Sad to say bye-bye to Chi Chi..one of golf's greats..

 I was sad to hear Chi Chi Rodriguez passed away yesterday after a great innings of 88, Puerto Rico's best golfer and Golf Hall of Famer.

For those too young to have enjoyed his flamboyant style here is the edited pgatour.com offering penned by Chris Cox. 

World Golf Hall of Fame member Juan “Chi Chi” Rodriguez was a giver on and off the golf course. Inside the ropes, Rodriguez was a showman. After great shots, fans would marvel at his signature “sword dance” when Rodriguez would wield a golf club and thrust his “sword” back into its imaginary scabbard along his belt. Outside of golf, Rodriguez was known for his tireless philanthropy.

Roots...

Rodriguez came from humble roots in Puerto Rico to collect 30 career victories between the PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions. He took as much pride in his Chi Chi Rodriguez Youth Foundation in Clearwater, Florida, that helped at-risk youth achieve academic, social and economic success.

“A man never stands taller than when he stoops to help a child,” he said in his World Golf Hall of Fame biography when he was enshrined in 1992.

Few, then, stood taller than Rodriguez – the greatest golfer produced by Puerto Rico – who passed away Thursday, Aug. 8, at age 88.

Rodriguez’s memory will live on at his Youth Foundation, which each year brings in 600 children from low-income families or broken homes to its municipal course to develop skills like responsibility and work ethic. His altruistic nature culminated in 1989 with the USGA’s highest honor, the Bob Jones Award, and later his acceptance into the World Humanitarian Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.

Growing up...

Rodriguez’s pathway into servitude was shaped by a childhood less fortunate than others. His father worked tirelessly cutting sugar cane with a machete in Rodriguez’s hometown of Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, yet never made more than $18 in a given week. By the time he was 7, Rodriguez joined his father in hard labor, earning money as a water carrier on a plantation

It was then that the young Rodriguez realized athletic abilities would bestow upon him rare opportunities not afforded to most others. After wandering onto a golf course, Rodriguez discovered caddies were earning more money than he was – so he decided to become one himself.

Perspective...

Rodriguez never lost sight of what brought him to the TOUR in the first place – a challenging upbringing that gave him a unique perspective on not only the game of golf, but life itself. 

From his first TOUR win in 1963 to his final PGA TOUR Champions triumph in 1993, Rodriguez stood by that mantra. After making a birdie putt, golf fans could often see him drop his hat over the hole “so the little birdie won’t fly away.”

By refocusing himself to strictly golf, Rodriguez managed to claim his most profitable year on TOUR in 1972, which saw him finish nine times in the top 10, including a playoff victory over Billy Casper in the Byron Nelson Golf Classic (now THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson). He earned more than $113,000 in winnings that season, his best year financially.

Senior Circuit...

With his PGA TOUR success behind him, Rodriguez managed to reinvent himself on PGA TOUR Champions, where he won 22 times between 1986 and 1993 – tied for seventh-most all-time. He was the first player to win the same event three straight years (the Digital Seniors Classic, from 1986 to 1988) and still holds the Champions Tour record for most consecutive birdies (eight, 1987 Silver Pages Classic).

His Champions Tour tenure included a pair of major victories: the 1986 Senior Tournament Players Championship (now Kaulig Companies Championship) over Bruce Crampton, and the 1987 General Foods PGA Seniors’ Championship (now KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship) over Dale Douglass.

His legacy..

Humanitarian, champion, and Hall of Famer. Sure enough, from the branches of a guava tree to the roots of his Foundation, Rodriguez accomplished the goals he set out to achieve.

“In life, you have to have goals, and I have conquered most of my goals,” he told Golf.com. “I didn’t become the greatest golfer in the world, but I became the greatest Puerto Rican golfer.”

Bryan Angus (edit)