Lee Elder

CTL-E-6889 · Person · other · 1934–2021

VERIFIED evidence grade — build store (JSON graph)

Combined Graph record U-07761 · provenance: build store (JSON graph), record CTL-E-6889.

Robert Lee Elder (July 14, 1934 – November 28, 2021) was an American professional golfer born in Dallas, Texas. Orphaned as a boy, he learned golf as a caddie, served in the U.S. Army from 1959 to 1961, and then dominated the United Golf Association tour for Black players before earning his PGA Tour card for 1968. His first PGA Tour victory, at the 1974 Monsanto Open, qualified him for the Masters, and on April 10, 1975, he became the first African American to play in the Masters Tournament at Augusta National — a debut he made despite hate mail and death threats. He played in six Masters in all, won four PGA Tour events, and in 1979 became the first Black golfer to qualify for the Ryder Cup team. In 2021 he returned to Augusta as an honorary starter.

The record

• Also known as: Robert Lee Elder

Notes

Sports Encyclopedia roster CTL-SPE-0173. Firsts disposition: ASSERTED — 'first African American to play in the Masters Tournament (April 10, 1975),' supported by the National Links Trust and BlackPast accounts in this record, with Wikipedia concurring; 'first Black golfer to qualify for the Ryder Cup (1979)' is likewise supported by two sources here (National Links Trust, Wikipedia). Note: the Commons file's metadata date (1975-07-07) postdates the April 1975 tournament and is carried as filed. Curator's Judgment (DRAFT): Elder's 1975 Masters debut is one of the century's quiet thresholds — no win, a missed cut, and a permanent change in who Augusta National had to reckon with. His 2021 return as honorary starter closed the arc in public. Photo: CLEARED — Lee Elder 1975.jpg, Public domain.

Relationships

• Dallas, Texas — from
  Elder was born on July 14, 1934, in Dallas, Texas.

Referenced by

• Tiger Woods — related to → this record

Sources

• National Links Trust. "Lee Elder: A Black Golf Pioneer." Accessed 2026-11-03. (primary source · build store)
• BlackPast. "Lee Elder (1934-2021)." Accessed 2026-11-03. (build store)
• Wikipedia. "Lee Elder." Accessed 2026-11-03. (build store)

More person records

• Leslie Rogers
• Leslie Uggams
• Lester Barclay
• Lester Bowie
• Lettie Sabbs
• LeVert

Browse the full directory: all entity records

Record CTL-E-6889 · Combined Graph record U-07761 · CultureTechLens Knowledge Graph · 3 sources · 2 mapped relationships.
Directory: all entity records · the knowledge graph

Researched and maintained by the CultureTechLens research program · CultureTechLens Combined Graph, Release 2026-11-04. Corrections are public: the corrections log.

Cite this record

Citation guidance for teachers, journalists, and funders: How to Cite Us.

From the Archive

The archive in pictures

The people, places, and institutions this work documents. Photographs from the CultureTechLens research record — rights-cleared, credited, and cited like everything else here.