First African-American Pro Golfer Dies

Charlie Sifford, the first African American to join the PGA Tour, has died at the age of 92. Sifford had recently suffered a stroke, but details of his death have not been released. Sifford successfully challenged the whites-only clause in the PGA Tour and saw it rescinded in 1961. He would go on to win the Greater Hartford Open in 1967, the Los Angeles Open in 1969, and the 1975 Senior PGA Championship. He did not, however, ever play in the Masters, which invited its first black player in 1975. “It’s not an exaggeration to say that without Charlie, and the other pioneers who fought to play, I may not be playing golf,” Tiger Woods said in an email to the Associated Press late last year.