Lee Trevino

Lee Trevino was born on December 1, 1939, in Dallas, in a poor Mexican-American family. He was brought up by his mother Juanita Trevino with the help of his grandfather Joe Trevino, a gravedigger, after his father Joseph abandoned the family.

He had a difficult childhood and could not attend school regularly as he had to supplement the family’s income. By five, he started working in the cotton fields.

His association with golf began when his uncle presented him an old golf club and some balls. At fourteen, he became a full-time caddy at the Dallas Athletic Club.

At 17, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps, and for the next four years, he could play golf with the Corp’s officers and participate in Asian golf events.

Discharged from the Marines in 1960, he turned professional at the club level. Six years later, he entered the U.S. Open. He did well to make the cut and tied at the 54th spot.

The U.S. Open in 1967 was a watershed in his career. He finished fifth, just 8 shots behind the eventual champion Jack Nicklaus. He also automatically qualified for the following year’s open.

1971 was a golden year for him. In a span of 20 days, he won the U.S. Open, Canadian Open and the British Open to become the first player to win those three titles in the same year.

In 1972, he beat favorite Jack Nicklaus in the British Open at Muirfield, Scotland, to become the only player to successfully defend the title since Arnold Palmer, who did it ten years earlier.

He won his first PGA Championship in 1974, but was struck by lightning at the Western Open in Chicago the following year, which caused injury to his spine and he had to undergo a surgery to to remove a damaged spinal disk.

At the 1968 U.S. Open at the East Course of Oak Hill Country Club in New York, Trevino won his first major title, beating defending champion Jack Nicklaus, by four strokes.

He won three titles in a year in 1971, first defeating Nicklaus in the U.S. Open, and in the next three weeks, winning the Canadian Open (the first of three), and the British Open.