In conjunction with the United States celebrating its 250th birthday this year, USA Today Co. newspapers in Michigan have been looking at some of the top athletes to come out of each region in the state.
Over the last few weeks, the Lansing State Journal has unveiled some of the top athletes to come out of Greater Lansing. This is the final story in our daily series taking a look at the top 10 male or female athletes from the region. These athletes are determined by more than just high school performance. Accomplishments in college and as a professional were also taken into consideration when determining the area’s best.
The athletes are not ranked in order. Here is a look at our latest female athlete.
Sue Ertl
The Ionia graduate put together a strong golf career that included being inducted into the Michigan State Athletics, Women’s Collegiate Golf and Michigan Golf Hall of Fames.
The first taste of golf success for Ertl came when she won the Ionia Country Club championship as a teenager. Plenty more followed for Ertl when she decided to continue her career at Michigan State. Ertl was the medalist at the Big Ten Championships in 1977 and 1978 and earned All-American honors in 1979. Ertl was also named the first MSU Sportswoman of the Year in 1979.
Ertl joined the LPGA Tour in 1982. She spent 11 seasons on the tour and had a career-best finish of fourth on multiple occasions. In 1990 she crossed the $100,000 mark in single-season earnings for the first time in her career.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Greater Lansing’s best: Ionia’s Sue Ertl thrived as college and pro golfer
Reporting by Brian Calloway, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Brian Calloway, Lansing State Journal | USA TODAY Network
