Martha Lang was playing golf last fall, just sort of minding her own business, when something happened and she won a golf tournament.
Not just any golf tournament-the United States Golf Association`s Mid- Amateur.
Winning golf tournaments isn`t anything new to the Geneva golfer. She had won the Women`s Southern Amateur twice and the Texas Women`s Amateur and was a collegiate All-America at Alabama. At age 36, she wasn`t thinking about a comeback, but golf`s a funny game, and now a Curtis Cup berth is a possibility.
”At the Mid-Am things started to click,” said Lang, who is playing in the Illinois State Women`s Amateur in Bloomington this week. ”Things just started to go right. It`s a whole lot more enjoyable when you`re playing well. That in itself has encouraged me. It just started to develop.”
Lang moved to Chicago in 1980 as an accountant for Shell Oil, where she met her husband, Ken. She ”retired” from Shell a couple of years ago and does some part-time tax work.
In 1987, the Women`s Amateur Public Links Championship came to Cog Hill, and Lang decided she`d enter because it was so close. She qualified for match play, won a couple of matches and got her competitive drive going again. ”I thought I was through playing competitive golf,” said Lang. ”I thought I`d just play a little bit locally. I didn`t really think I`d play in a lot of national tournaments again.”
Golf now occupies most of her time. She plays golf at Edgebrook Country Club in Sandwich almost every day to stay sharp for a schedule that includes the U.S. Women`s Open, the U.S. Women`s Amateur and the Mid-Am. Lang drives to Aurora Country Club for lessons from Bob Ackerman to solve any swing problems. ”I`ve been working on my game a lot harder,” said Lang. ”You hear so much about people saying that when you get older you have to work hard, and you say, `Ah-huh, sure.` It`s really true.”
