Natalie Gulbis

 

Professional golf player Natalie Gulbis was born on January 7, 1983 in Sacramento, California. Of Latvian descent, she began taking interest in the sport when she was three years old, and already won her first tournament at age 7. She played her first LPGA event at age 14, although only as an amateur. She entered the University of Arizona, where she played for the women’s golf team, but decided to go professional at age 18.

Gulbis’ career steadily climbed up the ranks during her first five years as a professional player. Although she didn’t win a tournament, she finished sixth on the LPGA money list in 2005, with over $1 million in earnings. That same year, she joined the United States team in the Solheim Cup, which it won. She won her first championship in 2007, defeating Jeong Jang in the final playoff of that year’s Evian Cup.

Gulbis also gained a reputation for being a sex symbol of sorts in golf. Some of her publicity materials were criticized—a calendar she released in 2005 had some photos of her in swimwear, something which the United States Golf Association deemed inappropriate. She also had a pictorial for FHM in 2004, eventually writing a golf column for the magazine two years later. In 2005, she featured in The Natalie Gulbis Show, a reality show aired at The Golf Channel. She also took a slot in the second season of The Celebrity Apprentice. She was fired in the eighth episode of the show because she wasn't able to raise enough money for Ivanka Trump's jewelry brand. Other TV appearances of hers include those in The Price is Right and on Sports Jobs with Junior Seau.