Paula Creamer

Paula Creamer (born August 5, 1986), nicknamed the Pink Panther, is an American professional golfer who plays on the U.S.-based Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour. In her four seasons as a professional, she has won 10 tournaments, including eight LPGA Tour events. Creamer has been as high as No. 2 in the Women's World Golf Rankings, and as of June 2009 is the No. 3 female golfer in the world.

Raised in Pleasanton, California, Creamer won numerous junior golf titles; among them were 11 American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) tournaments. Creamer joined the LPGA Tour for the 2005 season, and her victory in that year's Sybase Classic made her the LPGA's second-youngest event winner. After her first professional win, she earned three more titles in 2005, including two in Japan, and was named LPGA Rookie of the Year. Following a winless 2006 season, Creamer won twice in 2007 and four times in 2008.

Paula Creamer was born in Mountain View, California, the only child of Paul and Karen Creamer. She was raised in Pleasanton, where the family's home overlooked the first tee of the Castlewood Country Club's golf course. Creamer participated in acrobatic dancing and gymnastics during her childhood, and started playing golf when she was 10 years old. At the age of 12, she won 13 consecutive regional junior events in Northern California, and the following year she became the top-ranked female junior golfer in the state.

During Creamer's amateur career, she won 19 national tournaments, including 11 American Junior Golf Association events, and was named Player of the Year by the AJGA in 2003. On two occasions (2002 and 2003), Creamer played on the United States team in the Junior Solheim Cup. She was a semi-finalist in the 2003 U.S. Girls' Junior Championship and U.S. Women's Amateur Championship, and reached the same stage of both events the following year. In June 2004, Creamer placed second in the LPGA Tour's ShopRite LPGA Classic, finishing one stroke behind Cristie Kerr. Later that year, she tied for 13th in the U.S. Women's Open and represented the United States in the Curtis Cup.

Paula Creamer has endorsement deals with many companies, including TaylorMade-adidas, Citizen Watch Co., NEC, and the Royal Bank of Scotland Group. Golf Digest estimated her 2008 endorsement income to be $4.5 million, an amount that is third-highest among female golfers. Her likeness has been featured in EA Sports' Tiger Woods PGA Tour series of golf video games. Since 2005, Creamer has done charitable work for The First Tee, an organization that benefits junior golfers. She hosts the Paula 4 Kids Celebrity Event, an annual outing that raises money for The First Tee of Sarasota/Manatee. In addition, Creamer has appeared at youth golf clinics and donated scholarships to the IMG Golf Academy.

Due to her fondness for wearing pink, Creamer's friend Casey Wittenberg nicknamed her the "Pink Panther". The sobriquet followed her when she turned pro. In addition to her pink outfits, Creamer sports the color on several of her golf accessories, including her club grips and golf bag. Creamer also uses a Pink Panther club head cover, in a nod to her nickname. She uses a pink golf ball during the last round of every tournament provided by Precept Golf, one of her sponsors.