The Founders
Issette Pearson and Mabel Stringer built the heart of women’s golf— Issette through organisation and fairness, Mabel through community and belonging.
Issette Pearson founded the Ladies’ Golf Union in 1893, and Mabel Stringer created the Veteran Ladies’, now Senior Womens movement in 1921.
Together, they turned golf into more than a game—it became a lifelong network of friendship, respect, and shared purpose for women everywhere.
Two Women, One Vision
Fairness, Friendship, and a Game for Life.
Issette Pearson
The Visionary Founder of the Ladies Golf Union 1893
Issette Pearson believed that golf was never just a game – it was a way to unite women in purpose and friendship.
“Fairness, not privilege, defines the game.” — Issette Pearson
Issette Pearson was the visionary behind the Ladies’ Golf Union, founded in 1893.
She built the foundations of women’s golf through fairness, friendship, and unity—creating and introducing the first handicap system and linking clubs across Britain and Ireland.
Her belief in shared purpose and belonging continues to shape the spirit of women’s golf today.
Mabel Stringer
The Organiser, Advocate, and Builder of Communities
Founder of the Senior Women (Veteran Ladies) Golf Association 1921
A Voice for Women, a Creator of Belonging and Community, and a Heart at the Centre of the Game.
As Assistant Secretary of the Ladies’ Golf Union, Mabel Stringer helped shape the organisation of women’s golf, but her greatest legacy was founding the Veteran Ladies’ Golf Association in 1921 — the first of its kind for senior women golfers.
From her vision grew a global network of Senior Women’s Golf Associations, which still operate independently of national governing bodies, run by volunteers and sustained by community spirit.
Their continued success stands as a lasting tribute to her belief that women’s golf should belong to women themselves — and as a reminder that these independent associations deserve full recognition for the role they play in preserving the game’s history and heart.
The LPGA Founders
Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA)
Founded in 1950 by thirteen pioneers who believed women deserved an equal place on the fairways, the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) has become the beating heart of women’s golf worldwide.
Seventy-five years on, it stands as a symbol of courage, community, and belonging — connecting generations of players, professionals, and fans through a shared love of the game and the enduring spirit to Drive On — Together.
“Where Women Compete, Belong, and Inspire — The Spirit of Golf, Together.”
The Founders film is embedded from YouTube. It is free to watch, here or on YouTube.
Ladies European Tour (LET)
A Story of Growth, Grit, and Global Sisterhood
The Ladies European Tour (LET) is far more than a professional golf circuit — it’s a community built on courage, camaraderie, and belief in women’s potential. Since its founding in 1978, the LET has given thousands of golfers the chance to chase dreams, cross borders, and prove that skill, spirit, and sportsmanship know no gender. From its home at Buckinghamshire Golf Club near London, the LET today connects more than forty nations and five continents in a shared celebration of the women’s game.