Charlie Sifford
Charles Luther Sifford
1922 - 2015
Charlie Sifford is the reason Black golfers can compete on the Professional Golf Association tour.
Despite being a patriot and veteran of the Army who fought in World War II, Sifford was not eligible to compete on the PGA tour. As a result, Sifford competed on the United Golfers Association circuit, winning six National Negro Opens (five of them consecutive from 1952-1956). It was Sifford’s challenge to the PGA’s “whites only” membership clause that led to the desegregation of the PGA.
Tiger Woods, arguably the greatest golfer to ever live, acknowledged the impact of Sifford’s courage on his own career, asserting, “I probably wouldn't be here. My dad would have never have picked up the game. Who knows if the clause would still exist or not? But [Sifford] broke it down.”
History will remember Sifford’s win at the 1967 Greater Hartford Open, because that was the first PGA win for a Black golfer. But in addition to the Greater Hartford Open, Sifford won the Los Angeles Open in 1969 and won the Seniors Championship in 1975.
After retiring from the PGA tour, Sifford went on to play on the Seniors tour where he won the 1975 PGA Seniors' Championship.
