Rod Curl

Rod Curl
Personal information
Full nameRodney Dean Curl
NicknameLittle Beaver[1]
Born (1943-01-09) January 9, 1943 (age 81)
Redding, California
Height5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Weight160 lb (73 kg; 11 st)
Sporting nationality United States
ResidenceJupiter, Florida
Career
Turned professional1968
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Pro Golf Tour
Professional wins3
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour1
Other2
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT15: 1975
PGA ChampionshipT20: 1980
U.S. OpenT30: 1978
The Open ChampionshipCUT: 1975

Rodney Dean Curl (born January 9, 1943) is an American professional golfer best known for being the first full-blooded Native American to win a PGA Tour event.

Born in Redding, California, Curl is a Wintu Indian.[2][3] Before taking up golf at age 19, he was an outstanding baseball player at Central Valley High School in Shasta County, California.[4]

Curl joined the PGA Tour in 1969 and played regularly through 1978. He had 42 top-10 finishes in official PGA Tour events including one win and a half-dozen second and third-place finishes. In 1974, he won the Colonial National Invitation in Fort Worth by one stroke after runner-up Jack Nicklaus bogeyed the 17th hole and a birdied the last.[5][2][6][7]

Curl played in a limited number of Senior Tour events after reaching the age of 50 in 1993. He lives in Jupiter, Florida and is a corporate instructor with VIP Golf Academy.

Professional wins (3)

PGA Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 May 19, 1974 Colonial National Invitation 70-67-71-68=276 −4 1 stroke United States Jack Nicklaus

Pro Golf Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 May 29, 1988 Pointe Royale Invitational 68-71-64-64=267 −13 4 strokes United States Ben Theobald

Other wins (1)

  • 1977 World Indian Open[8]

See also

References

  1. ^ The Indian with the Clubs Is Rod Curl, Top Pro Golfer
  2. ^ a b "Curl refuses to fold, beats Nicklaus in Colonial". The Bulletin. (Bend, Oregon). Associated Press. May 20, 1974. p. 10.
  3. ^ Grimsley, Will (April 10, 1975). "Rod Curl only playing for himself". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. (Florida). Associated Press. p. 1C.
  4. ^ Biographical information from Shasta County Sports Hall of Fame
  5. ^ Radosta, John S. (May 20, 1974). "Rod Curl wins golf by stroke". New York Times. p. 41.
  6. ^ PGATOUR.com - Bank of America Colonial
  7. ^ Rabun, Mike (May 20, 1974). "Dream come true for Rod Curl". Beaver County Times. (Pennsylvania). UPI. p. C-3.
  8. ^ Official 1991 PGA Tour Media Guide. PGA Tour Creative Services. 1991. p. 190.