In the late 1960s, after Charlie Sifford integrated the PGA Tour but before the Masters had seen a black player in its field, there weren’t many white voices antagonizing for integration inside the sport itself. Even more than today, it didn’t pay to be on the wrong side of Augusta National, and golf has always been a traditional institution, one which lags behind outside cultural and social developments by as much as a decade or more. All of which makes what Jim Murray did so exceptional.
Murray was a highly regarded sports columnist at the Los Angeles Times and someone who went out of his way to fight for the inclusion of a black player to compete at Augusta National. He boycotted the Masters (albeit silently) for seven years, tried to spur change through conversations with the game’s greats (including Bobby Jones) and wrote about it in his columns. This would have been remarkable for anyone in his role, but for a man known more for his humor and his celebrity friends than for any political beliefs, it was an exceptional stand.
On this week’s Local Knowledge episode, we look at the role Murray played in helping break down the last segregated barrier in professional golf—the Masters—from the late ’60s until Lee Elder became the first Black golfer to compete in the Masters in 1975, and how he put himself on the right side of history. Listen below, or wherever you get your podcasts.
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
