FAQ 61 - Blacks In Golf

Contributors: Angela G. C. Counts, F. Leon Wilson
April, 1997

Black Golf History

African Americans have been a part of the golfing world for years as inventors, greens keepers, caddies and players. The masterful win of Tiger Woods is a milestone that has its origins in the hopes, dreams and skills of the pioneers such as Pete Brown, Lee Elder, Charlie Sifford, Jim Dent and Charlie Owens.

This collection of Web sites gives a glimpse into the history and the explosion of Blacks into the game of golf. Since 1986, the numbers of Black people playing golf in the United States has increased 37 percent, while the overall U.S. golfer population has increased only 25 percent.

The Black Golfers Hall of Fame is located in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Number Of Black Golfers On The Rise
http://www.black-sports.com/golf.html

1899

George F. Grant, a Black man invented the golf tee. Before his invention, golfers used their hands to shape a hitting surface from dirt or sand.
http://www.2cowherd.net/blackhis.html

1952

Bill Spiller was one of the first black golfers to play in a big-name golf tournament. In January 1952, Spiller, Ted Rhodes, and amateur Eural Clark teed it up in the Phoenix Open. Earlier in the month, the PGA Tour passed a rule that allowed black players to enter a tournament if the sponsor agreed. http://www.lagolf.com/balls/trivia.html

1956

Charlie Sifford finishes 7th in the Insurance City Open

1959

Bill Wright, in winning the U.S. Amateur Public Links, becomes the first African American to win a national championship.

1961

The Caucasians-only clause stricken from the PGA constitution, and at the Greater Greensboro Open Charlie Sifford becomes the first black golfer to play in a PGA co-sponsored tournament in the South.

1967

Charlie Sifford wins the Greater Hartford Open. This year marked the first victory for a black player on the PGA TOUR
http://www.ctgolfer.com/gho/history/yearly.html

In the 1960s, Ethel Funches was the top Black wmen's golfer. She won numerous national titles and the 1968 championship at the Lanston Golf Course in Washington D.C.

1975

Lee Elder became the first black golfer invited to the Masters, earning the invitation because of his victory in the 1974 Monsanto Open.

1990

Hall Thompson of Shoal Creek GC, on the eve of the PGA Championship at Shoal Creek, defends his club's policy of not admitting black members. Amidst a public outcry, Shoal Creek 1990 is forced to change its policy and the PGA TOUR and the USGA insist that in future all clubs submit to a standard set of guidelines on membership policies. Cypress Point Club and Aronimink, among others, decide they are unable to comply and withdraw from the professional tournament arena.

1995

Black Golfer Rufus Lewis honored with Hall of Fame selection
http://www.tampatrib.com/spec/black/blkspst.htm#golfhall

 

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"Links"

http://www.lagolf.com/balls/history.html

Charlie Sifford: A legend in town
http://www.afroam.org/information/lacy/lacy6-22-96.html

Jim "Mudcat" Grant
Founder and President Black Golfers Association Tournaments
http://www.frasernet.com/top100a1.htm

Jackie Robinson, golfer
http://www.golf.com/golfworld/opinfields0411.htm

The Black Enterprise/Pepsi Golf & Tennis Challenge
http://blackenterprise.com/docs/cha.html

 

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