Peter M. Holt (born July 26, 1948) is an American businessman. He is the former CEO of HoltCat, the largest

Caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

dealership in the United States and former chairman, CEO, and owner of

Spurs Sports & Entertainment Spurs Sports & Entertainment L.L.C. (SS&E) is an American sports & entertainment organization, based in San Antonio, Texas. The company owns and operates several sporting franchises including the National Basketball Association (NBA) San Antonio ...

, which owns the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...

, the USL's

San Antonio FC San Antonio FC is a professional soccer club based in San Antonio, Texas. It competes in the USL Championship, the second-highest level of the United States soccer league system, as a member of the Western Conference. History San Antonio F ...

, the AHL's

San Antonio Rampage The San Antonio Rampage were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League based in San Antonio, Texas. The Rampage was primarily owned by Spurs Sports & Entertainment throughout the team's existence. In 2020, the franchise was sold ...

, and the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

Austin Spurs The Austin Spurs are an American basketball team in the NBA G League based in Cedar Park, Texas, and are affiliated with the San Antonio Spurs. The team plays their home games at H-E-B Center at Cedar Park. The team has made the postseason in 8 ...

Early life and military career

Holt is the great-grandson of

Benjamin Holt Benjamin Leroy Holt (January 1, 1849 – December 5, 1920) was an American businessman and inventor who patented and manufactured the first practical crawler-type tread tractor. The continuous-type track is used for heavy agricultural and engin ...

, who developed the first practical track-type tractor in 1904. His family's history in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

, Texas began in 1933, when his great uncle, William K. Holt, moved to San Antonio to start a

dealership. As he had no heirs, Bill invited B.D. Holt (Peter's father) to get involved in the business. In 1961, B.D. Holt moved to

Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi (; Ecclesiastical Latin: "'' Body of Christ"'') is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patrici ...

and started his own Caterpillar dealership. Holt, a

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria ...

native, lived in San Antonio as a child before moving to Corpus Christi. After graduating high school in Corpus Christi, Holt went into 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 ...

, serving two years, including a one-year tour of duty as an infantryman 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 ended his military duty as a Sergeant with a

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

, three

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

s, and a

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

Early business career

Upon leaving the army, Holt went to California, working for an investment banking house and became involved in a bar and restaurant business. Holt rejoined his father in 1983 to work in Corpus Christi at his Caterpillar dealership. Holt diversified the dealership's markets, growing it to its size today. In September 1987, Holt and his father purchased Holt Machinery Co. in San Antonio, reuniting the original Caterpillar dealership that his great uncle started in 1933. Holt would later expand the company's Texas presence by purchasing Darr Equipment Company of Dallas, a Caterpillar dealer in the DFW Metroplex.

Sports franchise ownership

In 1993, Holt decided to invest in the

, wanting to help keep the team in San Antonio. He and his wife Julianna became the team's principal owners. Holt and the Spurs organization later purchased other franchises – the

Austin Toros Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

, the

of the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

, and the renamed San Antonio Silver Stars of the WNBA. With each purchase, the team colors were changed to silver and black, the motif used by the Spurs. To keep the team in San Antonio, Holt led a successful effort to build a new arena, the

AT&T Center AT&T Center is a list of indoor arenas, multi-purpose indoor arena on the east side of San Antonio, Texas, United States. It is the home of the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association. The arena seats 18,418 for basketball, and ...

, through a ballot measure that would provide public funding for its construction. The new home to the Spurs and the

Livestock Exposition broke ground in August 2000 and opened for the 2002 season. During his tenure as owner, the Spurs won five championships in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014. Holt retired in 2016, and his wife, Julianna, succeeded him. His son Peter J. Holt has since succeeded his mother.

Personal life

Holt served as Chairman of the

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016. United Way organizations raise funds ...

of San Antonio and

Bexar County Bexar County ( or ; es, Béxar ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in South Texas and its county seat is San Antonio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,009,324. Bexar County is included in the San Antonio–New Bra ...

. He is a member of the World presidents’ Organization, and is a trustee of the Palmer Drug Abuse Program. He also served as chairman of the board of St. Mary's Hall, a private school in

. A frequent contributor to the Republican Party, Holt has contributed over $500,000 to the campaigns of Governor

Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...

, who appointed Holt as a commissioner of the

Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) is a Texas state agency that oversees and protects wildlife and their habitats. In addition, the agency is responsible for managing the state's parks and historical areas. Its mission is to manage ...

. A strong supporter of international trade, Holt is a board member of Free Trade Alliance-San Antonio, as well as the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation and Chase Bank-San Antonio. According to documents obtained by the San Antonio Express-News, Julianna Hawn Holt filed for divorce December 22, 2017 in Bexar County District Court. Holt was inducted to the Texas Business Hall of Fame in 2004.Texas Business HOF – Texas Business.org
/ref>

Awards and honors

75px, Holt is a Silver Star recipient for his military service 75px, Holt won five NBA Championships as owner of the San Antonio Spurs Military *Silver Star *Three Bronze Stars *Purple Heart Business *CAT Circle of Excellence Award winner *Texas Business Hall of Fame inductee (class of 2004) *2014

USAA The United Services Automobile Association (USAA) is a San Antonio-based Fortune 500 diversified financial services group of companies including a Texas Department of Insurance-regulated reciprocal inter-insurance exchange and subsidiaries offeri ...

/NaVOBA Vetrepreneur of The Year Award winnerHolt wins award – Victory Media.com
/ref> Sports ownership *Five-time

NBA Champion The National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals is the championship series for the NBA held at the conclusion of its postseason. All Finals have been played in a best-of-seven format, and are contested between the winners of the Eastern Con ...

(as owner of the

– 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2014) *Two-time

Champion (as owner of the

) – 2012, 2018 Other *2001 Golden Plate Award of the

American Academy of Achievement The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a non-profit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest achieving individuals in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet o ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holt, Peter 1948 births Living people People from Corpus Christi, Texas San Antonio Spurs executives People from San Antonio San Antonio Stars owners San Antonio Spurs owners Women's National Basketball Association executives United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War United States Army soldiers Recipients of the Silver Star People from Peoria, Illinois Caterpillar Inc. people