BY IRIS B. HOLTON
Sentinel City Editor

The first woman to play golf in Tampa during the segregation era died. Mrs. Gwendolyn “Honey” Tucker, who was 90, passed on Monday.

Mrs. Tucker moved to Tampa as a youngster and attended the public schools of Hillsborough County. She graduated from Middleton High School in 1936.

Mrs. Tucker married James Tucker and they became the parents of two daughters.

Her daughter, Mrs. Arletha Davis said Mrs. Tucker became involved in golf during the construction of the Rogers Park Golf Course in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

“The professional golfers who visited Rogers Park would teach and that is how she learned the game. She would partner with my husband, the late Equilla Davis, and they would be others teams,” Mrs. Davis said.

Mrs. Tucker became the first African American woman to play at Rogers Park Golf Course. She continued to play for several years until her health failed, her daughter said.

Fellow golfer Rufus Lewis said, “She was very good and would beat the men. None of the women wanted to play her.”

In addition to playing golf, Mrs. Tucker was active in the community. She often narrated fashion shows and organized the Golden Angels Club, a social organization involving women in the church.

Mrs. Davis said her mother also worked with teenagers teaching them how to speak in public.

Mrs. Tucker was a member of New Salem Missionary Baptist Church for several years. She later moved her membership to First Baptist Church of West Tampa, her daughter said.

Funeral services for Mrs. Tucker will be held on Saturday, March 3. Ray Williams Funeral Home is in charge of handling arrangements.