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Chi-Chi Rodríguez

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Juan Antonio "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez (October 23, 1935 – August 8, 2024) was a Puerto Rican professional golfer. The winner of eight PGA Tour events, he was the first Puerto Rican to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Chi-Chi Rodríguez
Rodríguez in 2010
Personal information
Full nameJuan Antonio Rodríguez
NicknameChi-Chi
Born(1935-10-23)October 23, 1935
Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico
DiedAugust 8, 2024(2024-08-08) (aged 88)
Height5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Weight150 lb (68 kg; 11 st)
Sporting nationality Puerto Rico
 United States
SpouseIwalani Rodríguez
Career
Turned professional1960
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Senior PGA Tour
Professional wins37
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour8
PGA Tour Champions22 (Tied-7th all-time)
Other7
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT10: 1970, 1973
PGA ChampionshipT15: 1969
U.S. OpenT6: 1981
The Open ChampionshipT28: 1973
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame1992 (member page)
Senior PGA Tour
Byron Nelson Award		1986, 1987
Senior PGA Tour
money list winner		1987
Old Tom Morris Award1989
Bob Jones Award1989

Early life

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Rodríguez was born into a poor family in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. He was one of six siblings. His father used to earn $18 a week as a laborer and cattle handler. When Rodríguez was seven years old, he helped the family by earning money as a water carrier on a sugar plantation. One day Juan wandered off into a golf course. When he saw that the caddies were earning more money than he was, he decided to become a caddie himself.[1][2]

Rodríguez would take a branch from a guava tree and turn it into a golf club. Using a metal can as a "golf ball," he would practice what he had seen the "real" golfers do, teaching himself how to play golf. By the time he was nine years old, he was proficient at golf, and in 1947, at the age of 12, he scored a 67.[1][2]

In 1954, when Rodríguez was 19, he joined the U.S. Army during the Korean War. During his breaks, he would visit whichever golf course was nearby, where he continued to perfect his game.[2]

Rodríguez, with characteristic charisma, would often make jokes about his past hardships on the golf course, such as, "How long does John Daly drive a golf ball? When I was a kid, I didn't go that far on vacation." And, "Playing golf is not hot work. Cutting sugar cane for a dollar a day — that's hot work. Hotter than my first wristwatch."[2][3]

PGA Tour

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Rodríguez turned professional in 1960. In 1963, at age 28, Rodríguez won the Denver Open, which he considered his favorite win. He won eight titles on the PGA Tour between 1963 and 1979.[1]

At first Rodríguez used to put his hat over the hole whenever he made a birdie or eagle. After he heard that other golfers were complaining about his little act, he decided to try something new. Juan developed his signature "toreador dance," where he would make believe that the ball was a "bull" and that his putter was a "sword," and he would terminate the "bull." Even though he was a very small man, he had a special stance and swing with the driver that enabled him to hit the ball as far as the longest drivers on the tour. Rodríguez represented Puerto Rico on 12 World Cup teams.[1]

Senior PGA Tour

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Rodríguez became eligible to play on the Senior PGA Tour (now known as the PGA Tour Champions) in 1985 and did so for many years with great success, earning 22 tournament victories between 1986 and 1993. He was the first player on the Senior PGA Tour to win the same event in three consecutive years. He set a tour record with eight consecutive birdies en route to a win at the 1987 Silver Pages Classic. In 1991, he lost an 18-hole playoff to Jack Nicklaus in the U.S. Senior Open.[1][2] Over his three decades competing on the pro circuit, he became one of the most popular players.[4]

Awards and honors

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In 1986, Rodríguez won the Hispanic Recognition Award. In 1988, he was named Replica's Hispanic Man of the Year. In 1989, Rodríguez was voted the Bob Jones Award, the highest honor given by the United States Golf Association in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf. He received the 1989 Old Tom Morris Award from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, GCSAA's highest honor. In 1992, Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, the first Puerto Rican so honored.[1][2]

Rodriguez was the 1995 Rose Parade Grand Marshal.[5]

Later years and personal life

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Rodríguez was married and had a daughter.[2]

On one occasion, Rodríguez had a brief encounter with Mother Teresa, a moment he considered to be the greatest of his life and which inspired him to help others. Together with former professional golfer Bill Hayes and Bob James, Rodríguez established the Chi-Chi Rodríguez Youth Foundation, an afterschool program at the Glen Oaks Golf Course in Clearwater, Florida.[1] The principal idea behind the foundation was to instill self-esteem in young people who are victims of abuse, have experienced minor brushes with the law, or have suffered any other hardships. Rodríguez also bought his mother a house and provided financial aid to his brothers and sisters.[1]

In October 1998, Rodríguez suffered a heart attack. He underwent an angioplasty to clear a blocked artery and made a full recovery.[6]

Rodríguez made a cameo in the movie Welcome to Mooseport (2004), in which he is seen golfing with the United States President, as portrayed by Gene Hackman.[2]

In May 2010, Rodríguez was robbed at his house in Guayama, Puerto Rico, by three men who stole $500,000 worth of money and jewelry. Rodríguez and his wife were awakened at 1:45 in the morning by the masked men, who tied them up and proceeded to rob them.[2][7]

On March 11, 2012, at the age of 76, Rodríguez participated, as an honorary player, in the Puerto Rico Open. He played 18 holes as his final official round as a professional in the PGA. There were several events honoring Rodríguez associated with the tournament, and the tribute received extensive media coverage.[8]

Rodríguez died on August 8, 2024, at the age of 88. He was buried at the Hawaii State Veterans Cemetery in Kaneohe, Hawaii.[4][9]

Cultural references

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A painted image of Rodriguez was used to sell golf merchandise in the 1970s. The members of the new wave band Devo saw one of these promotional images and decided that it represented the artificiality of popular culture. They used the image in their satirical manifesto (on the de-evolution of humanity) and also featured it on the artwork of their single "Be Stiff", which was released in early 1978, before they had signed to a major label. Four months later, they signed to Warner Bros. Records. For their debut album, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, they wanted to use Rodriguez's image for the album cover art, but Warner rejected it, due to not having Rodriguez's permission. As the band sought permission, they suggested that the image could be altered to not resemble Rodriguez so closely. Warner's art department slightly changed the ears, eyes, nose and other features and began album production. By the time the band secured Rodriguez's permission, it was too late to use the original one. Warner sent Rodriguez $2,500 and 50 copies of the album, but he only listened to it once, preferring music by vocalists such as Dean Martin.[10]

In 1993, Rodriguez lent his name to the video game Chi Chi's Pro Challenge Golf, published by Virgin Games for the Sega Genesis console.[11]

The 1995 film To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar features a drag queen character named Chi-Chi Rodriguez, played by John Leguizamo. The golfer sued the producers and distributors over the use of his name, later settling out of court for undisclosed amounts[12]

Professional wins (37)

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Source:[13]

PGA Tour wins (8)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner(s)-up
1 Sep 1, 1963 Denver Open Invitational −4 (68-74-65-69=276) 2 strokes   Bill Eggers
2 Jan 27, 1964 Lucky International Open −12 (72-69-65-66=272) Playoff   Don January
3 Aug 9, 1964 Western Open −16 (64-69-68-67=268) 1 stroke   Arnold Palmer
4 Apr 30, 1967 Texas Open Invitational −7 (68-73-70-66=277) 1 stroke   Bob Charles,   Bob Goalby
5 Oct 20, 1968 Sahara Invitational −10 (70-71-69-64=274) Playoff   Dale Douglass
6 May 1, 1972 Byron Nelson Golf Classic −7 (66-68-69-70=273) Playoff   Billy Casper
7 Apr 2, 1973 Greater Greensboro Open −17 (68-66-67-66=267) 1 stroke   Lou Graham,   Ken Still
8 Apr 22, 1979 Tallahassee Open −19 (66-69-67-67=269) 3 strokes   Lindy Miller

PGA Tour playoff record (3–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1964 Lucky International Open   Don January Won 18-hole playoff;
Rodríguez: −1 (70),
January: E (71)
2 1966 Cajun Classic Open Invitational   Jacky Cupit Lost to par on second extra hole
3 1968 Sahara Invitational   Dale Douglass Won with par on first extra hole
4 1972 Byron Nelson Golf Classic   Billy Casper Won with birdie on first extra hole

Other wins (4)

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Senior PGA Tour wins (22)

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Legend
Senior PGA Tour major championships (2)
Other Senior PGA Tour (20)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner(s)-up
1 Jun 22, 1986 Senior Tournament Players Championship −10 (69-67-70=206)* 2 strokes   Bruce Crampton
2 Aug 10, 1986 Digital Seniors Classic −13 (70-67-66=203) 1 stroke   Gary Player
3 Sep 14, 1986 United Virginia Bank Seniors −14 (69-67-66=202) 3 strokes   Don January
4 Feb 15, 1987 General Foods PGA Seniors' Championship −6 (70-69-76-67=282) 1 stroke   Dale Douglass
5 May 10, 1987 Vantage at The Dominion −13 (67-67-69=203) 3 strokes   Butch Baird
6 May 17, 1987 United Hospitals Senior Golf Championship −8 (70-69-63=202) 1 stroke   Lee Elder
7 May 24, 1987 Silver Pages Classic −16 (66-65-69=200) 3 strokes   Bruce Crampton
8 Jun 7, 1987 Senior Players Reunion Pro-Am −15 (67-69-65=201) 1 stroke   Bruce Crampton
9 Aug 9, 1987 Digital Seniors Classic (2) −18 (65-66-67=198) 8 strokes   Orville Moody
10 Aug 23, 1987 GTE Northwest Classic −10 (70-68-68=206) 1 stroke   Butch Baird
11 Apr 17, 1988 Doug Sanders Kingwood Celebrity Classic −8 (70-69-69=208) 2 strokes   Miller Barber,   John Brodie
12 Jul 31, 1988 Digital Seniors Classic (3) −14 (68-65-69=202) 1 stroke   Bob Charles
13 Sep 17, 1989 Crestar Classic (2) −13 (66-69-68=203) 1 stroke   Jim Dent,   Dick Rhyan
14 May 6, 1990 Las Vegas Senior Classic −12 (68-67-69=204) 1 stroke   George Archer,   Charles Coody
15 Jul 22, 1990 Ameritech Senior Open −13 (67-70-66=203) 7 strokes   George Archer,   Al Kelley
16 Aug 12, 1990 Sunwest Bank Charley Pride Senior Golf Classic −11 (66-71-68=205) 2 strokes   Charles Coody,   Jim Dent,
  Jim Ferree
17 Mar 3, 1991 GTE West Classic −8 (66-66=132)* 1 stroke   Bruce Crampton,   Gary Player
18 Mar 24, 1991 Vintage ARCO Invitational −10 (70-67-69=206) 1 stroke   Mike Hill,   Don January
19 May 5, 1991 Las Vegas Senior Classic (2) −12 (70-68-66=204) 3 strokes   Walt Zembriski
20 May 12, 1991 Murata Reunion Pro-Am (2) −8 (71-70-67=208) Playoff   Jim Colbert
21 Nov 8, 1992 Ko Olina Senior Invitational −10 (69-68-69=206) 6 strokes   Charles Coody
22 Jun 20, 1993 Burnet Senior Classic −15 (69-67-65=201) 2 strokes   Jim Colbert,   Bob Murphy

*Note: Tournament shortened to 36/54 holes due to rain.

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–7)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 1986 Greater Grand Rapids Open   Jim Ferree,   Gene Littler Ferree won with birdie on first extra hole
2 1989 Bell Atlantic/St. Christopher's Classic   Dave Hill Lost to par on third extra hole
3 1989 General Tire Las Vegas Classic   Charles Coody,   Bob Charles Coody won with birdie on second extra hole
4 1990 NYNEX Commemorative   Mike Fetchick,   Jimmy Powell,
  Lee Trevino 		Trevino won with birdie on fifth extra hole
Powell and Rodríguez eliminated by birdie on first hole
5 1991 Murata Reunion Pro-Am   Jim Colbert Won with par on fourth extra hole
6 1991 U.S. Senior Open   Jack Nicklaus Lost 18-hole playoff;
Nicklaus: −5 (65),
Rodríguez: −1 (69)
7 1991 Security Pacific Senior Classic   George Archer,   John Brodie Brodie won with birdie on first extra hole
8 1993 First of America Classic   George Archer,   Jim Colbert Archer won with par on third extra hole
Rodríguez eliminated by par on first hole

Other senior wins (3)

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Results in major championships

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Tournament 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament CUT T33 CUT T21 CUT T26
U.S. Open WD T40 T44 T42
The Open Championship
PGA Championship T44 T71 T15
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Masters Tournament T10 T30 CUT T10 T20 CUT
U.S. Open T27 T13 T9 T29 T26 CUT 60 T46 T32
The Open Championship T28
PGA Championship CUT T66 T24 T24 T39 T22 CUT T46
Tournament 1980 1981 1982
Masters Tournament T44 T38
U.S. Open CUT T6 CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship WD
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

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Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 0 0 0 2 4 14 9
U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 2 3 16 12
The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
PGA Championship 0 0 0 0 0 4 12 9
Totals 0 0 0 0 4 11 43 31
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 9 (1972 U.S. Open – 1974 PGA)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (four times)

Senior major championships

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Wins (2)

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Year Championship Winning score Margin Runner-up
1986 Senior Tournament Players Championship −10 (69-67-70=206) 2 strokes   Bruce Crampton
1987 General Foods PGA Seniors' Championship −6 (70-69-76-67=282) 1 stroke   Dale Douglass

Results timeline

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Tournament 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996
The Tradition NYF NYF NYF T7 T48 T6 3 T30 T37 WD T12
Senior PGA Championship T5 1 2 T19 2 T12 3 T32 T5 T26 T4
Senior Players Championship 1 T2 T26 T10 T5 T25 4 T20 T32 T13
U.S. Senior Open T10 3 T6 T18 T3 2 7 T4 T32 T29 T17
Tournament 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
The Tradition T43 70 T65 WD T67 78
Senior PGA Championship T27 CUT CUT
Senior Players Championship T34 T50 T33 T60 73 77
U.S. Senior Open T21 CUT CUT T37 CUT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

NYF = Tournament not yet founded
CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Note: Rodríguez never played in the Senior Open Championship.

Team appearances

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Chi-Chi Rodriguez Academy". Chichi.org. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Made Up Media: R.Sellers, M.Walker, I.George, D.Crouch, G.Newsham. "Hall of Fame". Ingolfwetrust.com. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved March 12, 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ The Gigantic Book of Golf Quotations, ed. Jim Apfelbaum. 2007.
  4. ^ a b Goldstein, Richard (August 9, 2024). "Chi Chi Rodriguez, the Golf World's Swashbuckling Champion, Dies at 88". The New York Times. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  5. ^ "Don't Know Who Chi Chi Is? Well, Welcome to the Club : Celebrity: Selection of veteran golfer Rodriguez as Rose Parade grand marshal surprises some, confuses others". Los Angeles Times. October 13, 1994. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  6. ^ "'Chi Chi' Rodriguez, a Hall of Fame golfer who livened up the sport, dies at 88". opb. Associated Press. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
  7. ^ "Chi Chi Rodriguez robbed at home in Puerto Rico". Stats.cbc.ca. Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
  8. ^ "Fifth Annual Puerto Rico Open Tees Off at The Trump International: Golf Legend Chi Chi Rodríguez to Play His Final Official Round". Prweb.com. January 19, 2012. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
  9. ^ "Hall of Fame golfer Juan 'Chi Chi' Rodriguez dies at 88". ESPN. Associated Press. August 8, 2024.
  10. ^ "The Devo De-Evolution of Golfer Chi Chi Rodriguez". August 25, 2017.
  11. ^ Chi Chi's Pro Challenge at MobyGames
  12. ^ "Rodriguez Settles Suit". The Spokesman-Review. September 29, 1995. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  13. ^ "Chi Chi Rodriguez – Results". PGA Tour. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
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