AUGUSTA, Georgia — Fifty years ago, when Lee Elder broke barriers as the first Black golfer at the Masters, he preferred to let his play speak for itself.
`I`m not talking,` Elder stated to reporters on April 7, 1975, wary of misinterpretation. `Every time I talk, I get into trouble.`
His wife and agent confirmed his stance, explaining, `Lee believes silence is the fairest approach. He is here to focus on golf and wishes to be undisturbed.`
However, Elder`s caddie, Henry J. Brown, a part-time taxi driver from Augusta, Georgia, was never one to shy away from words. He confidently declared that if Elder didn`t perform well against golf giants like Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Johnny Miller, it wouldn`t be due to his caddying.
`I`m the best,` Brown proclaimed. `I could navigate this course in reverse. I know every inch of it. Lee just needs to keep his composure. I guarantee he won`t be out-caddied.`
While Elder`s participation was a landmark moment, integrating the prestigious tournament and the traditionally exclusive Augusta National, it also introduced a remarkable personality to the sport. Henry Brown`s story, largely untold for half a century, is just as captivating.
`Henry Brown was truly a character and an exceptional golfer,` recalled Dave Wilmes, who became friends with Brown after he relocated to South Bend, Indiana, in the early 1980s. `He was a master on the course, especially around the greens. He loved to show off his skills.`
For the Masters` initial four decades, participants were exclusively white, and caddies were Black. By the 1970s, Brown hoped Elder would challenge this norm. For four years, he had requested to caddie for Elder should he qualify for the Masters.
Elder`s breakthrough came at the Monsanto Open on April 21, 1974, his first PGA Tour victory. He defeated Peter Oosterhuis in a sudden-death playoff. Shortly after, Masters chairman Clifford Roberts announced Elder`s invitation to the 1975 tournament.
Although Pete Brown and Charlie Sifford preceded Elder as African American PGA Tour winners, Elder was the first to achieve this after the Masters altered its entry rules to include Black golfers.
Upon Elder`s arrival at Augusta National, Henry Brown was there to greet him. Despite his self-assurance, Brown wasn`t considered Augusta National`s premier caddie. That title was often attributed to Willie Peterson, who caddied for Nicklaus`s first four Masters wins; Willie `Pappy` Stokes, who contributed to five victories for four different golfers; or Nathaniel `Iron Man` Avery, instrumental in Arnold Palmer`s four wins. Yet, Brown had already witnessed a significant moment at Augusta.
At the 1968 Masters, Brown caddied for Roberto De Vicenzo of Argentina, who famously missed a playoff due to signing an incorrect scorecard, a notable blunder in sports history.
De Vicenzo birdied the 17th, tying for the lead, but his playing partner mistakenly recorded a par on his scorecard. De Vicenzo signed it without noticing. USGA rules penalized him for the error, costing him a chance to compete against Bob Goalby, who won the Masters. Had De Vicenzo caught the mistake, he would have played Goalby in a playoff.
De Vicenzo`s only comment was, `What a stupid I am.` Years later, Brown told golf writer John Fineran that he had tried to confront Aaron, believing he had wronged De Vicenzo.
Subsequently, Brown caddied for Goalby and 1959 Masters champion Art Wall Jr.
When Elder teed off at the 1975 Masters, he was admittedly nervous. He even joked about almost lighting a pencil instead of a cigarette. Trying to ease the tension, he asked the crowd about the weather, as it was already drizzling.
Jim Brown, former NFL star, watched as Elder`s drive went down the fairway. Elder`s supporters were also present; he had requested many badges, receiving more than legends like Nicklaus and Palmer.
The initial nervousness subsided, but Elder and Brown`s partnership had a rocky start. Brown relied on visual distance estimation, while Elder preferred precise yardages.
`Henry was very likeable, but his caddying style wasn`t right for me,` Elder mentioned in 2021. `I played by yardage, but he preferred just handing me a club based on sight.`
Elder settled down after a birdie on the second hole, but then bogeyed the next two par-5s. He finished the first round with a 74, seven strokes behind the leader, but only three from the top ten. The cut was for the top 44 and ties.
In the windy second round, Elder shot a 78 and missed the cut by four strokes.
`I messed up myself,` Elder admitted. `Started poorly and was inconsistent. I was too busy admiring the scenery.`
However, Brown recognized Elder`s professionalism. `You can tell when a golfer is nervous—they get irritable,` Brown noted. `I didn`t see any of that with him.`
Brown was indeed an excellent golfer in caddie attire at Augusta. De Vicenzo, when asked about Brown, praised him as a `fine caddie` and surprisingly added, `I think he could beat me.`
Ike `Stabber` Choice, a caddie at Augusta National since the late 1960s, recalled Brown playing with his brother, Charlie Choice. Each spring, Black golfers would visit Augusta Municipal Golf Course, known as the Patch, and Brown and others would often win against them.
`He could score low at the Patch because he was familiar with it,` Ike Choice explained. `He knew all the course nuances.`
Brown used a cross-handed grip and could play both right and left-handed. He frequently played at the Patch with fellow Augusta caddies like Tommy `Burnt Biscuits` Bennett, Jariah `Bubba` Beard, `Cigarette` Bobby Jones, and Jim Dent, a later Senior PGA Tour winner.
In 1980, Larry Adamson from the USGA received a memorable letter from Brown, written from Richmond County Jail. Brown had been accused of assaulting his ex-wife in his taxi in 1979 (though a grand jury declined to indict him).
In the letter, Brown requested a chance to qualify for the U.S. Open, even from jail. He had missed the deadline due to his incarceration and hoped for another opportunity.
Adamson informed Brown of the missed deadline. Undeterred, Brown asked Adamson to send P.J. Boatwright Jr., a USGA executive, to help him get released from jail.
Brown proposed a special qualifier with Boatwright as his marker, but Adamson explained this wasn`t feasible.
Brown later joked in the USGA`s Golf Journal, `I told Adamson, set up the qualifier, you can even handcuff me between shots.`
Upon release, Brown contacted Adamson, reaffirming his innocence and seeking to register for the 1981 U.S. Open qualifier. Adamson agreed to send an application.
Brown provided an address at a salvage yard in South Bend. He returned the application, again past the deadline and without the entry fee.
Robert Lee, who managed U.S. Open qualifiers in northern Indiana, remembers Brown at South Bend Country Club in early 1981. Despite snow, Brown declared to the golf pro his intention to win the U.S. Open and showed his Augusta National caddie ID as proof of his golf credentials.
Brown used the salvage yard address because he earned money there on Fridays, entertaining employees with golf stories and trick shots.
`He`d gather the guys, show his grip, and bet he could hit a specific car on the pile,` Lee recounted. `He could hit irons incredibly well and had amazing short game skills.`
`He was that talented,` Lee emphasized. `He could switch grips to impress and win bets.`
Finally, Brown submitted his U.S. Open application on time for the 1982 qualifier at South Bend Country Club. On the day, arriving in his Pontiac Catalina, a tire blew in the parking lot, causing alarm.
Despite the commotion, Brown played exceptionally well. He tied for first place and advanced to sectional qualifying.
During a local TV interview post-qualifying, two women arrived to change his tire as the interview proceeded.
At sectional qualifying near Chicago, Brown narrowly missed qualifying for the 1982 U.S. Open by one stroke. He reached sectional qualifying for the next three years but never made it to the U.S. Open itself.
`He was never angry or resentful,` Adamson noted. `Unlike many who miss deadlines, Henry remained positive.`
In 1992, golf writer Fineran encountered a car with Georgia plates and an Augusta National hat at a hospital parking lot, realizing Brown`s health had worsened.
Brown passed away on July 22, 1992, at 53, leaving behind a legacy of unrealized potential.
Jim Murray, a columnist, had captured Brown`s life story in 1975, detailing his challenging upbringing and his journey from caddying at Augusta Municipal at age 9 to Augusta National by 14, balancing caddying with night shifts as a taxi driver.
`Despite his golfing talent, Henry Brown never quite reached the U.S. Open, unlike contemporary caddie Johnny Miller,` Murray wrote. `Had Henry Brown been born with different circumstances, his life might have been dramatically different.`
