BY AAGD STAFF
(June 17, 2019)
On a very special evening, in front of a very prestigious crowd, pioneering golfer Lee Elder received the USGA’s highest honor, the Bob Jones award. Although Elder never saw Bob Jones play, Elder said during the gala that he would keep the bronze statue of the Georgia native—clad in golf knickers—atop the mantle in his bedroom.
The USGA award was presented to Elder on June 12, 2019, during the week of the 119th U.S. Open Championship at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links. The award recognizes those whose sportsmanship and character exemplify the ideals of the game. Truly, Elder fits, and breaks, this mold.
Elder was the first African American to play in the Masters (1975) and went on to win eight times on the PGA Tour, with death threats and racial harassment along the way. He openly shared with The Times that on the golf course he needed two houses so retaliators would not know which one to target. Today, the 84-year old is a quadruple bypass surgery survivor whose positive influence spreads worldwide. One of ten children, due to unfortunate family circumstances, Elder was orphaned at 9-years-old. As a youth, he caddied for money.
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Although his vision is failing, Elder still has a keen sense of remembrance of what it’s like to battle against some of golf’s biggest and baddest bigots. “It’s something one can never forget,” he told AAGD over the telephone just a few weeks before the momentous occasion. “Oh, yes, I’ve seen a whole lot and I’ve been through a whole lot. I am happy to receive this honor while I am still alive.”
Elder’s career has benefited many in various sectors of the game. He has hosted after-school programs for young people, as manager of the desegregated Langston Golf Course in Washington, D.C. To help give young men and women a brighter future, in 1974, he established his Lee Elder Scholarship Fund to provide financial aid to low-income students to attend college.
