Pete Brown (golfer)

Pete Brown
Personal information
Born	(1935-02-02)February 2, 1935 Port Gibson, Mississippi, U.S.
Died	May 1, 2015(2015-05-01) (aged 80) Augusta, Georgia, U.S.
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight	190 lb (86 kg; 14 st)
Sporting nationality	United States
Career
Status	Professional
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour Champions Tour
Professional wins	14
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	2
Other	12
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	DNP
PGA Championship	T33: 1964
U.S. Open	T58: 1969
The Open Championship	DNP

Pete Brown (February 2, 1935 – May 1, 2015) was an American professional golfer who is best known as the first African American to win a PGA Tour event with his win at the Waco Turner Open.

Early life

Brown was born in Port Gibson, Mississippi, and grew up in Jackson, Mississippi.[1] He started in golf as a caddy at the municipal course in his hometown.[2] He suffered from non-paralytic polio in the late 1950s but recovered and resumed playing competitive golf.[3]

Career

He turned professional in 1954, winning the Negro National Open consecutively in 1961 and 1962. Brown received his PGA Tour card in 1963.[1] He was not the first African American to obtain his PGA players card; that honor belonged to Charlie Sifford. Brown's victory at the 1964 Waco Turner Open did, however, earn him a place in history as the first African American to win a PGA event. He played on the PGA Tour for 17 years and posted a second tour win at the 1970 Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational in a playoff over Tony Jacklin.[4][5]

Brown played on the Senior PGA Tour (now Champions Tour) beginning in 1985. His best finishes were a pair of T-6s in 1985 at the Senior PGA Tour Roundup and the MONY Syracuse Senior Classic.

Brown was inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 2020.[6] [7] [8]

Personal life

Brown and his wife, Margaret, are the parents of six daughters.[1] He was the head pro at Madden Golf Course in Dayton, Ohio, for more than 20 years.[9] He lived in Evans, Georgia, from 2012 to 2015.[3][10]

Brown died in Augusta, Georgia, on May 1, 2015, at the age of 80.[11]

Professional wins (14)

PGA Tour wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	May 3, 1964	Waco Turner Open	−8 (71-71-68-70=280)	1 stroke	Dan Sikes
2	Feb 1, 1970	Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational	−13 (76-67-67-65=275)	Playoff	Tony Jacklin

PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1964	Almaden Open Invitational	Billy Casper, Jerry Steelsmith	Casper won with birdie on third extra hole after 18 hole playoff; Casper: −4 (68), Brown: −4 (68), Steelsmith: +1 (73)
2	1970	Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational	Tony Jacklin	Won with par on first extra hole

Other wins (12)

• Four time USG (Negro) National Open Champion
• Four time Long Star Open Champion
• Three time North & South Champion
• 1962 Michigan Open

References

1. "The first African American to Win a PGA Event". afrogolf.com. Archived from the original on May 17, 2008. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
2. "Remembering the old UGA tour". Black Enterprise. September 1997. Archived from the original on February 28, 2006. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
3. McAllister, Mike (April 29, 2014). "Breakthrough at Burneyville". PGA Tour. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
4. "Golf Tournament Honorees". Archived from the original on July 23, 2008. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
5. Kelley, Brent. "PGA Tour Buick Invitational". about.com. Archived from the original on January 28, 2008. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
6. "Pete Brown: Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame Inductee for Golf". Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
7. Cleveland, Rick (October 22, 2019). "His wife says Pete Brown, finally recognized at home, is smiling down, saying 'Amen!'". Mississippi Today.
8. "Wyatt Emmerich: Sports hall of fame was a great event". August 13, 2021.
9. "Pete Brown, First African-American To Win A PGA Event, Believes In The Big Stik Driver" (Press release). Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
10. Bamberger, Michael (April 8, 2014). "After a hardscrabble life as a Tour journeyman, Augusta's own Jim Dent hit it big and paid it forward". Golf.com. Archived from the original on August 7, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
11. Livsey, Laury (May 1, 2015). "Brown passes away at age 80". PGA Tour. Archived from the original on March 11, 2022. Retrieved January 10, 2024.

External links

• Pete Brown at the PGA Tour official site