St. Paul Recorder

St. Paul Open Again Bars Negro Golfer Sol Hughes
The St. Paul Open Golf Tournament sponsored by the St. Paul Junior Chamber of Commerce and the Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) has again barred Sol Hughes, a Minneapolis Negro golfer because of his race.

The PGA has a whites only policy. Association controls all of the major tournaments except the National Open, the Tam O'Shanter and the Los Angeles Open. Because of this, Negroes are barred from competition in all of the major golf tournaments but these three.

Sol Hughes, who three years ago was not allowed to participate in the St. Paul Open, this year, due to the insistence of some St. Paul Jaycees who do not favor race discrimination, was extended an invitation by the Jaycees director in charge, Ken C. Webb.

Hughes filled out the application blank and sent it with his entrance fee. Tournament director Webb, for the Jaycees, sent the application to Tom Crane, executive secretary of the PGA in Chicago, urging that he be admitted but Crane was adamant in supporting the organization's Hitlerian policy.

The Jaycees letter to Crane urged the admission of Hughes to large number of tournaments in which Hughes had participated beginning in 1935. Included in the tournaments, Hughes has played in was the Chicago Tam O'Shanter Open. In 1947 in that tournament he shot 74. In '48 he missed qualifying in the same tourney by one stroke, scoring 76 for 18 holes of play.

In 1946 he entered the National Open where he finished third with a score of 299 for 72 holes.

Crane, in refusing to accept Hughes' entry sent Webb the following letter:

SPECIAL DELIVERY

Mr. Ken C. Webb, Director in Charge 19th Annual St. Paul Open Invitational Golf Tournament St. Paul Junior Chamber of Commerce 1617 Pioneer Building St Paul 1, Minnesota

Dear Ken:

This will acknowledge receipt of your letter of July 13, with which you enclosed the application of Solomon Hughes of 3553 Fourth Avenue South, Minneapolis 8, Minn., for entry in the St. Paul Invitational Open Golf Tournament, together with U. S. Postal Money Order No. 9-47664 of July 10, which is payable to the order of the St. Paul Junior Chamber of Commerce in the amount of $15.00 and which Mr. Hughes sent you in payment of his entry fee for the Tournament.

We realize, of course, that Mr. Hughes is unquestionably a very fine player and gentleman, also that he has undoubtedly played in certain local and national tournaments, as you point out in your letter. On the other hand, the St. Paul Invitational Open Tournament, as the name implies, is a "limited field" event and participation in the tournament is restricted, under the contract which we have entered into with the St. Paul Junior Chamber of Commerce, who are the co-sponsors, to members of the Professional Golfers' Association of America and to those who have been accorded the status of "Approved Tournament Players" by the Association through the medium of the official procedure which is prescribed by its Tournament Regulations.

Of course, Mr. Hughes, as you know, is neither a member of the P.G.A. nor an "Approved P.G.A. Tournament Player." Consequently, we regret to advise that we cannot Approve or accept his application for entry in the St. Paul Tournament and that he will not be eligible to compete in that event.

Meanwhile, I am returning Mr. Hughes' application and money order herewith. The former has been indicated as "rejected" and I assure you that your thoughtfulness in bringing this matter to our attention at this time has been very much appreciated.

With sincere best wishes to you and your associates for a most successful tournament and with kindest personal regards, I am,

Very cordially yours,

Tom Crane

Executive Secretary

Professional Golfers' Association of America

EDITOR'S NOTE Ironically you will notice from Mr Crane's letter above, "Mr. Hughes ••• is neither a member of PGA nor an approved PGA Tournament Player." The reason why Mr. Hughes is not a member of the PGA is because the PGA does not O. K. them as "approved membership and by the same token do not admit them as "approved PGA players". It's very cozy for the PGA to bar people from tournaments because they don't belong to the association, in view of the fact that they can easily control who joins the group. This might be all right if such barring was not based on a undemocratic race discriminatory basis. The PGA is in the same position in the golfing sport as the ABC was in bowling. it controls the game or at least the competitive and professional end of it. That it should have, at this late date, the guts and lack of patriotism to bar Americans on account of their color is a reflection of the intelligence of the men who compose its membership and its officers.