PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Former Ponte Vedra Beach resident and 1985 winner of The Players Championship Calvin Peete died Wednesday morning in Atlanta. He was 71.
The PGA Tour announced his death, mourning the loss of a pioneer who overcame great physical hardship to become a dominant player in the 1980s.
Peete was born in Detroit in July 18, 1943, and was the eighth of nine children to Dennis and Irenna Peete. He won 12 PGA Tour titles in his career -- 11 of those victorsy between 1982 and 1986. He played with a left arm he couldn't totally extend because of a broken elbow that occurred during a childhood fall. Peete's elbow healed incorrectly when his doctor didn't properly set the arm in a cast. With his easily recognizable swing because of his permanently bent arm, Peete used uncanny accuracy off the tee to become the fourth African-American to win on Tour, joining Pete Brown, Charlie Sifford and Lee Elder.
"Calvin was an inspiration to so many people. He started in the game relatively late in life but quickly became one of the Tour's best players, winning and winning often despite the hardship of his injured arm," said PGA Commissioner Tim Finchem. "I can still remember watching Calvin hit drive after drive straight down the middle of the fairway, an amazing display of talent he possessed despite some of his physical limitations."
Along with his wife, Pepper, Peete gave back to the communityworking with The First Tee and junior golf in this area.
"Everyone in the family admired and loved him," said his wife, Pepper Peete. "He took the Peete name to another level. We are so thankful that he was in our lives as a father, husband and role model. He was a blessing, and he will be missed."
Prior to turning pro, Peete learned the game, starting at age 23, at Genesee Valley Park in Rochester, N.Y. He was 32 years old when he joined the PGA Tour as a full-time member in 1976. But Peete's ascent as a pro was a slow one. He never finished above No. 94 on the money list in his first three years on the circuit.
In 1979, Peete won his first tournament at the Greater Milwaukee Open. Four rounds in the 60s led to a five-shot victory over Jim Simons, Victor Regalado and Lee Trevino. The following week, he was again in the hunt, at the Ed McMahon-Jaycees Quad Cities Open. Tied for 15th when the final round began, Peete shot a 7-under 63 at Oakwood Country Club but missed making it two wins in a row, finishing two strokes behind winner D.A. Weibring.
Two of Peete's titles came 1985 -- The Players and the Phoenix Open -- and he finished third on the money list and played for the U.S. in the 1985 Ryder Cup, earning a 2-1-0 mark.
Peete's last Tour start came at the 1995 Players Championship. After turning 50, in 1993, he played the Champions Tour full time between 1994 and 2000. He made 158 starts, with his best finish a fourth-place effort at the 1994 Bell Atlantic Classic. Even after retiring from competition, he continued to play in the Legends of Golf, teaming with Mark Hayes in his final two years (2008 and 2009).
In 2002, the African American Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame inducted Peete.
In addition to his wife, Pepper, Peete is survived by his children, Calvin, Dennis, Rickie, Nicole, Kalvanetta, Aisha and Aleya. Funeral plans and location have yet to be determined.