The tragic story of murdered golfer Marion Miley, a Lexington future star killed in ’41

Editor’s Note: As Lexington celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding, the Herald-Leader and kentucky.com each day throughout 2025 will share interesting facts about our hometown. Compiled by Liz Carey, all are notable moments in the city’s history - some funny, some sad, others heartbreaking or celebratory, and some just downright strange.

Feb. 26, 1943: By all accounts, Marion Miley was a star golfer on her way to great things. When her life was cut short in an apartment above the Lexington Country Club in 1941, Miley’s dreams of becoming a professional golfer died with her.

In 1943, all three of the men involved in the murder of her and her mother were put to death, even though only one of the men pulled the trigger.

Marion Miley was born on Feb. 18, 1914, in Philadelphia. After moving with her family to Fort Pierce, Fla., in 1921, Miley started golfing.

Her father, Fred Miley, was a golf pro and by age 12, Miley had taken up her father’s game. The family later moved to Lexington when her father took a position as the golf pro at the Lexington County Club in 1930.

Miley’s mother, Elsie eventually became the club’s office manager. Miley honed her golf came at the club with her father’s instruction. In 1931, she won her first major title, the Kentucky Women’s Amateur title.

By 1932, she had dropped out of college to focus solely on golf, abandoning her dream to become a doctor. The next year, she participated in the Orange Blossom Tour in Florida and won first place in both the Riviera Championship and the Augusta Invitational, making national headlines alone the way.

Over the next few years, she won more titles and more press acclaim. Lithesome and pretty, she was a media darling noted for her skill at the game and her outgoing personality.

Eventually though, her father moved on to another job at a golf course in Cincinnati. Her mother stayed behind to manage the Lexington Country Club and lived in a two-bedroom apartment at the club. The apartment gave Miley a place to stay between tournaments.

On Sept. 28, 1941, two men broke into the club after a dance to rob the place. The would-be robbers climbed the stairs and were surprised to find Miley there. They shot her in the head at point-blank range. Later, while looking for money, they attacked and then shot her mother, hitting her three times in the stomach.

Miley died instantly. Her mother crawled down the stairs and across Paris Pike to get help. Elsie Miley told police what happened before slipping into a coma and died days later.

Three men were eventually arrested for the crime – Bob Anderson, Tom Penney and club groundskeeper Raymond “Skeeter” Baxter. Baxter had conspired with the other two to steal the money after the dance, not realizing most of the proceeds were put on members accounts. In all, they netted around $120.

The murder of the press darling made national news. Bing Crosby, a famous singer and golfer, offered a reward of $5,000 for information about her killers. Lexington police jumped on the case.

Within 10 days, the first of the three men was arrested. Barely a week and a half later, the two additional men were charged. The three were tried separately, found guilty and sentenced to death.

On Jan. 13, 1943, Penney said in a deposition that his prior statements implicating Anderson were false. Penney said Anderson was not even in Lexington at the time, and that he had said Anderson was involved because he didn’t believe Anderson would be found guilty.

Even with Penney’s confession, and the fact that only man pulled the trigger that killed Miley and her mother, all three of the men were executed for the crime on Feb. 26, 1943.

Today, Miley’s memory lingers. The Lexington Country Club created the Marion Miley Memorial Golf Tournament in her memory. She was inducted into the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017. She is buried in Calvary Cemetery in Lexington near her parents.

Have a question or story idea related to Lexington’s 250-year history? Let us know at 250LexKy@gmail.com.