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.
The PGA Tour announced Elder’s death Monday. No cause or details were immediately available, but the tour said it confirmed Elder’s death with his family.
He had been in poor health and wore an oxygen tube beneath his nose when he appeared at the opening of the Masters in April. The tour said he died early Sunday in Escondido, California.
“Lee was a good player, but most important, a good man who was very well respected by countless people,” Jack Nicklaus wrote on his Twitter account. “The game of golf lost a hero in Lee Elder.”
A native Texan who developed his game during segregated times while caddying, Elder made history in 1975 at Augusta National, which had been an all-white tournament until he received an invitation after winning the Monsanto Open the previous year.