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Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
PGA legend and HBCU trailblazer, dies at 85
'Big Boy' Never was a nickname more worthy than the one given to PGA legend Jim Dent. He was a large man at 6ft 3in and 224lb, yet he also was one of the longest drivers in the game. Not to mention the weight he carried from a game that tried to keep him from what he loved. Advertisement Before Tiger Woods, there was Jim Dent—a man who didn't just play golf, he powered through it. With drives that could split the sky and a story that cut through America's deepest racial divides, Dent's legacy is not just measured in yardage or wins, but in the doors he opened for Black athletes in a game that long refused them entry. Dent, who passed away at 85 in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, was one of the few Black golfers on the PGA Tour during a time when golf was still shaking off its segregationist past. Born into poverty in 1939, Dent learned the game as a caddie at the Augusta Country Club and the Augusta Municipal Golf Course—places where he once couldn't play. Despite early losses, he never stopped grinding. 'I got better each year,' he told the USGA. He didn't win on the PGA Tour, but his mark was made on the senior circuit, the PGA Champions Tour, where he won 12 titles between 1989 and 1998 and earned over $9 million. In 1974, he won a PGA driving contest with a jaw-dropping 324-yard shot—outdriving nearly every pro in the sport. Later, Callaway honored him with a signature Big Bertha driver. Senior Tour star Jim Dent shows off the trophy for winning the second annual BellSouth Senior Classic bringing him the biggest check of his 25-year tour golf career with a $165,000 payout.© George Walker IV / The Tennessean via Imagn Content Services, LLC An HBCU product from Paine College, Dent was a football scholarship athlete before switching his focus to golf full-time. He represents a generation of Black athletes who had to fight not just for trophies, but for space to compete. Unlike others who are given their stage, Dent built his. Augusta's renaming of a road leading to 'The Patch' as Jim Dent Way in 2020 symbolized just that. Advertisement Related: NBA legend and HBCU trailblazer dies at 88 For fans of HBCU sports and Black golf history, Dent's life is more than a story—it's a reminder. A reminder that power, dignity, and perseverance still matter. Let's honor that legacy by investing in Black golf programs and remembering the names that made it possible for today's stars to shine. Related: HBCU school sparks major buzz with bold talent move Related: Shaquille O'Neal turns heads with untold HBCU story
The Guardian
09-04-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Augusta National chair defends allowing Cabrera to return to Masters
Fred Ridley, the chair of Augusta National, has defended the decision to allow Ángel Cabrera to return to the Masters despite the 2009 champion serving a prison sentence for crimes against women. Cabrera's reappearance at Augusta has drawn criticism from women's rights campaigners. Cabrera is technically entitled to play in the Masters for as long as he wants as a past winner. Whether Augusta should have honoured that entry condition has been widely questioned after the Argentinian spent 30 months in jail. Cabrera was found guilty of assault, theft and intimidation against former girlfriends in 2021 and 2022. 'It seems as long as male athletes can excel at hitting a ball, we excuse those same men hitting women,' said Jamie Klingler, co-founder of the Reclaim These Streets campaign group. Ridley was asked for a response during his traditional pre-tournament press conference, at Augusta National on Wednesday. 'We certainly abhor domestic violence of any type,' Ridley said. 'As it relates to Ángel, Ángel has served the sentence that was prescribed by the Argentine courts, he is the past champion and so he was invited.' Ridley had no apparent desire to expand on the situation. A year ago, he labelled Cabrera 'one of our great champions' while expressing hope the golfer could return to this major. Cabrera, who was in attendance for the Masters champions dinner on Tuesday evening, has been remorseful in public about his past behaviour. The 55-year-old won on the PGA Champions Tour on Sunday. 'I'm very grateful and obviously the people of the golf world are very great with me and I just appreciated the way they treated me,' said Cabrera of his reception back at Augusta. 'Everybody has their own opinion and I respect that. 'Life has given me another opportunity. I have got to take advantage of that and I want to do the right things in this second opportunity. There was a stage in my life of four, five years, that I wasn't doing the right things I should have done. Before that I was OK, so I just have to keep doing what I know I can do right.'
USA Today
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
7 Bold predictions for the 2025 Masters
7 Bold predictions for the 2025 Masters Coming up with bold predictions at Augusta is actually a bit more difficult than you might expect. In a tournament where the favorites typically win, picking anyone who hasn't already contended at a major to slip on the green jacket Sunday night certainly qualifies as bold. So we had to go really off the wall here. These are the type of bold predictions that would start week-long news cycles. The kind that would spark intense opinions and debate from people who never cared about golf a day in their lives. Strap in, we're getting weird here. But don't worry, there are plenty of reasonable takes for you to process here, too: 7 Bold Masters Predictions Blake Schuster: No LIV players finish in the Top 10. The young crop of talent on the PGA Tour has developed so quickly that we're left wondering if LIV golfers can even keep up with the PGA Champions Tour these days. Charles Curtis: Brooks Koepka finishes top-3. Speaking of LIV! I think you'll see him hit his stride on Friday and contend. Prince Grimes: Collin Morikawa wins and then refuses to do interviews afterwards to really cause a stir. Christian D'Andrea: Bryson DeChambeau, in a moment of crisis, eats the club cover of his five wood, then rallies to finish -4 on the final six holes of the final round. This becomes tradition. Mike Sykes: Scottie Scheffler wins but J.J. Spaun shocks people again with a top-3 finish. Jordan Tomiyama: The back nine will feature a Scottie Scheffler-Rory Mcllroy duel and Rory will finally win his first green jacket. Michelle Martinelli: Ludvig Aberg wins on an 18th-hole playoff. Scottie Scheffler gets arrested for jaywalking.
Fox News
04-03-2025
- Health
- Fox News
Golf legend John Daly reveals bloody truth about bladder cancer battle
Golf legend John Daly revealed his bladder cancer has been in remission for four years. Daly, 58, talked about finding out he had cancer in a recent podcast appearance that aired last month. "It was scary," Daly said during an appearance on the "Like a Farmer Podcast." "I was peeing blood, pukin' blood. ... I thought my back was killing me, and I didn't know. And I went in Little Rock, got a checkup and everything on my back and then, was it a neurologist? Doctor saw it and said, 'You gotta come back.' "I was fixin' to go to Hooters, get some wings in Little Rock, and he called and said, 'No, don't eat anything. Gotta get you back over here.' And I go, 'Why?' And [he said], 'Well, you have cancer. You have bladder cancer'. What else can happen, you know?" Daly said as long as it's him going through it and not his kids, he can deal with it. "As long as it's me and not my kids, I can deal with it. So, I go back. They caught it in time. I've been in remission for the last four years, but I gotta get a checkup once a year now — thank God — and not two. Anyone who's got bladder cancer, that thing that goes in your pee-pee don't feel good," Daly said. "Hey, I just deal with it. You just deal with it, and you try to work around all these injuries and everything, try and play the best you can." As for his golf game, Daly admitted his health issues don't allow him to play at the level he once did. "I can't set goals for golf anymore. Fighting the bladder cancer and all that crap with all the surgeries, it's not an excuse. It's just nobody can play great when they're not healthy," Daly said. "I get out there, and I do my best I can. But I still wanna play golf. I still wanna play on the Champions Tour. I just wanna compete better, and right now there's no way I can. "But I'm gonna keep grinding it out 'cause you never know. That putter gets hot. … I don't care if you got one arm, one leg, that putter gets hot you can play some really good golf because we all hit it good." In addition to his cancer being in remission, Daly revealed he underwent emergency surgery on his hand in January in a post to social media and said he would "be back playing in to time." The golf icon hasn't played on the PGA Champions Tour since October. Daly played at the PGA Championship and The Open Championship last year but withdrew after the first round in both tournaments. In his career, Daly has five PGA Tour victories, including two major championship wins. Daly won the PGA Championship in 1991 and then the British Open in 1995. His last win on the PGA Tour was at the Buick Invitational in 2004. Daly won the 2021 PNC Father-Son Championship with his son, John Daly II. Daly has earned nearly $13 million in winnings in his career, according to the PGA Tour website. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Khaleej Times
08-02-2025
- Sport
- Khaleej Times
Jimenez conquers Morocco: 'I have won in my 20's, 30's, 40's, 50's and now my 60's'
Miguel Angel Jimenez of Spain shot a final round of four under par 69 to finish with a 54-hole total of 11 under par 208, winning the $2.5 million 54-hole Hassan II Golf Trophy at Royal Club Dar Es Salam (Red Course) in Rabat, Morocco, on the PGA Champions Tour. Jimenez entered the final round tied with New Zealand's Steve Alker. After a close contest throughout the day, the turning point came when the 61-year-old Jimenez made an eagle on hole 17, securing his 14th PGA Champions Tour victory. Jimenez, who won the 2010 HERO Dubai Desert Classic at Emirates Golf Club, said at the Champions' Press Conference, "I have won in my 20's, 30's, 40's, 50's and now my 60's." 'That makes me so proud, as well as joining Freddie Couples with win number 14 on the PGA Champions Tour." 'I finished tied second earlier this year to Ernie Els, and this win gives me a great start to my season. It takes me to the top of the 2025 Charles Schwab Cup standings and gives me a lot of confidence for the rest of the season," he added. "I hadn't won for two years, since the Boeing Classic in August 2022 – so it's nice to be in the winner's circle again. It shows that at 61 years old, I can still compete with the youngsters.' Singh's ace The shot of the day came from Dubai Golden VISA Awardee Jeev Milkha Singh of India, who made a hole-in-one on hole 14 with a 7-iron from 163 yards into a stiff wind. This marked the first-ever hole-in-one in the history of the Hassan II Trophy. The ball caught the slope of the green perfectly and was Milkha Singh's ninth tournament ace and 17th overall in his career. 'I was aiming for the right side of the green from the tee. It was a good shot, and I thought it would set up a birdie chance. To have it go in is a real thrill,' said Milkha Singh. Milkha Singh shot rounds of 74, 72, and 75 to finish at two over par (221), tying for 28th place. Speaking to Khaleej Times after finishing his round, Milkha Singh shared, 'Overall, I was really pleased with my week. It was a tough course, but I liked the layout – very traditional in style. "I took a golf cart today as the flu got to me and I felt very weak at times. Next week, I'm off to Spain for the Legends Tour to kick off the 2025 season, and then I'll take three weeks off. "After that, I'll head to Macau for the International Series on the Asian Tour, followed by more events on the Legends Tour in Europe," he added. "It's been a good start for me in my first Champions Tour event. I hope I get an invite to return to Morocco next year – it's been a very special week for me, and the whole tournament setup, along with the Moroccan hospitality, has created lasting memories for all the players.' Results (7,329 Yards, Par 73) M. A. Jimenez (Spain) 70-69-69—208 S. Alker (NZ) 69-70-71—210 E. Els (RSA) 72-71-69—212 K. J. Choi (Korea) 74-69-70—213 ALSO READ Els, Montgomerie & Jeev set to compete in $2.5m Hassan II Trophy in Morocco
