Jill McGill – 1993

Jill McGill may be the only Colorado golfer to hold the title of “unofficial” state high school champion one year and the very next year be declared the “official” state high school champion. Although she played for Cherry Creek’s team in her junior year, golf was not a sanctioned sport for girls until her senior year when she also led the Bruins to the 1990 state title.

Jill’s 6-foot frame is not the only reason people look up to her. Several top universities tried to snare her golf talent but the University of Southern California won the recruiting war. Pursuing a degree in business, she was named a Second Team All-America in her sophomore year.

The summer of 1993 was Jill’s season to remember. In June, she reached the semifinals of the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship at Jackson Hole (WY) Golf and Tennis Club. At the Broadmoor Ladies Invitational in July, she again was a semifinalist, losing only to the eventual champion. But the piece de resistance came in August at the San Diego Country Club in California when she won the 93rd U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship and donned the most coveted crown in women’s amateur golf.

As the reigning Amateur champion, the USC senior received an automatic berth in the 1994 U.S. Women’s Open Championship. She also was named to the U.S. team for Curtis Cup play matching the eight best U.S. amateur players against their counterparts from Britain and Ireland.

Awarded her LPGA card in 1998, Jill currently is playing on the professional tour.