The Associated Press story on the passing of Lee Elder led this way:
Lee Elder, who broke down racial barriers as the first Black golfer to play in the Masters and paved the way for Tiger Woods and others to follow, has died at the age of 87.
No immediate details were available about the cause of death but Elder had been experiencing respiratory difficulties. Arthur Johnson, a Jacksonville resident and a friend of Elder’s for more than 50 years, said Elder died Sunday during a visit with his wife Sharon to his step-daughter Dory’s home in San Diego.
“I talked to him on Thanksgiving and he sounded really strong, in good spirits,” Johnson said. “This is really difficult. He was like a big brother to me. … we were the best of friends.”
Richard Goldstein files the New York Times obituary and leads with the Masters.
But those performances did not persuade the Masters to bend its new rule and accord Elder a spot. Elder broke through after capturing the 1974 Monsanto Open at the Pensacola Country Club in Florida, where six years earlier he and other African American PGA Tour members playing there had been refused entrance to the clubhouse. They had to dress in a parking lot.
That victory finally brought the 1975 Masters invitation. In the run-up to the tournament Elder received death threats. He rented two houses near the Augusta National course and moved between them as a security measure.
GolfDigest.com’s Tod Leonard on how Elder will always be linked to the Masters for better or worse, from the battle to earn an invitation to last year’s stirring tribute by Chairman Fred Ridley.
For those of us who didn’t see him in his prime, Elder was a staple of the Senior Tour for several years where he won eight times during its heyday and took home $1.4 million in earnings.
And here is the best of Twitter regarding Elder’s passing. I’ll add more when some notables chime in who so far have not: