Golf legend Peggy Kirk Bell dies at 95

Golf legend Peggy Kirk Bell passed away on Wednesday in North Carolina. She was 95 years old.

Bell, who was born Oct. 28, 1921, in Findlay, Ohio, took up golf at the age of 17, and it came to her naturally. Bell won three Ohio Amateurs in the 1940s before winning the 1949 North and South Women’s Amateur and Titleholders Championship for her only LPGA major. She was also a member of the 1950 Curtis Cup team before turning pro.

As a touring pro in the early days of women’s professional golf, Bell became close friends with Babe Didrikson Zaharias. Bell played with Zaharias in her final round before dying from cancer at age 45 in 1956.

Shortly after she married her high-school love, professional basketball player Warren Bell, the couple purchased the Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club in Pinehurst, N.C. The Bells and their family have operated the resort ever since, and it has hosted a variety of major tournaments, including three U.S. Women’s Opens.

In the 1950s, Bell learned how to fly and piloted her way to tournaments. However, an in-air incident in 1959 spooked her into selling her plane. The proceeds were used to build the pool at Pine Needles.

Bell eventually shifted her interests from being a touring pro to a teaching pro, making her a female pioneer in the game. She gave her first lesson in 1954 at the behest of her husband, who was approached by a female guest to learn how to play. Bell said it went poorly. However, she improved from there, becoming a legendary teacher. In 2002, she was the first woman inducted into the World Golf Teachers Hall of Fame.

In 1990, Bell received the Bob Jones Award, the U.S. Golf Association’s highest honor, for distinguished sportsmanship. In 2013, the LPGA presented her with the Patty Berg Award, given to an individual who “exemplifies diplomacy, sportsmanship, goodwill and contributions to the game of golf.”

The Peggy Kirk Bell Girls Golf Tour for juniors was established in 2007.

Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.