Donna Caponi

Donna Caponi
Personal information
Full name	Donna Caponi-Byrnes
Born	January 29, 1945 (1945-01-29) (age 66) Detroit, Michigan
Height	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Nationality	United States
Residence	Tampa, Florida
Spouse	Ken Young (1971-1981) Edward "Ted" Byrnes (2006 - )
Career
Turned professional	1965
Former tour(s)	LPGA Tour (joined 1965)
Professional wins	29
Number of wins by tour
LPGA Tour	24
Other	5
Best results in LPGA Major Championships (Wins: 4)
Kraft Nabisco C'ship	T13: 1985
LPGA Championship	Won: 1979, 1981
U.S. Women's Open	Won: 1969, 1970
du Maurier Classic	3rd: 1980, 1982
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame	2001 (member page)
GWAA Female Player of the Year	1981

Donna Caponi-Byrnes (born January 29, 1945) is an American professional golfer.

Caponi was born in Detroit, Michigan. The daughter of a club pro, Caponi began playing golf at the age of eight and joined the LPGA Tour at 20. It took Caponi four years to capture her first win, but she did it on the tour's biggest stage, capturing the U.S. Women's Open. She won by one stroke, with a dramatic closing round score of 69 that included a birdie on the final hole. Only Mickey Wright had ever won back-to-back U.S. Women's Opens before Caponi turned the trick in 1970, when she also matched Wright's 72-hole scoring record of 287.

Caponi won 24 events on the LPGA Tour, including four major championships. She finished in the top ten on the money list ten times between 1968 and 1981, including second place finishes in 1976 and 1980. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2001.

Caponi's home club is Ferncroft Country Club in Middleton, Massachusetts.

She is currently an announcer on the Golf Channel, covering the Champions Tour.

Personal life

From 1971 to 1981 Caponi was married to Ken Young and was known as Donna Caponi Young. After her divorce in 1981, she changed her name back to Donna Caponi.^[1] She married her longtime boyfriend Edward "Ted" Byrnes on July 29, 2006 and changed her name again, to Donna Caponi-Byrnes.

Professional wins (29)

LPGA Tour wins (24)

Legend LPGA Tour major championships (4) Other LPGA Tour (20)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning Score	Margin of Victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Jun 29, 1969	U.S. Women's Open	[phone]=294)	1 stroke	Peggy Wilson
2	Sep 21, 1969	Lincoln-Mercury Open	-2 (74-68-72=214)	Playoff	Kathy Whitworth
3	May 24, 1970	Bluegrass Invitational	-2 (72-70-72=214)	1 stroke	Mary Mills
4	Jul 5, 1970	U.S. Women's Open	[phone]=287)	1 stroke	Sandra Haynie Sandra Spuzich
5	May 20, 1973	Bluegrass Invitational	-3 (72-72-72=216)	2 strokes	Sandra Spuzich
6	Feb 2, 1975	Burdine's Invitational	-8 (70-71-67=208)	3 strokes	Kathy Cornelius
7	May 11, 1975	Lady Tara Classic	-5 (72-70-72=214)	1 stroke	Gloria Ehret Sandra Post
8	Jun 13, 1976	Peter Jackson Classic	-4 (72-73-67=212)	Playoff	Judy Rankin
9	Sep 19, 1976	Portland Classic	-2 (72-71-74=217)	Playoff	Clifford Ann Creed
10	Sep 26, 1976	The Carlton[2]	-7 (69-69-72-72=282)	5 strokes	Jane Blalock, Judy Rankin
11	Nov 3, 1976	LPGA/Japan Mizuno Classic	-5 (74-71-72=217)	4 strokes	Hisako Higuchi
12	Sep 17, 1978	The Sarah Coventry	-10 (72-71-68-71=282)	5 strokes	Jane Blalock
13	Oct 22, 1978	Houston Exchange Clubs Classic	-9 (70-68-69=207)	3 strokes	Alexandra Reinhardt
14	Jun 10, 1979	LPGA Championship	-9 (69-70-70-70=279)	3 strokes	Jerilyn Britz
15	Mar 23, 1980	LPGA National Pro-Am	-2 (71-74-71-70=286)	1 stroke	Nancy Lopez
16	Apr 6, 1980	Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner's Circle	-13 (71-67-66-71=275)	2 storkes	Amy Alcott
17	May 25, 1980	Corning Classic	-7 (66-72-69-74=281)	2 strokes	Myra Blackwelder
18	Sep 14, 1980	United Virginia Bank Classic	-11 (70-67-66-74=277)	4 strokes	Nancy Lopez
19	Sep 21, 1980	ERA Real Estate Classic	-9 (75-68-71-69=283)	5 strokes	Shelley Hamlin
20	Mar 22, 1981	LPGA Desert Inn Pro-Am	-3 (74-75-69-68=286)	3 strokes	Pat Bradley
21	Apr 12, 1981	American Defender/WRAL Golf Classic	-8 (71-65-72=208)	1 stroke	Cathy Sherk
22	Jun 14, 1981	LPGA Championship	-8 (69-68-70-73=280)	1 stroke	Jerilyn Britz Pat Meyers
23	Jul 19, 1981	WUI Classic	-6 (71-69-69-73=282)	2 strokes	Julie Pyne
24	Aug 2, 1981	Boston Five Classic	-12 (69-68-68-71=276)	6 strokes	Jan Stephenson

LPGA Tour playoff record (3-5)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1969	Lincoln-Mercury Open	Kathy Whitworth	Won with par on first extra hole
2	1974	Lady Tara Classic	Sandra Spuzich Kathy Whitworth	Spuzich won with par on fifth extra hole Whitworth eliminated with par on third hole
3	1976	Peter Jackson Classic	Judy Rankin	Won with par on first extra hole
4	1976	Portland Classic	Clifford Ann Creed	Won with birdie on second extra hole
5	1979	Women's Kemper Open	JoAnne Carner, Chako Higuchi Nancy Lopez, Jan Stephenson	Carner won with par on second extra hole Caponi, Lopez, and Stephenson eliminated with par on first hole
6	1980	West Virginia LPGA Classic	Sandra Post	Lost to birdie on third extra hole
7	1981	Florida Lady Citrus	Beth Daniel, Cindy Hill Patti Rizzo, Patty Sheehan	Daniel won with birdie on second extra hole Hill, Rizzo, and Sheehan eliminated with par on first hole
8	1981	Inamori Classic	Amy Alcott, Hollis Stacy, Jan Stephenson	Stacy won with birdie on first extra hole

Note: Caponi won the Peter Jackson Classic (which became the du Maurier Classic) and the Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner's Circle (now known as the Kraft Nabisco Championship) before they became major championships.

Other wins (5)

• 1975 Colgate European Open
• 1976 Wills Qantas Australian Ladies Open
• 1978 Ping Classic Team Championship (with Kathy Whitworth)
• 1980 Portland Ping Team Championship (with Kathy Whitworth)
• 1981 Portland Ping Team Championship (with Kathy Whitworth)

Major championships

Wins (4)

Year	Championship	Winning Score	Margin	Runner(s)-up
1969	U.S. Women's Open	[phone]=294)	1 stroke	Peggy Wilson
1970	U.S. Women's Open	[phone]=287)	1 stroke	Sandra Haynie, Sandra Spuzich
1979	LPGA Championship	-9 (69-70-70-70=279)	3 strokes	Jerilyn Britz
1981	LPGA Championship	-8 (69-68-70-73=280)	1 stroke	Jerilyn Britz, Pat Meyers

See also

• Golfers with most LPGA Tour wins
• Golfers with most LPGA major championship wins

References

1. ^ NY Times News Service, Donna Caponi starting over again August 24, 1981. Accessed November 23, 2011.
2. ^ The Desert News, Young Takes Carlton September 27, 1976. Retrieved November 23, 2011.

External links

• Donna Caponi at the LPGA Tour official site
• Donna Caponi bio

Persondata
Name	Caponi, Donna
Alternative names	Caponi-Byrnes, Donna
Short description	Professional golfer
Date of birth	January 29, 1945
Place of birth	Detroit, Michigan
Date of death
Place of death