Walter T. Morgan (born May 31, 1941) is an American

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who has played on the

Senior PGA Tour PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour. History and format The Senior PGA Championship, founded in 1937, was for many years ...

(now Champions Tour). Morgan was born in

Haddock, Georgia Haddock (also known as Haddocks Station) is an unincorporated community in Jones County, Georgia, United States. It lies along State Route 22, to the east of the city of Gray, the county seat. Its elevation is 499 feet (152 m). It has ...

, where he played baseball in his youth. He served 20 years in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

including two tours of duty in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. He began playing

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

at the age of 30 after 10 years in the military. After retiring from the military, Morgan joined the Champions Tour. He played on the tour from 1991 to 2004, winning three times. Morgan holds or shares several

Champions Tour records These are achievements of play on PGA Tour Champions. Individual scoring records Stroke totals *72 holes :257 – Pádraig Harrington, 2022 Charles Schwab Cup Championship *54 holes :191 – Bruce Fleisher, 2002 RJR Championship :191 – Loren Rob ...

. He shares the lowest 18-hole round (60), lowest strokes to par score (11), and the record for the largest lead in a tournament after 18 holes with several other golfers. Morgan is also the holder of the youngest golfer to shoot his age or better record. He was eventually forced to retire from the game in 2004 for health reasons due to arthritis in his back and shoulders. Morgan has received several Champions Tour awards. He received the 1995 ''Comeback Player of the Year'' award, and was Champions Tour ''Player of the Month'' in September 1995 and March 1996. He was also the recipient of the 2006 African-American Legend of Golf award. Morgan and his wife, Geraldine, founded a

First Tee First Tee is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that teaches children life skills, self-confidence, and resilience through golf lessons. First Tee reaches more than 3.6 million youth annually through programs delivered at chapter program locations, ...

chapter, The First Tee of Lake Norman Region, a non-profit organization that develops and supports programs promoting life skills and opportunities including the incorporation of junior golf programs for disadvantaged and special needs youth.

Professional wins (4)

Senior PGA Tour wins (3)

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)

Other senior wins (1)

*2002 Uniting Fore Care Classic (Georgia-Pacific Grand Champions event)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Walter American male golfers African-American golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers Golfers from Georgia (U.S. state) People from Jones County, Georgia 1941 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportspeople