Gretchen Grote grew up in Dubuque, Iowa, and took up the game when she attended free junior golf lessons with Dubuque Country Club professional Howie Atten. She had a stellar high school career, including state titles for Dubuque High School. Gretchen did not play golf in college, but she continued to play competitively while earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. She burst on to the South Dakota golf scene in 1968, winning the SDGA Women’s Amateur Championship on her first try. That began an incredible run for Gretchen at the Women’s Amateur, where in the next 11 years she added three more titles and had five runner-up finishes. Gretchen was named Independent Female Athlete of the Year in 1971 by the South Dakota Sportwriters Association.
