ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — The World Golf Hall of Fame announced a new award that will recognize diversity in the sport.
The Charlie Sifford Award presented by Southern Company will honor recipients' "spirit in advancing diversity in golf."
The award's namesake Charlie Sifford is a 2004 inductee into the World Golf Hall of Fame. He was the first African-American to play on the PGA as member. He won the Travelers Championship in 1967 and Genesis Invitational in 1969.
“On behalf of the Sifford family, we are immensely proud and honored to have this award established in my father’s name,” Charles Sifford Jr. said. “My father, my number one hero, simply wanted to play the game he loved so much and – in this pursuit – endured enormous challenges as an African American golfer. His skills, perseverance, grit, and determination propelled him to continue his dream."
The innaugural recipient of the Charlie Sifford Award presented by Southern Company is Renee Powell, the second African American woman to ever compete on the LPGA Tour.
She competed in more than 250 tournaments as a member of the LPGA from 1967 to 1980. Since 1995, she had be the head professional at Clearview Golf Club in Ohio, established by her father in 1946. It was the first ever course in the country designed, built, owned and operated by an African American.
“As a youngster my parents fought to get me into tournaments when I was not welcomed because of the color of my skin, which instilled in me how important it is to get young people into the game to help build their self-confidence,” said Powell. “I’m honored to be the first recipient of this award and to see Charlie Sifford be recognized for breaking down barriers that never should have been put in front of him and all others of color who strived to play this game.”
This award is honorably illuminated by having a longtime family friend and successful African American female golfer, Renee Powell, as the first recipient," Sifford Jr. said. "This really is something special.”
She will be recognized as part of the Hall of Fame's 2022 induction ceremony on March 9 during the PLAYERS Championship in Ponte Vedra. It will be the first time the induction ceremony has taken place in Northeast Florida since 2013.