African-American Golf Pioneers (9 images)

An illustration of some of the black golfers who played significant roles in advancing the cause of minority golfers down through the years.
  • View as:
  • Slideshow
  • Mosaic
  • Thumbnails
  • With 12 wins on the PGA Tour, Calvin Peete was the most prolific African-American champion until Tiger Woods came along.
  • Ted Rhodes was the first African-American touring professional golfer, and a driving force in opening professional golf up to all players.
  • In 1961, Charlie Sifford became the first African-American player to earn a PGA Tour card.
  • Denied entry into several PGA events, Bill Spiller spent many years fighting segregation policies in golf.
  • Lee Elder, the first African-American to play in the Masters, posed with Tiger Woods at the 2000 Masters.
  • John Shippen is widely believed to have been the first American-born golf professional. He finished fifth in the second U.S. Open in 1896.
  • (Top L-R) Lee Elder, John Bailey and Calvin Peete, and (bottom L-R) Carl Seldon and Pete Brown came together at the 2005 Tour Championship in Atlanta.
  • Lee Elder became the first African-American to play in the Masters in 1975, and the first to play in the Ryder Cup in 1979.
  • Tiger Woods calls World Golf Hall of Famer Charlie Sifford one of his great personal and professional inspirations.
  • « Previous |
  • Next »
« Previous
Next »
  • 1
    of
    9
  • « Previous |
  • Next »
  • Calvin Peete
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    With 12 wins on the PGA Tour, Calvin Peete was the most prolific African-American champion until Tiger Woods came along.
    Credit: Getty Images Date: February 04, 2011
  • Ted Rhodes
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    Ted Rhodes was the first African-American touring professional golfer, and a driving force in opening professional golf up to all players.
    Credit: The PGA of America Date: February 04, 2011
  • Charlie Sifford
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    In 1961, Charlie Sifford became the first African-American player to earn a PGA Tour card.
    Credit: Getty Images Date: February 05, 2011
  • Bill Spiller
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    Denied entry into several PGA events, Bill Spiller spent many years fighting segregation policies in golf.
    Credit: Getty Images Date: February 05, 2011
  • Lee Elder and Tiger Woods
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email

    Lee Elder, the first African-American to play in the Masters, posed with Tiger Woods at the 2000 Masters.

    Credit: Getty Images Date: February 04, 2011
  • John Shippen
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    John Shippen is widely believed to have been the first American-born golf professional. He finished fifth in the second U.S. Open in 1896.
    Credit: The PGA of America Date: February 04, 2011
  • Pioneering Black Players
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    (Top L-R) Lee Elder, John Bailey and Calvin Peete, and (bottom L-R) Carl Seldon and Pete Brown came together at the 2005 Tour Championship in Atlanta.
    Credit: Getty Images Date: February 04, 2011
  • Lee Elder
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    Lee Elder became the first African-American to play in the Masters in 1975, and the first to play in the Ryder Cup in 1979.
    Credit: Getty Images Date: February 04, 2011
  • Tiger Woods and Charlie Sifford
    • Share
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Delicious
      • Myspace
      • Yahoo! Buzz
      • StumbleUpon
      • Mixx
      • Reddit
      • Digg
      • Newsvine
    • Share on Twitter
    • Email
    Tiger Woods calls World Golf Hall of Famer Charlie Sifford one of his great personal and professional inspirations.
    Credit: Getty Images Date: February 05, 2011
2003-2011 PGA/Turner Sports Interactive. All rights reserved.
PGA.com is part of Turner - SI Digital, part of the Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network