Unless you are a true golf aficionado, you may not recognize Mary Stuart’s name. If this is the first you are hearing about her, that’s unfortunate. As far as the sport concerned, she is a legend and truly earned a place among golfing royalty.

Mary loved golf. That may not sound like a big deal until you hear that she is considered to be the first woman to regularly play the game. The sport was popular long before she picked up her first club, but it was exclusively a man’s game. It was Mary Stuart who broke that glass ceiling.

She learned the game as a young girl, and it became a lifelong passion. It was how she spent her free time. It was her preferred method for dealing with stress. It was on the golf course that she dealt with the terrible news that her husband had been murdered.

By all accounts, Mary was quite good at the game. Her name may not be as well-associated with golf as such professionals as Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, or Tiger Woods, but evidence of her influence can be seen on every golf course. Mary came from a privileged family, and when she played, she always had someone carry her clubs for her. Her favorite attendants tended to be military cadets. It is for this reason that we refer to those people as “caddies” today.

No, you may not associate Mary Stuart with golf, but hopefully, you will remember her devotion and contribution to the game the next time you play or drive past a golf course. Give some thought to the lady who showed that a woman can play a man’s game just as well as anyone.

You might also reflect on how she demonstrated this same characteristic in other areas of her life. When she wasn’t on the golf course, Mary Stuart spent her days doing something else that was traditionally a man’s job: governing a nation.

Maybe you don’t recognize Mary Stuart’s name because you remember her by another: Mary, Queen of Scots.

---