Alison Reifers Cress was born in Ashland, Ohio and grew up playing the Country Club of Ashland.

As an amateur golfer, Alison's career is highlighted by her win at the Women's Ohio State Golf Association Amateur Championship in 1991.

She won the Franklin County Women's Amateur Championship nine times from 1981 to 2004. She is also a five-time winner of the OWGA Stroke Play Championship. In 2019, she won the Women's Akron District Golf Association Championship.

Overall, she qualified for 10 USGA Championships and made match play in six of them.

As a senior amateur, she qualified for the U.S. Women's Senior Amateur and won back-to-back WOSGA state senior titles in 2006 and 2007. Alison also added the WOSGA State Super Senior Championship title to her list of accomplishments in 2025 at Lancaster Country Club. In 2012, Alison tied for 8th and was low-American in the Irish Senior Women's Open at Royal Belfast.

A number of Alison's accomplishments in the game of golf have come without a club in her hand. Alison co-founded and coached the inaugural Girls Golf team at Dublin Coffman High School, taking them to the State Championship by year two.

Alison was instrumental in the founding and running of the Babe Zaharias Classic for over 20 years. The event was the largest fundraiser of its kind in the nation for the American Cancer Society during her involvement.

She has also been a member of the Golfweek Magazine Course Rating panel since 2007 and has served on many boards, including the Nike Golf Player Board and the Travel and Leisure Golf Magazine Board.

Locally, she worked for 25+ years in the Media Press Room for the Memorial Tournament. In 1999 and 2000, she worked for Executive Sports International selling sponsorships for the 2000 LPGA Wendy's Championship for Children.

Alison has also worked as VP of Strategic Planning for Pro Golf Car and at the Greenbrier Resort as Director of Special Events.

Alison's son, Kyle, is a former PGA TOUR player and the winner of the 2004 Ohio Amateur Championship.