Rogers, Arkansas — Stacy Lewis didn’t have to announce her retirement this week at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. She could have done it at a major, on TV, or quietly through a press release. But for a player whose career has always been as much about people and place as it has been about trophies, there was only one stage that fit.
“This was the only place to announce this,” Lewis said, holding back tears as she faced the media in Rogers. “This was where my career started, so really it was the only place to do it.”
For Lewis, who once wore a back brace for 18 hours a day as a child and underwent spinal fusion surgery before she ever teed it up in college, the full circle was poetic. The Arkansas Razorback who blossomed into a two-time major champion, world No. 1, and Solheim Cup captain will close her career in the same state that gave her a chance when few others believed she’d ever swing freely again.
The Brace, the Rod, and the Start of a Legacy
Lewis was born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1985 and grew up in The Woodlands, Texas. At age 11, she was diagnosed with scoliosis, a spinal curvature that can warp posture and mobility. For seven long years, she wore a brace through school and sleep, removing it only to practice golf.
When she finally underwent spinal fusion surgery as a teenager, a titanium rod and five screws were inserted into her back. She missed her freshman season at Arkansas, redshirting while she slowly rebuilt her swing. At the time, her only goal was modest: to play golf again.
But by the end of her college career, she was an All-American, SEC champion, 2007 NCAA individual champion, and the star of the 2008 Curtis Cup team that went undefeated. She had transformed adversity into fuel, emerging as one of the most promising amateurs in the country.
A Professional Career Marked by Persistence and Peaks
Turning pro in 2008, Lewis earned her LPGA Tour card a year later. Her rise was steady rather than meteoric, defined by persistence. In 2011, she broke through with a major at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, defeating world No. 1 Yani Tseng in the California desert.
In 2013, she added her second major, the Women’s British Open at St Andrews, holding her nerve on the Old Course in brutal Scottish winds. By 2014, she had reached world No. 1 and had captured multiple Rolex Player of the Year awards and back-to-back Vare Trophies for lowest scoring average.
“I think you never top winning at St Andrews,” Lewis reflected this week. “Really proud of the Vare Trophies and the Player of the Year awards. Those season-long races take playing good golf for an extended amount of time, and I think those are the things I’m most proud of on the course.”
Her resume: 13 LPGA Tour victories, two majors, 25 weeks ranked world No. 1, two Player of the Year honors, and four Solheim Cup appearances.
More Than Numbers: The Advocate and the Captain
Lewis’ true impact, though, goes beyond numbers. In 2017, after Hurricane Harvey devastated Houston, she donated her entire $195,000 winner’s check from the Cambia Portland Classic to relief efforts, prompting sponsors to match her gift.
She helped transform the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship into one of the LPGA’s flagship events, boosting prize money and prestige. She pushed for maternity policy reforms on Tour. And as Solheim Cup captain, she cultivated a culture of accountability and resilience, serving as both mentor and tactician.
“I’ve been pretty involved in what’s going on behind the scenes,” Lewis said. “I hope to continue to make an impact on this Tour. I did it while I was playing — bringing sponsors and fans in — but I want to keep finding ways to give back.”
The Body’s Final Say
Even as she pushed the Tour forward, Lewis’ body kept pulling her back. A rib injury in 2019 created lingering pain on her right side, compounded by years of overcompensation.
“Really since then I’ve just had a lot of trouble with my right side,” she explained. “I’ve got a part of my back that doesn’t move and doesn’t rotate. To think that 20 years later I would still be swinging a golf club at this level is really pretty remarkable. I’m just grateful.”
She admits her practice regimen has dwindled. “The amount of time and energy you have to put into competing at this level — I physically can’t do it anymore,” she said.
Full Circle in Arkansas
The symbolism of announcing retirement in Arkansas was not lost on anyone. For years, she was the lone Razorback on the LPGA, the crowd following her every shot with “Hog calls.”
“No other players have had this,” Lewis smiled. “So to start and finish it here is just really fitting.”
She will even carry an Arkansas bag this week, a nod to her roots and the people who lifted her there.
What She Leaves Behind
Lewis has long been viewed by her peers as something of a “Founder,” in the tradition of the women who built the LPGA from scratch. She embraced that responsibility.
“My advice to younger players is: take ownership of this Tour. It’s nobody else’s. You have to be the salespeople, you have to take care of it. The way we leave a golf course is a reflection of us.”
That sense of stewardship, combined with her example of resilience, makes her legacy as enduring as her wins.
The Next Chapter
At 40, Lewis is ready for more family time. Her six-year-old daughter, Chesnee, has been traveling the world with her. “She told me, ‘I’m ready for you to be done.’ And I said, ‘I know. I am too.’”
As for her professional future, Lewis isn’t rushing. “I don’t have a job lined up, but I want to continue to help this Tour. I love these girls. It’s been so much fun to play against them, and I want to keep giving back.”
The Legacy of Stacy Lewis
Stacy Lewis will be remembered as a champion, a leader, and an advocate. But perhaps most of all, she will be remembered as a model of resilience: the girl who wore a brace, endured surgery, and still reached world No. 1; the woman who lifted trophies in the shadow of St Andrews; the captain who taught others how to lead.
“Sometimes things that are scary end up okay,” she reflected as she looked toward her final events.
For Lewis, things turned out better than okay. They turned out historic.
Disclaimer: This profile combines reporting from Stacy Lewis’s September 18, 2025 press conference transcript, her Wikipedia biography, and contemporary news coverage.
