Charlie Sifford: the first black member of the PGA Tour

11:23 AMCharlie Sifford became the first African-American to join the PGA Tour in 1961.

Born: June 2, 1922

Died: Feb. 3, 2015

His story: Charlie Sifford was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and started working as a golf caddie when he was 13. Four years later he moved to Philadelphia and played against black golfers. He made his professional debut in 1948. He earned six United Golf Association National Negro Open championships, including five straight from 1952-56. He also tried to qualify for PGA Tour events during that stretch, his first attempt at the 1952 Phoenix Open after getting an invite from Joe Louis. He won the 1957 Long Beach Open, a PGA co-sponsored event. He tied for 32nd in the 1959 U.S. Open. Sifford faced threats at tournaments because he was black. He joined the PGA Tour in 1961 after the end of the “Caucasian-only” membership clause. He won two money events during his career, the Greater Hartford Open in 1967 and the Los Angeles Open in 1969. His best finish in a major was 21st place at the 1972 U.S. Open. He won two senior tour championships, including the 1975 Senior PGA Championship. He became the first black golfer inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2004.

Fast fact: Sifford, at age 92, received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2014.

Quotable: “Golf was not a game for ghettos. Neither did it leave any time for carrying picket signs, joining demonstrations or running for office. Charlie birdied, not talked, his way through society prejudice. He broke barriers by breaking par. His weapon was a nine-iron, not a microphone,” Los Angeles Times columnist Jim Murray wrote before Sifford won the 1969 Los Angeles Open.

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