Bonnie P. Blackburn began playing golf in the early 1930s and was a pioneer advocate for women’s athletics in Knoxville. She served four times as president of the Knoxville Area Women’s Golf Association and competed in 37 KAWGA events, winning several. An avid supporter of the Tennessee Junior Golf Association, Blackburn used her knowledge of golf recruits in the Southeast to help Anne Baker Furrow, who was the first female to letter at Tennessee in golf (1965). Blackburn was the first person to endow a full athletic scholarship for women’s golf.
Blackburn was the number one women’s golf fan, attending matches and tournaments as long as she was able. When she died in January 2004, she left money to construct a 5,000-square-foot golf clubhouse as part of the Athletic Department’s Step Up campaign.