bearister said:
bearister said:
"Lee Elder, who became the first Black golfer to play in The Masters in 1975, died Sunday at the age of 87, the PGA Tour announced today.
"The game of golf lost a hero in Lee Elder," Jack Nicklaus tweeted.
The big picture: Elder was 40 when he played in his first Masters, with many of his prime years already stolen from him by the scourge of racism, AP notes."
Axios
I took many golf lessons from Lucius Bateman from age 11 to age 16 (1965-1970). He originally taught at a driving range by the Oakland Airport called Airway Fairways, and then at a driving range in the back of Duggan's Sporting Goods by Bayfair Shopping Center in San Leandro. He was a great man.
Remembering Lucius Bateman - African American Golfer's Digest
http://africanamericangolfersdigest.com/lucius-bateman/
Bearister,
I took golf lessons from Lucius Bateman as well, in 1964 and 1965. We may have passed each other at the Airway Fairways. (Some fairways! Mostly yellow or brown-colored grass or dirt). I had little money in those days, and Lucius often didn't charge me for a lesson. He sometimes asked me to help him by picking up balls off the range fairways, a hazardous task, but I was grateful for the lessons. Lucius often gave kids their lessons in exchange for helping with the chores.
As you know, Lucius taught the great Tony Lema,who won the British Open. (Lema was killed in a plane crash at the young age of 32, with 22 PGA Tour wins.) Lucius also taught several other players who later made the PGA tour: John and Dick Lotz, Ross Randall, Ron Cerrudo, and Bob Smith.
The Driving Range at Alameda Muni was named for the great man and teacher. I hope it is still there.
Anyway, it will be one more thing we have in common, and if we ever get together in person, we will have some Lucius Bateman stories to share, along with all the Cal stories, of course.
SFCB
SFCityBear
