JACKSONVILLE, Fla – The PGA Tour is honoring several black golf legends with its first-ever “Foreward Together Display.”
The display features interactive touch screen displays, timelines, and memorabilia. People can learn about well-known golfers like Tiger Woods and John Shippen, but it also spotlights other trailblazers like the Brentwood Four and Calvin Peete.
In 1958 Frank Hampton, Edward Norman, Charles Brown and Davoye Brown were sued over being denied the chance to play on the city’s golf courses. Five years later, on November 19th, 1962, the Supreme Court ruled golf courses in Jacksonville must be de-segregated.
That historic decision paved the way for golfing greats like Jacksonville resident, Calvin Peete. In 1985, Peete became the first African American to win the Players Championship. He was the most successful Black golfer prior to Tiger Woods with 12 PGA Tour wins between 1979 and 1986.
The PGA said its goal is to show the work others did to make golf more accessible and prove that their legacy lives on.
“To learn more about what we had to go through to win I think would be a nice takeaway for people to come away from,” said Executive Director of The Players Jared Rice.
The display is open to the public at TPC Sawgrass and is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. - 9 p.m.