For women, earning a name in sports was a very challenging task in the old days. Despite their outstanding achievements many athletic ladies failed to enjoy the kind of popularity and perks which their male counterparts enjoyed. But thankfully times are changing now. 

From Serena Williams to Annika Sorenstam to Simone Biles many ladies have not only achieved success in their fields but have also become the face of their sports. However, there is a very successful female golfer who many don’t know about but her incredible achievements on the tour speak volumes.

LPGA legend who won a major championship days after cancer-related surgery

NBA legend Michael Jordan has many big wins to celebrate. However, a special win that he acquired despite being very sick is considered among his special wins. In 1997, Jordan was suffering from the flu and couldn’t even hold his own head up. But he led Chicago Bulls to victory and the match became famous as “Flu Game.”

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And recently a Twitter user making a reference to the game asked the Twitteratis: “Besides Michael Jordan’s “flu game”, can you think of another athlete who gave an epic performance despite being sick or injured?” To which Justin Ray, Head of Content at Golf Channel, reminded the world of veteran golfer Babe Zaharias, who won a major championship in 1954 days after fighting a battle with life-threatening cancer.

Babe Zaharias, whose original name was Mildred Ella Didrikson, has made some incomparable contributions in women’s golf. She was the co-founder of the LPGA and was also a World Golf Hall of Famer.

In her playing days, Zaharias participated in and won numerous championships as an amateur and a pro. Due to her achievements, she is also referred to as the “greatest female athlete in history” and she proved the title right by winning the 1954 US Women’s Open only a month after her cancer-related surgery. 

Babe Zaharias’ incredible US Women’s Open win

In 1953, Zaharias was diagnosed with colon cancer. She underwent surgery, she made a comeback the next year. One month after the surgery, she competed at the US Women’s Open championship and won by 12 shots while wearing a colostomy bag. This win made her the second-oldest woman to win a major LPGA championship tournament after Fay Crocker. A very special feat indeed. 

Unfortunately, her cancer returned two years later and Zaharias passed away at a very early age. But she was a fighter all her life. In 1957, she was given the Bobby Jones Award posthumously for her contributions.

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