NJSGA Hall of Fame Class of 2023 Spotlight: Ann Probert
Photo by USGA/Robert Walker
KENILWORTH, N.J. – Touted as one of the top female amateur golfers of her time in the Metropolitan area, Ann Probert undoubtedly left her mark on the game in more ways than one.
Probert unintentionally got started with the game of golf at a young age. Her father built their family a home alongside the 18th hole of Rock Spring Golf Club. Starting off at the tennis courts, Probert found that there weren’t as many tennis players as there were golfers at Rock Spring, so she shifted her focus to golf, and the access to the facility was effortless.
“Living right there, it was so easy to just walk out onto the 18th hole,” Probert recalled. “I would go out in bare feet, carry my own bag and I started hitting the ball and it seemed to come somewhat easily.”
As her capabilities in the game grew, her love for the game grew, too. At age 14, Probert began taking lessons from the assistant professional at Rock Spring.
“I was able to hit the ball pretty well, play pretty well and decided I really loved the game.”’
After some convincing, Probert took the leap and registered for the Women’s Metropolitan Golf Association (WMGA) Junior Girls’ Championship and New Jersey Junior Girls’ Championships in 1956. She proceeded to win both and then her first Rock Spring Club Championship, which flipped a switch in Probert.
“I won three championships that year, which was really exciting,” Probert recalled. “That certainly put me on the road to really loving the game and wanting to continue to play.”
Her exemplary play continued throughout her teenage years but as she began school at Smith College, her play took a short pause. Following college graduation, Ann married the late Ted Probert in 1960 and they went on to have three kids together and enjoy 62 years of marriage. All while raising three kids, Probert made time to play and even compete, really well at that. For Probert, her talents on the golf course came fairly naturally and she would pick up right where she left off.
“People always teased me because I was always running a little late getting to the tournaments and I'd arrive and I’d hardly warm up before I went out and I'd raced to the tee and be almost tying my shoes by the time I got there,” Probert joked.
Overall, Probert collected more than a dozen statewide and Met Area titles. She went on to collect the four WMGA Stroke-Play Championships, five Women’s New Jersey Stroke Play Championships and 14 Garden State Women’s Championships. She has competed in six U.S. Women’s Amateur Championships as well as the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship and the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship. Probert represented the WMGA 11 times in the Griscom Cup matches. In 1982 and 1989, Probert finished as runner-up in the New Jersey Women’s Amateur Championship. One of Probert’s most impressive feats is her 25 Club Championships at Somerset Hills Country Club. The top-100 club thinks so highly of Probert, they named the Ann L. Probert Championship trophy.
Probert’s influence and affect on the game has spanned further than her play on the golf course. She served the USGA for 11 years on the Junior Girls’ Championship Committee, nine years on the Women’s Committee and was the Chairperson of the Senior Women’s Amateur. She also served as WMGA president in 1991-92 where she helped found the WMGA Foundation and served as its president in 2004-06.
“I can't tell you how much golf has meant to me in my life,” Probert expressed. “Not just playing the game, but the very close friendships that I've been able to make throughout my life. That’s certainly the biggest benefit of all.”
Her commitment to growing the game has been recognized on the local and national level. In 2002, Probert was awarded the WMGA Judy Bell award and in 2009, the prestigious Ike Grainger Award by the United States Golf Association.
“There’s been a huge movement and a lot of that is attributed to the organizational work that's being done on local levels and with organizations that are promoting and supporting girls golf so much more than they did initially,” said Probert.
Probert also served on the board and as a President for the Jersey Battered Women’s Service, an organization her and her late husband were passionate about.
The 2023 Hall of Fame Class will officially be inducted on May 3, 2023 at Galloping Hill Golf Course. Tickets are available and can be purchased HERE.
All-Time NJSGA Hall of Fame Inductees
The NJSGA Hall of Fame, which launched in 2018, has inducted George A. Crump (2022), David Glenz (2022), Karen Noble (2022), Ed Whitman (2022), “Long” Jim Barnes (2021), Max Marston (2021), Marge Mason (2021), Leighton Calkins (2020), Michael Cestone (2020), Carolyn Cudone (2018), William Y. Dear (2018), Dr. Ralph Engel (2018), Johnny Farrell (2018), Leo Fraser (2019), Vic Ghezzi (2018), Charlotte Glutting (2018), Sherry Herman (2020), Arthur “Red” Hoffman (2018), Robert Housen (2018), Robert “Bobby” Jacobson (2019), Milton “Babe” Lichardus (2019), Nestor J. MacDonald (2018), Joseph McBride (2019), John McDermott (2020), Byron Nelson (2018), Maureen Orcutt (2018), Dorothy Germain Porter (2019), Chet Sanok (2018), John Shippen (2018), Allan Small (2020), Jeff Thomas (2019), Albert Warren Tillinghast (2018), Jerome Travers (2018), Dennis Walters (2019), Charles Whitehead (2018), Craig Wood (2019), and Billy Ziobro (2019).
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