Calvin Peete


Calvin Peete was an American professional golfer. He was the most successful African-American to have played on the PGA Tour, with 12 wins, prior to the emergence of Tiger Woods. Peete won the 1985 Tournament Players Championship and finished the season top-5 on the PGA Tour money list three times; 1982, 1983 and 1985. He was ranked in the top 10 players on the McCormack's World Golf Rankings in 1984.

Biography

Peete was born in Detroit. He played on the 1983 and 1985 U.S. Ryder Cup teams. He won the Vardon Trophy for lowest scoring average in 1984. He was in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for several weeks when they debuted in 1986.
Peete did not begin playing golf until he was in his 20s, but immediately excelled at a game most pros learn as young children. He learned the game while peddling goods to migrant workers in Rochester, New York, playing on the public course at Genesee Valley Park. Growing up poor, Peete suffered a badly broken arm that was never properly set. He was the leader in driving accuracy on the PGA Tour for 10 straight years, 1981–90. Peete was inducted into the African American Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.
Peete died of lung cancer, in Atlanta, Georgia, on April 29, 2015. He was 71.

Family

Peete and his first wife, Christine, who divorced in 1987, are the parents of Charlotte, Calvin, Rickie, Dennise, Nicole and Kalvanetta Peete. He was married to Pepper Peete and had two daughters, Aisha and Aleya. He was a cousin of former NFL quarterback Rodney Peete and NFL coach Skip Peete.

Professional wins (14)

PGA Tour wins (12)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1Jul 15, 1979Greater Milwaukee Open69-67-68-65=269−195 strokes Victor Regalado, Jim Simons,
Lee Trevino
2Jul 11, 1982Greater Milwaukee Open 70-66-69-69=274−142 strokes Victor Regalado
3Jul 25, 1982Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic66-68-69=203−102 strokes Bruce Lietzke
4Sep 5, 1982B.C. Open69-63-64-69=265−197 strokes Jerry Pate
5Oct 24, 1982Pensacola Open65-66-72-65=268−167 strokes Dan Halldorson, Hal Sutton
6May 22, 1983Georgia-Pacific Atlanta Golf Classic68-75-63=206−102 strokes Chip Beck, Jim Colbert,
Don Pooley
7Jul 24, 1983Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic 66-75-66-69=276−81 stroke Tim Norris
8Oct 7, 1984Texas Open67-67-66-66=266−143 strokes Bruce Lietzke
9Jan 20, 1985Phoenix Open65-65-72-68=270−142 strokes Morris Hatalsky, Doug Tewell
10Mar 31, 1985Tournament Players Championship70-69-69-66=274−143 strokes D. A. Weibring
11Jan 11, 1986MONY Tournament of Champions68-67-64-68=267−216 strokes Mark O'Meara
12Mar 23, 1986USF&G Classic68-67-66-68=269−195 strokes Pat McGowan

PGA Tour playoff record
No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
11986Houston Open Curtis StrangeLost to birdie on third extra hole

Japan Golf Tour wins (2)

Results in major championships

Note: Peete never played in The Open Championship.
WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

Summary

Wins (1)

Results timeline

CUT = missed the halfway cut

WD = withdrew

"T" indicates a tie for a place.

U.S. national team appearances