The Association of Golf Writers has appointed Lewine Mair as its new President, and in accepting the role she becomes the first woman to be awarded the position in the Association’s 83-year history.
Her appointment was confirmed today at the AGW’s annual general meeting held at Royal St George’s Golf Club in Kent, host venue for this week’s rescheduled 149th Open Championship.
Mair becomes the 14th President of the Association and she takes over from Jock MacVicar, who sadly passed away in April.
“I am delighted that Lewine has agreed to become the first woman president of the AGW,” said AGW Chairman Martin Dempster. “Lewine is a highly-respected figure in the game, having already served as the AGW’s first woman Chair from 2007-2010. She has been a trusty committee member for a lengthy period of time and we could not have a more worthy first woman President than Lewine. I am sure her late husband, Norman, would have been very proud of this moment, as, of course, will her children and grandchildren.”
Mair said: “I can’t tell you how honoured I feel to be named as the first woman President of the AGW and to be following in the footsteps of so many well-known AGW writers. There are too many to mention, though I do want to single out my immediate predecessor, Jock MacVicar, whose time in the role was so unfairly cut short.
“It has been an enormous honour to serve the Association as Chair and now, with 43 years of AGW membership under my belt, I hope to be of some use to Martin Dempster, our excellent Chairman, and his team.”
Mair became the first woman to hold a specialist position in the sports department of a national newpaper in the UK when, in 1997, she was appointed golf correspondent of The Daily Telegraph. She is currently a Senior European correspondent for Global Golf Post.