- Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez
-
Chi-Chi Rodríguez 
Personal information Full name Juan Antonio Rodríguez Nickname Chi-Chi Born October 23, 1935
Rio Piedras, Puerto RicoHeight 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) Weight 150 lb (68 kg; 11 st) Nationality 
United StatesCareer College None Turned professional 1960 Current tour(s) Champions Tour Former tour(s) PGA Tour Professional wins 38 Number of wins by tour PGA Tour 8 Champions Tour 22 Best results in Major Championships Masters Tournament T10: 1970, 1973 U.S. Open T6: 1981 The Open Championship T28: 1973 PGA Championship T15: 1969 Achievements and awards World Golf Hall of Fame 1992 (member page) Old Tom Morris Award 1989 Bob Jones Award 1989 Juan Antonio "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez (born October 23, 1935) is a Puerto Rican professional golfer. He was the first Puerto Rican to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Contents
Early years
Rodríguez was born into a poor family in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. He was one of six siblings. His father used to earn only $18 a week as a laborer and cattle handler. When Rodríguez was only 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 caddy 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 Army. 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 wrist watch." [3][2]
PGA Tour
Rodríguez turned professional in 1960. In 1963 at age 28 Rodríguez won the Denver Open, which he considers 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". Rodríguez represented Puerto Rico on 12 World Cup teams.[1]
Senior PGA Tour
Rodríguez became eligible to play on the Senior PGA Tour (now known as the Champions Tour) 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]
Awards and honors
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][2]
Later years
On one occasion Rodríguez had a brief encounter with Mother Teresa. He considers that moment as the greatest moment in his life. This encounter inspired him to help others. Rodríguez, together with former pro golfer Bill Hayes and Bob James, established the "Chi-Chi Rodríguez Youth Foundation", an afterschool program at the Glen Oaks Golf Course in Clearwater, Florida[4]. The principal idea behind the foundation is to instill self-esteem in young people who are victims of abuse, have experienced minor brushes with the law, or have suffered other hardships. Rodríguez also bought his mother a house and gave financial help to his brothers and sisters.[1]
In October 1998, Rodríguez suffered a heart attack. He had an angioplasty to clear the blocked artery and made a recovery. He is married and has one daughter.[2]
In 2004 Rodriguez made a cameo in the movie Welcome to Mooseport, shown golfing with the "President" portrayed by Gene Hackman[2].
In May 2010, Rodríguez was robbed at his house in Guayama, Puerto Rico by three people who stole $500,000 in cash and jewelry. Rodríguez and his wife were awakened at 1:45 in the morning by masked men who then tied them up and robbed them.[5][2]
Professional wins (38)
PGA Tour wins (8)
No. Date Tournament Winning Score Margin of Victory Runner(s)-up 1 Sep 1, 1963 Denver Open Invitational -11 (68-74-65-69=276) 2 strokes Bill Eggers2 Jan 26, 1964 Lucky International Open -12 (72-69-65-66=272) Playoff Don January3 Aug 9, 1964 Western Open -16 (64-69-68-67=268) 1 stroke Arnold Palmer4 Apr 30, 1967 Texas Open Invitational -7 (68-73-70-66=277) 1 stroke 
Bob Charles, Bob Goalby5 Oct 20, 1968 Sahara Invitational -10 (70-71-69-64=274) Playoff Dale Douglass6 Apr 30, 1972 Byron Nelson Golf Classic -7 (66-68-69-70=273) Playoff Billy Casper7 Apr 2, 1973 Greater Greensboro Open -17 (68-66-67-66=267) 1 stroke Lou Graham, Ken Still8 Apr 22, 1979 Tallahassee Open -19 (66-69-67-67=269) 3 strokes Lindy MillerOther wins (4)
- 1963 Colombian Open
- 1976 Pepsi-Cola Mixed Team Championship (with Jo Ann Washam)
- 1979 Bahamas Open, Panama Open (tie with Butch Baird)
Senior PGA Tour wins (22)
- 1986 (3) Senior Tournament Players Championship, Digital Seniors Classic, United Virginia Bank Seniors
- 1987 (7) General Foods PGA Seniors' Championship, Vantage at The Dominion, United Hospitals Senior Golf Championship, Silver Pages Classic, Senior Players Reunion Pro-Am, Digital Seniors Classic, GTE Northwest Classic
- 1988 (2) Doug Sanders Kingwood Celebrity Classic, Digital Seniors Classic
- 1989 (1) Crestar Classic
- 1990 (3) Las Vegas Senior Classic, Ameritech Senior Open, Sunwest Bank Charley Pride Senior Golf Classic
- 1991 (4) GTE West Classic, Vintage ARCO Invitational, Las Vegas Senior Classic, Murata Reunion Pro-Am
- 1992 (1) Ko Olina Senior Invitational
- 1993 (1) Burnet Senior Classic
Senior major championships are shown in bold.
Other senior wins (4)
- 1988 Japan PGA Senior Championship, Senior Skins Game
- 1989 Senior Skins Game
- 1993 Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge (with Raymond Floyd and Jack Nicklaus)
Results in major championships
Tournament 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 The Masters CUT T33 CUT T21 CUT DNP T26 DNP DNP U.S. Open DNP DNP DNP WD T40 T44 T42 DNP DNP The Open Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP PGA Championship DNP DNP DNP T44 T71 DNP DNP DNP T15 Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 The Masters T10 T30 CUT T10 T20 CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP U.S. Open T27 T13 T9 T29 T26 DNP CUT 60 T46 T32 The Open Championship DNP DNP DNP T28 DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP PGA Championship CUT T66 T24 T24 T39 T22 DNP CUT DNP T46 Tournament 1980 1981 1982 The Masters T44 DNP T38 U.S. Open CUT T6 CUT The Open Championship DNP DNP DNP PGA Championship WD DNP DNP DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = Withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10Champions Tour major championships
Wins (2)
Year Championship Winning Score Margin Runner(s)-up 1986 Senior Players Championship −10 (69−67−70=206) 2 strokes 
Bruce Crampton1987 General Foods PGA Seniors' Championship −6 (70−69−76−67=282) 1 stroke Dale DouglassSee also
- List of famous Puerto Ricans
- Golfers with most PGA Tour wins
- Golfers with most Champions Tour wins
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Chi-Chi Rodriguez Academy
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Hall of Fame
- ^ The Gigantic Book of Golf Quotations, ed. Jim Apfelbaum. 2007.
- ^ http://www.chichi.org/
- ^ Chi Chi Rodriguez robbed at home in Puerto Rico
External links
- Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez at the PGA Tour official site
- Profile at the World Golf Hall of Fame
Senior PGA Championship champions 1980 Arnold Palmer† • 1981 Miller Barber • 1982 Don January • 1983 Not held • 1984 (Jan) Arnold Palmer • 1984 (Dec) Peter Thomson • 1985 Not held • 1986 Gary Player • 1987 Chi-Chi Rodríguez • 1988 Gary Player • 1989 Larry Mowry • 1990 Gary Player • 1991 Jack Nicklaus • 1992 Lee Trevino • 1993 Tom Wargo† • 1994 Lee Trevino • 1995 Raymond Floyd • 1996 Hale Irwin • 1997 Hale Irwin • 1998 Hale Irwin • 1999 Allen Doyle • 2000 Doug Tewell • 2001 Tom Watson • 2002 Fuzzy Zoeller • 2003 John Jacobs • 2004 Hale Irwin • 2005 Mike Reid† • 2006 Jay Haas† • 2007 Denis Watson • 2008 Jay Haas • 2009 Michael Allen • 2010 Tom Lehman† • 2011 Tom Watson†
† indicates the event was won in a playoffSenior Players Championship champions 1983 Miller Barber • 1984 Arnold Palmer • 1985 Arnold Palmer • 1986 Chi-Chi Rodríguez • 1987 Gary Player • 1988 Billy Casper • 1989 Orville Moody • 1990 Jack Nicklaus • 1991 Jim Albus • 1992 Dave Stockton • 1993 Jim Colbert • 1994 Dave Stockton • 1995 J. C. Snead† • 1996 Raymond Floyd • 1997 Larry Gilbert • 1998 Gil Morgan • 1999 Hale Irwin • 2000 Raymond Floyd • 2001 Allen Doyle† • 2002 Stewart Ginn • 2003 Craig Stadler • 2004 Mark James • 2005 Peter Jacobsen • 2006 Bobby Wadkins • 2007 Loren Roberts • 2008 D. A. Weibring • 2009 Jay Haas • 2010 Mark O'Meara† • 2011 Fred Couples†
† indicates the event was won in a playoffUnited States Ryder Cup team – 1973 Tommy Aaron • Homero Blancas • Gay Brewer • Billy Casper • Dave Hill • Lou Graham • Jack Nicklaus • Arnold Palmer • Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez • J. C. Snead • Lee Trevino • Tom Weiskopf
Jack Burke, Jr. (non-playing captain)
Won: 19 – 13
Categories:- Puerto Rican golfers
- PGA Tour golfers
- Champions Tour golfers
- Winners of senior major golf championships
- World Golf Hall of Fame inductees
- Puerto Rican Army personnel
- Puerto Rican military personnel
- People from San Juan, Puerto Rico
- 1935 births
- Living people
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