On the 24 July, 1966, American professional golfer, Tony Lema (1934-1966) at the age of 32 in an aircraft accident near Chicago.
Lema rose to fame in the mid-1960s, when he won the 1964 Open Championship at the Old Course at St Andrews in Scotland.
Born in Oakland, California, his father died of pneumonia when Tony was three years old, leaving his widowed mother struggling to raise the family of four children on welfare.
Lema began playing golf as a boy at the Lake Chabot municipal golf course where he learned many different aspects of the game from a variety of people. Noted African-American golf coach Lucius Bateman helped develop his swing, and Oakland policeman Ralph Hall taught him course strategy. The golf pros at Lake Chabot, Dick Fry and Bill Burch, trained him on basic golf fundamentals, including the use of a square stance.
At age 17, Lema enlisted in the US Marine Corps and served in Korea. After his discharge from the military in 1955, he obtained work as an assistant to the club professional at a San Francisco golf club.
While in San Francisco, the wealthy San Francisco businessman, Eddie Lowery, best known for as a 10-year-old schoolboy he caddied for the US champion Francis Ouimet in the 1913 U.S. Open. Lowery helped sponsor and encourage Lema, and gave him $200 a week expense money, to be repaid, in addition to splitting his winnings, with Lema receiving two-thirds, and Lowery one-third.
By 1957, Lema had developed his skills sufficiently to earn his way onto the PGA Tour, winning the Imperial Valley Open in memorable fashion. Assuming he was out of contention, Lema headed to the clubhouse bar, where he drank three highballs, and was then told he would face Paul Harney in a sudden-death playoff. A relaxed Lema won the tournament on the second extra hole.
The following year, in 11 tournaments, Lema finished in the top 15, winning $10,282 for the year.
The following year, Lema’s winnings dropped to $5,900, followed by an even worse year in 1960, when he collected a mere $3,060. A raucous off-the-course lifestyle, contributed to Lema’s continuing struggle in 1962. His debt to Lowery now having reached over $11,000, his luck finally changed for the better.
On the eve of his victory in October 1962 at the Orange County Open Invitational in Costa Mesa, California, Lema joked he would serve champagne to the press if he won the tournament the next day. From then on he was known as Champagne Tony, and his handsome looks and vivacious personality added to the legend.
Lema was a member of Ryder Cup teams in 1963 and 1965 with a record of 9 wins, 1 loss and 1 tie, which remains amongst the best of any player who played in two or more Ryder Cups.
In 1963, Lema finished second by one stroke to Nicklaus at the Masters, and missed the playoff for the US Open by two shots, bogeying the last two holes, and was named 1963 Most Improved Player by Golf Digest.
24 July, 2019