Many of their names came up again on the opening day of the Masters.
Nicklaus recalled a Black caddie named Pon, who was on the bag for the Golden Bear’s first Masters in 1959.
“Pon, that’s all I knew him by,” Nicklaus said.
Another Black caddie, Willie Peterson, was at Nicklaus’ side for five of his six Masters titles, which came during an era when players were required to use a looper who worked at the club.
This was a group largely of African Americans who lived in the Augusta area. Many of them were pretty decent players in their own right but never got a chance to show what they could do on the course.
Their skin was deemed the wrong color. So they settled for lugging the bags of white golfers.
“The trouble that Willie got into — I don’t know who it was matched by, but it was hard to match,” Nicklaus said with a chuckle. “But Willie was a wonderful guy. I loved Willie, and I miss him. ”
We can only imagine what Peterson and others would’ve brought to the game if allowed to realize their full potential.
They loved golf. Too bad it didn’t always love them back.
The PGA had a Caucasian-only rule until 1961 — 14 years after Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier. It took another 14 years before the Masters finally allowed a Black player, extending an invitation to Elder in 1975 after he won the Monsanto Open for his first tour victory.
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