessons a week and working part-time in the pro shop. This led to a head professional position at Aguila Golf Course which she had until she retired a year and a half ago. She played in the Senior LPGA Championship and finished 19th. She felt like a rookie again! After 18 years of teaching and playing just a few rounds a year, is playing and practicing again, kind of come full circle from working on her game to helping others work on their game, back to learning my game once again. .