The Extraordinary Mary Bea Porter-King Saves Lives And Championships

A couple of weeks ago, the most famous Mary Bea Porter-King story had good reason for a retelling.

Ana Paula Valdes, a competitor on the Women’s All Pro Tour, had just finished a practice round at Bella Vista Village in Arkansas when she heard the sound of a golf cart crashing into a tree. Valdes ran to the scene where she saw a motionless woman lying face down in a lake. In a wild few minutes, Valdes swam to the woman and received help to bring her to shore. The former Clemson standout playing in just her fourth professional event had gone from eating lunch to saving a life.

Anyone who heard of the heroic act was reminded of a similar incident in 1988 involving Porter-King. At an event in Phoenix, Arizona, she saved a young boy from drowning, and ever since has become synonymous with that life-saving moment.

It’s downright impossible to top a deeply profound experience like swiping someone away from the clutches of death, but Porter-King’s legacy in junior golf deserves great celebration in our game.

Porter-King, the reci...