The swing was so fundamentally sound that it got the attention of anyone who knew and cared about golf, even those considered to be among the greatest to ever play.
The appeal was so strong that it carried an entire tour, even as the attention became suffocating. The rate of winning was unprecedented. No one had ever held all four major championships at the same time.
That was the essence of Mickey Wright.
Unlike the modern version — Tiger Woods — Wright was consumed more with seeking perfection in the golf swing than utter domination, although one led to the other.
“I was always practicing, and re-practicing, the same thing, over and over and over,” Wright said in a 2011 interview with The Associated Press. “You never get it. You just borrow it for a day or two. The feel of contact with a golf ball is unlike anything I ever experienced. And I loved it."
Wright died on Monday of a heart attack at age 85, leaving behind a legacy that is measured as much by aesthetic beauty of her swing as her 82 victories and 13 majors during a comet-like career on the LPGA Tour.
She retired from full-time competition in 1969 when she was 34.
No telling how many times she could have won.