Hilary Watson, the wife of golf legend Tom Watson, has died after battling pancreatic cancer according to Golfweek. She was 63 years old. Hilary found out she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2017. She received chemotherapy and had surgery to remove the tumor. Tom Watson’s agent, Barry Hyde, confirmed the news that Hilary passed away on Wednesday night.
Tom Watson posted a Facebook video about his wife in December. 2017 and he admired her fight each and every day. He said, “You think cancer, you think end of life thoughts. The more I see her … around people with this disease, it seems like she could care less about it. She’s just going to carry on with her life and let the doctors take care of her. I know one thing, she’s a lot stronger than I am.”
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Former PGA President Ted Bishop sent a message to Tom and Hilary as soon he heard the news.
“Tom will tell you that Hilary was his hero. … and for many reasons. How these two people dealt with the devastation of the worst that cancer can muster up is truly an inspiration to us all,” Bishop said on Facebook. “Hilary was a beautiful woman who was also one of the fiercest competitors who ever lived. Tom is an 8-time major champion golfer, but more so a man who has always dealt with adversity in amazing ways. Its a sad day, but Hilary’s fight is over and she leaves us with many beautiful memories.”
Tom Watson, 70, has won eight major championships in his career and he led the PGA money list five times. He won the British Open in 1975, 1977, 1980, 1982 and 1983. He also won The Masters in 1977 and 1981 and he won the U.S. Open in 1982. In July, Tom Watson played in his final Senior British Open in July and he talked about how he enjoyed his career.
“I’ve had a good career playing professional golf all these years,” he said at the time. “I’ve run across so many fine people who have helped me and supported me. First of all, my wife who is battling cancer now. It’s going to give me some time to go out and compete with her.”
Hilary Watson married Tom in 1999 and she had a passion for cutting horse which is “a western type of equestrian that has roots in ranching. A memorial service will be held on Dec. 4 at United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas.
