KakiGolf
THE CLUBHOUSE => Tour Talk & Golf News => Topic started by: KAKIGOLF on December 01, 2021, 12:12:38 AM
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Lee Elder who broke the colour barrier in golf died on Sunday in Escondido, California. He was 87.
The year 1975 was signature moment in the breaking of racial barriers on the pro golf tour when Elder became the first African-American to play in the Masters Tournament. He was 40 years old at that time and was invited to the tournament after he won the 1974 Monsanto Open.
Years earlier, in his prime, Elder played in the United Golfers Association tour, the sport’s version of baseball’s Negro leagues. The PGA of America accepted only “members of the Caucasian race” until 1961 when PGA lifted its colour barrier
Elder first played regularly on the PGA Tour in 1968, and that August he took Jack Nicklaus to a playoff at the American Golf Classic in Akron, Ohio, losing in sudden death.
“The game of golf lost a hero in Lee Elder,” Nicklaus said in a statement on Monday.