Born: February 2, 1935
Hometown: Port Gibson, MS
Year Induction: 2020
Deceased : May 1, 2015
Pete Brown was a pioneering golf legend who was the first African American to win a PGA Tour Event. He learned how to play serving as a caddy at the Jackson Municipal Golf Course. After moving to Detroit, Michigan, to start a golf career, he contracted polio and spent a year at age 19 paralyzed in a hospital. He began to work his muscles and learned how to walk. When he left the hospital, he eventually got the necessary signatures to earn his Class A PGA tour card
Brown was the second African American to receive a PGA Tour Card in 1963 following Charlie Sifford. Brown & Sifford endured harsh prejudices attempting to play golf events. Brown’s breakthrough moment happened in 1964 when he won the Waco Turner Open in Oklahoma by rallying from behind against Dan Sikes. The tournament namesake carried two .45 revolvers on his belt at all times and demanded that the gallery tow the line on tolerance. Despite his efforts, Brown was never invited to play in the Masters because event winners did not received automatic qualifiers. In 2012, he finally made it to Augusta thanks to longtime friend Jim Dent.
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The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates the Magnolia State’s incredibly rich history of producing world-class athletes and teams. The mission of the Mississipi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum is to preserve, protect and promote Mississippi’s rich sports heritage for this and future generations.
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