First Black golfer to play at the Masters, Lee Elder is dead.
Gatekeepers News reports that the first Black golfer to play at the Masters, Lee Elder has died at the age of 87.
The PGA Tour confirmed this in a statement.
Elder broke into the game in the US during the 1960s and 70s, a notoriously volatile period for race relations.
Elder broke through Augusta’s race barrier at the 1975 edition of the famous competition.
He was honored at the 2021 Masters, joining Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player as an honorary starter in the ceremonial first tee shot to begin the tournament.
Elder while narrating his debut told CNN that making his Masters debut in Augusta, Georgia, was a “very nerve-racking” experience.
Elder said, “I was shaking so badly, I did not know if I was even going to be able to tee up the ball.
“How I got through it I do not know, just with the help of the Almighty I got there and was able to put my ball on the tee.”
