Whether you know the game of golf or not. Whether you live in Iowa or not. Family, friends and fans of the game of golf are mourning the loss of Corinne Nydle to a form of dementia, in a memory care facility at her adopted home of The Villages in Central Florida.
To call Corkey a good golfer is a gross understatement. She lived and breathed it. She taught it. She officiated it. And she won at it…a lot. But if you played any level of golf in Iowa from the 1950’s through the 1990’s, you likely knew Corkey’s name or saw her play or officiate at numerous tournaments. When we called the Iowa Women’s Amateur Golf Association to inform them of her passing, the person who answered recognized the name right away. Corkey was also an avid collector of golf memorabilia of all kinds, including golf balls signed by famous pro’s and even a club autographed by the great Ben Hogan.
Corkey was even courted by the women who founded the LPGA to join the tour in the 1950’s, but she declined: choosing to raise a family with her late, former husband Fred and daughter Kathy. She was also very much a community-minded person: hosting a radio show from her home on Ottumwa, Iowa’s KBIZ Radio, helping to manage Ottumwa’s Civic Music Association, sharing a love of classical music and opera. She also taught classes at Ottumwa Heights College and hosted activities at the Ottumwa Country Club.
She was also a co-owner of Nydle’s Nook – the corner store and later the gift shop, The Cranny. Eventually, Corkey moved to Cedar Rapids, opened and successfully ran her second Nook an’ Cranny gift shop until she retired and moved to Florida at the age of 72.
Corkey was a graduate of Ottumwa High School, Stephens College (Columbia, Missouri) and the University of Iowa where she was a member of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority. She married Fred Nydle in 1951 – later divorced and left her hometown of Ottumwa for a new life in Cedar Rapids and finally her adopted home in The Villages, Florida.
Corkey is survived by daughter Kathy (Stu) Nicholson, granddaughters Sarah and Jessica and great granddaughter Maria of Columbus Ohio; and lifetime friend, companion and golfing partner Linda Frisch. Per her request, she has been cremated.
