European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 21, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                7%lagazine_ by Jaime Diaz new York times g Olf May be the sporting world s ultimate test of self Reliance and perhaps no golfer has Ever relied on himself As doggedly As Calvin Peete does. He is a Black Man in a sport that until 1961 had a Quot caucasian Only Quot clause that excluded Blacks from participating regularly on the pea tour. A product of the streets of Detroit Peete was one of 19 siblings. He never hit a Golf Ball until the age of 23. He has never had a formal lesson. He has a permanently deformed left Arm that impairs his swing. Despite the obstacles Peete is one of the straightest hitters in the history of Golf and has won 12 tournaments since he joined the pea tour in 1976. Quot in be always tried to know my abilities Quot says Peete now 46. Quot the things i knew i could do i tried to master. The things i knew i  do i never  but Peete says his Story  be possible today because the Competition at the highest Levels of Golf has gotten too fierce to accommodate the weaknesses inherent in such a late Start in the sport. Quot if i had come along in this decade instead of the 70s, i done to think i would have made it Quot he says. Quot i was a raw phenomenon and i was Able to catch up when i got on tour. Now a Guy like me never gets on  Peete mourns the diminishing number of top Black golfers. A dozen Blacks played the pea tour in the 1970s. Today Only Peete and Jim Thorpe 42, Are left. He also mourns the fact that the Scarcity of Blacks extends into the top Levels of Junior Golf and the division i College ranks both of which Are primary training grounds for today a touring pros. Only a handful of Blacks have Ever played on College division i teams at colleges that Are not predominantly Black. Olen Grant of the University of Kentucky was the Only Black Over the last four years to play As a regular member at such a College. In his senior year Grant became the first Black Man to qualify As an individual for the National collegiate athletic association tournament and the first Black to earn honorable mention in the All America category. Both Peete and Thorpe Are on the Downside of their careers. When they leave the regular tour it is Likely that there will be no Blacks to succeed them. Quot there a a real Gap a says Eddie Payton the former National football league player who since 1986 has been the Golf coach at Jackson state a predominantly Black College that Fields a division i team. Quot there a no one ready to follow Calvin and Jim and after we lose those role models we risk losing a whole generation of Young Black golfers. We have to make sure that our youth Are exposed to this game that they understand that Golf is As challenging an athletic act As football or basketball. And not at age 15 or 16. Today that a too late. At age 5 or 6.&Quot to introduce Golf to children who would otherwise have Only a Remote Chance of Ever taking up the game Peete has started the Calvin Peete minority foundation. He Hopes to raise $600,000 this year to develop Junior Golf programs for poor Urban Blacks. Peete Hopes that talented Young players who come out of the programs will go on to take the same path that their White counterparts have taken top flight Junior Competition followed by College Golf scholarships and for the very Best the professional tour. Quot i feel every kid should be exposed to the game for the lessons it can teach Quot Peete says. Quot of course the More kids who get into the game the More Good players that Are going to  at a recent clinic at the Eastwood Golf club in fort Myers fla., Peete spoke to about 100 children a most of them Black and less than 10 years old and most with disadvantaged backgrounds. Many had never seen a Golf Ball struck and they watched with wonder As Peete effortlessly hit shots far into the distance. After each shot Peete spoke. Quot just remember kids you can to do that on drugs Peete said after whistling a five Iron directly at his target. Quot when you get hooked on Golf you done to have Calvin Peete reacts to a wayward putt in  Peet rare role Model for Black golfers time to hang out on the  or Quot when you play Golf you meet the important people in your Community. I be met three presidents of the United  and Quot when you learn to manage your Golf game you learn to manage  finally after hitting a Driver farther than All the previous shots Peete told his Young audience Quot Golf teaches you How important perseverance is that a what my whole career is All  Golf is enjoying unprecedented popularity in the United states. The National Golf foundation says the number of golfers nationwide is growing at a rate of More than 6 percent a year with an estimated total of 24.7 million golfers in 1989. Blacks however play Only a minuscule part in the growth. A nationwide study found that of nearly 18 million adults in the United states who play Golf fewer than 450,000, or about 2 5 percent Are Black based on that study about one in 10 White adults plays Golf Only about one in 50 adult Blacks does the reasons Are various and Well entrenched. Golf requires Money equipment transportation and accessibility to facilities resources that often Are in Short Supply in poor Black communities it s common for Young golfers to be introduced to the sport by parents who play but some Black parents often look at Golf As strange and frivolous territory Peete remembers that As an adolescent he considered Golf Quot a Sissy game a sport that weaklings played Quot Blacks have also been excluded from one of the major spawning grounds of talented Young golfers country clubs Many prominent country clubs have never had even one Black member historically it has been common for Blacks who play Golf to Hove come from the Caddie ranks of the country clubs but with the increasing popularity of the Golf cart the number of caddies is diminishing Blacks have always had few Golf role models because of the professional golfers association Rule that required its members to belong to Quot the caucasian race Quot Black professionals were mostly relegated to playing Small tournaments on secondary Tours like the United Golf association tour founded in 1926 Charlie Sifford scratched out a living by winning Bunches of Uga tournaments until 1959, when the pea finally allowed him under a special exemption similar to those Given to foreign players to become the first Black to play on the pea tour regularly Sifroid remained the Only Black on tire pea tour until 1966. When he was joined by Pete Brown by the 1970s, As Many As 10 Blacks were playing on the tour at one time but nearly All of them Wen self made golfers who Learned tire game on municipal courses that did not Force them to hit tire kind of shots needed on the pea tour Peete for Ora Merle became known for his pattern of winning on Short tight courses where Power was less of a Factor than Orr courses where major championships take place Quot Black players historically have lacked experience on championship courses Quot Pele says "when1 they Learned to play they could play a lot of bump am run they did t have to carry Long Irons a Long Way and Stop them on firm greens Quot even though i am very accurate tire reason i Neer had the game to win the u s open is because i  get my Long Irons in the air Quot without Well rounded games Black players began to fall off the tour in the 1980s, giving Way to Young players who had honed their games on top courses in Junior tournaments Arr College programs Peete admits that encouraging Black youths to become committed to Golf is a daunting project it is nearly impossible he adds without parental support Quot we rave a hard time getting a kid s attention Quot says Bill Dickey who runs the National minority Junior Golf scholarship association Irr Phoenix Quot once to get them they usually love the game but getting them depends on parents who see value in learning  Orre Young Black whose attention was grabbed by Golf is Grant 22, who turned professional in August after graduating from Kentucky he has played in Junior tournaments since he was 8 Quot i very clearly remember hitting my first Golf  Grant says Quot seeing that Ball Fly just captured me i remember thinking a Hoy i can do this Quot Grant ran into a lot of people who were sceptical that he could but his parents neither of whom played Golf were not among them. Quot i did t really have a role Model but you done to need one when your parents keep telling you that you can do it Quot Grant says As a Good but not great College player with no major successes As a pro Grant must be considered a Long shot to achieve his goal of playing on the pea tour Quot i know the statistics Don t favor me but i Don t pay attention to statistics Quot he says. Quot if i dealt with stats. I would t have even tried to play College Golf statistics Are things White people quote As a Black professional golfer i have to defy them Quot certainly Calvin Peete did he is working toward the Day when Black golfers wont have to monday May 21, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 13