Leslie Spalding
Hometown: Billings, Mont. High School: Billings Senior Position: Head Coach Birthdate: 02/22/1969 Experience: 2nd Season at SDSU Alma Mater: Alabama, 1992

Leslie Spalding begins her second season as head women's golf coach at San Diego State in 2012-13. She played on the LPGA Tour for 10 years, and previously was the head coach at Montana State for four seasons.

In her first year at the helm of SDSU, Spalding directed the program to its third consecutive NCAA regional bid and its highest finish at the Mountain West championship in a decade. The team posted top-five performances in six events and claimed a title at the Wyoming Cowgirl Desert Intercollegiate in early October by overcoming a 10-stroke deficit with just 18 holes to play.

Individually, Spalding helped junior Christine Wong become the first Aztec to be named the Mountain West Women's Golfer of the Year. Wong led the league in stroke average (73.94), claimed medalist honors twice and finished second at the 2012 conference championships. She was joined on the all-MW squad by senior Malin Enarsson, as the pair were the first Aztecs to do so on multiple occasions during their careers in the 13-year history of the league.

Spalding played on the LPGA Tour from 1996 to 2005, competing in 215 events and earning more than $600,000 in prize money. She recorded seven top-10 finishes, including a career-best third-place showing at the 2001 ShopRite LPGA Classic, when she carded a career-low 64 in the final round. The Billings, Mont., native also tallied back-to-back top-10 performances in 2002 at the LPGA Corning Classic and the Kellogg-Keebler Classic, and came in sixth at the 2000 LPGA Corning Classic and the 1998 Weetabix Women's British Open.

Spalding began her professional playing career in 1992, competing on both the Futures and Gold Coast Tours before earning exempt status for the LPGA Tour for the first time in 1996.

Spalding was named the head women's golf coach at Montana State University in Bozeman, Mont., in the fall of 2007. On the course, she helped Kelly Gillum capture the 2008-09 Big Sky Conference Player-of-the-Year award, becoming just the second women's golfer in school history to do so. Off the course, Spalding helped raise over $100,000 to support the golf program and created the team's 19th Hole Booster Club.

As a collegian, Spalding attended the University of Alabama on a golf scholarship from 1987 to 1991. She won a pair of tournaments for the Crimson Tide, the 1990 Neva McCall/Alabama Intercollegiate and the 1991 Women's Southern Intercollegiate, before earning her bachelor's degree in telecommunication/film with a minor in marketing in 1992.

Spalding prepped at Billings Senior High School, where she won the 1986-87 girls' state title. She also captured consecutive Montana state women's amateur championships in both 1991 and 1992.

Spalding has been a PGA Member since 1995, and worked as a teaching professional at Yegen Golf Club in Billings, Mont., from 2006-07. She has extensive experience in fund raising and marketing, having played regularly in charity Pro-Am events as a LPGA Tour player and independent contractor, and secured a sponsorship with Heinz Foods Service as a tour player.

The Leslie Spalding File
Birthdate: February 22, 1969
Hometown: Billings, Mont.
High School: Billings Senior High School
Alma Mater: Alabama, 1992
Collegiate Playing Career: Alabama, 1987-91

Collegiate Coaching Experience:
2011-present - San Diego State University - Women's Head Coach

2007-11 - Montana State University - Women's Head Coach

Professional Playing Experience:
1996-2005 - LPGA Tour

Athletic Achievements:

�� 1986-87 Montana State Class AA High School Champion
�� 1990 Neva McCall/Alabama Intercollegiate Champion
�� 1991 Women's Southern Intercollegiate (WSIC) Champion
�� 1991, 1992 Montana State Women's Amateur Champion
�� Competed in 215 LPGA Tour events from 1996-2005
�� Seven top-10 finishes on the LPGA Tour
�� Tied for sixth place at the 1998 Weetabix Women's British Open
�� Ninth place at the 1999 Chick-fil-A Charity Championship
�� Sixth place at the 2000 LPGA Corning Classic
�� Tied for third place at the 2001 ShopRite LPGA Classic
�� Back-to-back top-10 finishes at the 2002 LPGA Corning Classic (tied-9th) 
and Kellogg-Keebler Classic (tied-7th)