Lee Elder

Robert Lee Elder (July 14, 1934 – November 28, 2021) was an American professional golfer.

This marked the first time Augusta National invited a specifically-black golfer to compete in the Masters Tournament since it began in 1934, which coincidentally was Elder's year of birth.

That year, he placed 40th on the money list, bringing in approximately $38,000.

The highlight of Elder's rookie season was a memorable playoff loss to Jack Nicklaus at the American Golf Classic.

Elder lost to Nicklaus on the fifth hole of sudden death.

In 1959, Elder was drafted into the U.S. Army, and was sent to Fort Lewis, Washington.

While at Fort Lewis, Elder had the good fortune to be under the command of Colonel John Gleaster who was an avid golfer.

Gleaster put Elder in a Special Services unit, which allowed him the opportunity to play golf on a steady basis.

The Masters was, in the 1960s and 1970s, frequently 'tweaking' its qualifications for entry.

Winners of PGA Tour events were not automatically invited to play at Augusta when Pete Brown and Charlie Sifford won on tour.

Elder was discharged from the army in 1961, and joined the United Golf Association Tour (UGA) for black players (at the time they were excluded from the Professional Golfers' Association of America (PGA) which was only "for members of the Caucasian race").

He had a dominant stretch in which he won 18 of 22 consecutive tournaments, but this tour did not have large prizes, often in the range of $500.

The PGA lifted its color barrier in 1961, meaning non white players could become members.

Brown won twice: once in 1964 and again in 1970.

Elder met his first wife, Rose Harper, at a golf tournament in Washington, D.C. The two married in 1966.

After getting married, Rose gave up her golfing career to become his manager.

They later divorced.

Elder died on November 28, 2021, in Escondido, California at the age of 87.

Elder did not play a full round of 18 holes until he was 16.

He took jobs in pro shops and locker rooms, in addition to caddying where he developed his game by watching his clients, and playing when he had the opportunity.

Elder's game developed sufficiently for him to start hustling.

His career took a big step after playing a match with heavyweight boxer Joe Louis, which led to Louis’s golf instructor, Ted Rhodes, taking Elder under his wing for three years.

Under the tutelage of Rhodes, Elder was able to polish his game and he began playing in tournaments.

In 1967 Elder raised enough money to attend qualifying school for the PGA Tour.

Sifford won in 1967 and again in 1969, but it was not until the early 1970s when Augusta revised its qualifications policy and Elder won Monsanto that a Black golfer was finally invited to play in the Masters.

He finished 9th out of a class of 122 and gained his tour card for 1968.

In 1971 Elder accepted a personal invitation from Gary Player to participate in the South African PGA Championship in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The event marked the first integrated tournament in the country’s history.

The country had apartheid policies in effect at the time, but he agreed to participate after the South African government agreed not to subject him or spectators to the usual segregation requirements.

He also played in a number of other tournaments in Southern Africa plus he won the Nigerian Open in 1971.

Elder was invited to the tournament after he won the 1974 Monsanto Open.

One of ten children, Elder was born in Dallas, Texas, to Charles and Almeta Elder.

He was nine years old when his father was killed in Germany during World War II, and his mother died three months later.

At the age of 12, Elder found himself moving from one ghetto to another before being sent to Los Angeles, California, to live with his aunt.

Elder frequently cut classes to work as a caddie, and after two years at Manual Arts High School he dropped out.

In 1974, Elder earned his first win on the PGA Tour at the Monsanto Open, which gained him entry to the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia the following April.

In 1975, he became the first African-American to play in the Masters Tournament, where he missed the cut.

Elder shot a 74 on day one and a 78 on day two of the 1975 Masters, missing the cut, but the impact of his presence in the field was clear.

Elder went on to play in the Masters five more times from 1977 to 1981 and compiled two 'Top-20' finishes among his made cuts at Augusta.

In 1979, Elder made the cut in all 4 majors between the ages of 44 and 45 -- which is not easy to do.