Golf is the game of presidents, rich men, and celebrities. But not all pro golfers have to look like Arnold Palmer. In the ever-competitive world of professional golf, there's a woman who's becoming a definite stand-out amongst the rest. Her name is Paige Spiranac, and she's made a career out of her looks and ability with the club.

Looking gorgeous both in the grass and on the Internet, Spiranac is a rising star on social media, and she knows how to make the most out of her head-turning appearance. But there's a whole lot more to her than just a pretty face and a talent for sports. Today, let's take a closer look at what makes Spiranac such a special woman, Internet personality, and pro athlete.

Why Is She Special?

A good-looking female athlete is hardly a novelty in this day and age. When you spend your life working on your body and staying fit, it's only natural that you'll look like the best possible version of yourself. But Paige Spiranac is not just another gorgeous female athlete.

Yes, her golf skills are impressive, and yes, she looks like she could be a model. But in many ways, it's Spiranac's work away from the grass that makes her so unique. Over the years, she's become a major social media personality, and she's worked hard in the fight against the scourge of cyber-bullying. But how did she do it?

From Colorado To The World

On March 26th, 1993, Paige Spiranac was born in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Her family is from Croatian heritage, but she has always lived in the U.S. Coming from a household in which sports were the norm, Spiranac was kept away in her bubble, being homeschooled to find enough time to train.

But while there are some downsides to being homeschooled, Spiranac ended up making the most out of the experience. She grew up amongst aspiring gymnasts, and she was heavily bullied as a kid - an experience that would severely impact her life as an adult.

A Heavy Load To Carry

There's more to Spiranac's DNA than the blessed genes that have made her look like THAT! Besides a pretty face, Spiranac also inherited her love for sports from her parents. Her father is Dan Spiranac, a former college football champion who played for the Pittsburg Panthers in the mid-'70s.

The other ladies in Paige's family also have a passion for sports. Her mother Annette was a skilled ballerina, and her older sister Lexie received a college athletic scholarship. She joined Stanford University to compete in the track and field team. As for Paige, she had big dreams of one day, making it into the Olympics.

Paige's Gymnastic Dreams

Aspiring female athletes don't usually think of golf as their predilected sport. And Paige Spiranac was no exception. While growing up, she had one goal and one goal only: to make it as a top-level professional gymnast. Homeschooled, she spent most of the time training, working 7 hours a day, seven days a week.

A naturally ambitious young girl, Paige counted with the full support of her family, who knew what it was like to do well in the world of sports. But as Paige worked hard to excel as a gymnast, she was also forced to deal with some not-so-nice colleagues.

A Bullying Victim

It's hard to believe it now, but Spiranac was a victim of bullying while growing up. As a child, she had asthma. Additionally, she had a rare medical condition that caused her hair to fall. The result? She was forced to wear a bowl cut, which made her the punchline to many kid's jokes.

Kids can be ruthless, even if they don't know it. And Paige certainly understands the impact of being bullied as a kid. When she left school, the bullying continued, this time coming from her fellow gymnastic colleagues.

How Bad Was It? Very Bad

You may be thinking right now, "well, we've all been bullied as kids; it's just natural." But in Paige's case, things weren't so simple. She always felt like the weird, outsider kid. And her mean colleagues went as far as throwing rocks at her during recess on one or two occasions.

Even today, as a successful, rich, and beautiful young adult, Spiranac is still working hard to overcome the trauma she experienced as a child. That's why she's so active in her campaign against cyber-bullying, and so emotional when speaking of matters like these.

A Stolen Dream

As if growing up with a rare scalp condition wasn't enough, yet another medical problem shook Spiranac's life as a child. At the young age of 12, she was already making a name for herself in the gymnastics world, being asked to train at the same gym where celebrated American gymnast Kerri Strug learned her art.

But then, a series of severe kneecap injuries crushed Spiranac's Olympic dream for good. Call it fate, destiny, or doom. Either way, a young 12-year-old Paige was forced to deal with heartbreaking disappointment and find a new passion in life.

Rising From the Ashes

With an injured knee, Paige's future in sports seemed unlikely. But she was such a natural-born athlete that she still wanted to pursue her dreams of making a name for herself in the world of sports. At first, she tried tennis, but things didn't click for her.

Then, following a suggestion from her father, Paige decided to give golf a try. And the chemistry was immediate. While Paige didn't have the knees to make it in gymnastics, she still had the mindset of an ambitious future pro athlete. And her Olympic dreams were quickly replaced by the goal of excelling on the golf course.

Golf Is In Her Blood

It's funny how things turn out sometimes. Paige discovered golf only because she had her Olympic dreams crushed. But with the club in her hand and the grass below her feet, she ended up finding her true vocation.

Spiranac's junior golf career couldn't have started better. She won 5 of the first seven statewide junior golf tournaments in which she competed, which quickly allowed her to become one of the top 20 junior golf athletes in the world! Golf may have started as a plan B for the gorgeous woman from Colorado, but it was now an all-consuming passion for the future superstar.

Leaving Home

In 2011, it was time for the homeschooled Paige Spiranac to leave home. She decided to take a scholarship from the University of Arizona, leaving behind her smalltown in Colorado. During her college years, Spiranac continued to do what she loves most: playing golf.

In her freshman year, Spiranac attended only three golf tournaments but got some incredible results, including a 73 score. However, Paige never felt at home in Arizona. She was once again the victim of her colleagues, who spread some unfounded rumors about her. At the year's end, she decided it was time for yet another significant change.

It Finally Feels Right

After a troubled freshman year in Arizona, Spiranac decided to move to California, and she couldn't feel more at home in the "Golden State." Attending the San Diego State University, she finally found an environment in which she was respected and beloved by her colleagues.

Also, her promising golf career was finally taking form. She was competing in some major tournaments and getting significant results, including a 5th place in the First-Team All-Mountain West. At the time, she was getting golf advice by the legendary golf coach Leslie Spalding, a former pro golfer who competed in 11 LPGA Tours.

A Leader From Early On

People say game recognizes game, and there's no doubt Leslie Spalding was aware of Spiranac's potential. The reputable coach was impressed by Paige's work ethic, commitment, and personality. So, she decided to name her the captain of the golf team by the time she started her senior year back at San Diego State University.

Coming from a top-10 finish in the Mountain West tournament, Spiranac was quickly becoming San Diego's most prominent female golfer, and she was collecting the results to show for it. After years of dreaming of being respected by her peers and making it in golf, Spiranac was on cloud nine!

Putting the Aztecs on the Map

The San Diego State University Aztecs are mainly known for their baseball and soccer teams. In the past, the college was the home of some notable athletes, such as former soccer star Marcelo Balboa and former MLB pitcher Bud Black. But Spiranac was the woman putting the SDSU Aztecs golf team on the map.

Back to the famous Mountain West tournament, the SDSU Aztecs were the favorites! It was a first for the golf team, whose reputation was getting a big boost due to Spiranac's presence. But was Paige going to be up to the high expectations?

Giving Back to San Diego

There's no doubt SDSU did a lot of good for Paige, who finally felt like she could count on the support of the people around her. But Paige, being a kind and determined young girl, decided to give back to the school. And she did so by winning the Mountain West tournament for the SDSU Aztecs for the first time in history!

Yes, she was able to prove her admirers right and show why she was one of the most promising female golfers in the U.S. But as Paige was hitting gold on the grass, she was also making headlines on the Internet, for reasons not always related to golf...

Tricks & Treats

Life can't be all about hard work, so Spiranac loved to film short movies of her golf tricks whenever she was taking a break from training. The videos are lovely and fun, with the golfer showcasing some impressive freestyle tricks. But nobody expected the videos to become an Internet sensation.

Still, as Paige dreamt of being a pro golfer, she started uploading the videos to her social media pages, and immediately got a lot of attention! With it, came the good... and the bad. On the one hand, she was getting on the list of some major golf promoters; on the other, she was once again feeling the effects of bullying, this time via some hurtful comments on the Internet.

A Sports Bae

 

With her tricks videos making the rounds all over the web, Spiranac was getting on the radar of thousands of people. And quite naturally, online viewers realized she was not only talented but also gorgeous! Paige ended up making headlines on a popular sports blog called Total Frat Move, and her Internet reputation got a big boost.

She went from having an impressive 10,000 followers on social media to having a whopping 100,000 legion of fans. There was no doubt about it now: Paige's dreams of making it in the pro golf circuit could benefit a lot from her newfound celebrity status.

The Twitter Message That Changed Everything

It's funny how things work. In a few years, Spiranac went from being a bullied young girl with a dream of making it in golf to become a bonafide Internet celebrity who happened to be what golf needed. Paige was getting all the free clubs she could store and starting to promote some big brands online when she received a life-changing direct message on Twitter.

The message came from a golf promoter from Dubai, who wanted Paige to attend her first-ever pro golf tournament. Interestingly enough, the promoter believed Paige's presence would help to improve the tournament's recognition.

Ready to Fly

It wasn't such a hard decision for Paige. After receiving the invitation from the Dubai golf promoter, the young athlete knew this could be her big break. And she wasn't wrong. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to show the best women in the game that she belonged amongst the pros.

Spiranac's professional debut was set to happen in the far-away city of Dubai, on the $500K-prized Omega Dubai Ladies Classic. But since golf is a very traditional sport, there was no shortage of unpleasant comments coming from lots of people who weren't so happy about Paige's odd presence.

Bullied Yet Again

The scourge of bullying seemed to follow Spiranac around, even during one of the best moments of her life. Before attending her first-ever pro-competition in Dubai, Paige was heavily criticized by some of the sport's biggest names, including the legendary Hall of Fame golfer Laura Davies.

To the more traditional golf enthusiasts, Spiranac was no more than a pretty face with a minor talent for golf, whose presence amongst the pros was nothing but a grotesque publicity stunt. But was Paige going to be able to silence the harsh critics?

Losing Without Failing

The line that separates a college-level golf tournament from a pro-competition is one that's hard to bear. And, as expected, Spiranac's first top-level effort wasn't brilliant. She finished in 101st, only six positions away from the last-placed athlete, which is not that bad for a golfer who'd appeared out of nowhere!

But in Spiranac's defeat, there was a taste of victory. The 2015 edition of the Omega Dubai Ladies Classic was getting unprecedented levels of attention, with camera crews rushing-in from all over the place. And the main reason for all the hype was Paige Spiranac's presence.

A Genuine Love For the Game

It's the unrequested fate of the gorgeous men and women of this world: no matter how hard you try to do something, people will always think of your looks first. For Spiranac, this was true. After her big Dubai debut, she was hardly as excited as the promoters.

While Spiranac's presence in Dubai was great to get the tournament some exposure, it wasn't that great for the athlete on a purely competitive level. Disappointed with her unimpressive 101st place, Paige considered quitting golf for good. She wanted to play golf out of genuine love for the game, not to be used by the promoters as some marketing product.

Never Sell-Out on Your Passion!

Following her breakthrough Dubai appearance, Spiranac's phone was ringing loudly with proposals. But Spiranac was afraid the requests were more about her Internet fame than her golf skills. Deciding not to sell-out on her passion, the young golfer chose to quit on the big-money tournaments to play on some smaller golf competitions.

That's how she went from entering the $500K-prized Omega Dubai Ladies Classic to attend the Arizona Cactus Tour, which had a total prize pool of just $12K! Some would call it a huge career drop. But for Spiranac, the humble Cactus Tour ended up being the place for self-discovery and personal gratification.

A Big Win For a Happy Lady

Being an amateur competition, the Cactus Tour is still far from easy. All the best amateur golfers in the U.S. get together for the tournament, which may help to explain why Spiranac's first effort resulted in a slightly disappointing 14th place. Her money prize? A rather insignificant $100 check.

But as Paige continued to improve amongst the other amateurs, she was able to get in the best shape of her life and pull-off a massive victory on the Cactus Tour. The ending couldn't have been more exciting: a sudden-death face-off against Hannah O'Sullivan, who was at the time the number 1 female amateur golfer in the world.

The Career Switch

As Spiranac got older, it was time to make some big decisions. And after years of trying to make it in the world of golf, the young girl from Colorado decided to put the club down and focus on her social media status. It's not a surprising decision, especially when you consider the financial aspect.

You can't make a living out of $100 amateur golf checks, and Spiranac was able to cash-in ten to one-hundred times that value with a single promoted publication on her social media accounts. It was official: the gorgeous Spiranac was finally ready to take her place as a bonafide Internet superstar.

Giving Back to Golf

Even though the golf community didn't broadly accept Spiranac, she was still a big part of it. To many outsiders, she was the only female golfer they could name, even though she competed mostly in the amateur circuits. With a new agent and a new posture in life, Spiranac was introduced to the legendary former golfer Annika Sorenstam.

Sorenstam is regarded as one of the best female golfers in history, and she convinced Spiranac to continue working to promote the sport. Out of the grass, Spiranac could still play a significant role in helping golf to become a more popular and widespread game.

Supporting The Causes She Believes In

Making a living out of her high-profile social media pages, Spiranac has worked mainly in promoting golf-related brands on the Internet. But she's partnering with the brands and causes she loves the most. She signed a deal with Parsons Xtreme Golf, which allowed her to support women's golf and anti-bullying while also making some big bucks!

Spiranac's also collaborated with an app called 18Birdies, which wants to promote golf as a more socially-orientated sport. Additionally, she became a spokesperson for the Cybersmile Foundation, which focuses on raising awareness of the issue of cyber-bullying.

Fighting Back

For a woman who's traumatized by bullying, choosing to become a social media superstar may not be the smartest choice. But Spiranac is a fighter, and she now understands that bullying is a natural part of life. As a social media celebrity, she knows all about receiving nasty comments and unfounded accusations.

To make the world a better place, Spiranac is using her personal experiences with bullying to inspire young children, especially girls. She talks about bullying on social media all the time, and she's highly involved in many anti-bullying efforts. Spiranac knows by experience how hurtful bullying can be, so she's fighting back to raise awareness of the issue and inspire others.

Sorry Guys, She's Taken!

With her professional life finally on the track, it was time for Spiranac to get some much-deserved love. And that's what she got when she first laid eyes on the minor-league baseball player Steven Tinoco. The two met via Instagram, with Tinoco first posing as just another fan.

But the baseball player had some big ambitions on his heart. After a relatively casual first encounter, Tinoco asked Spiranac on a proper date, and the social media superstar said yes. After a couple of months of woo, Spiranac finally fell for her passionate suitor.

A Fulfilled Woman

Steven Tinoco made a big impression on Spiranac, mainly for being such a gentleman. She praised his willingness to treat her like a lady, opening the door for her and bringing her flowers. Tinoco was an old-fashion kind of guy, and Paige found it refreshingly different from her past relationships.

In 2016, a bewitched Tinoco proposed to Spiranac. Two years later, the lovebirds tied the knot. Now 27-years-old, Spiranac is a fulfilled woman, both in her professional and personal life. And at this point, we cannot wait to see what's next for the bonafide golf superstar!