Masters and U.S. Open champion Frank Zoller has died at the age of 74, according to multiple reports. The cause of death is not yet known.
Zoeller, who is from Indiana and played at the University of Houston, was the last player to win the Masters in his debut at the event. He won the green jacket in 1979, defeating Tom Watson and Ed Sneed in a three-hole playoff.
“I have never been to heaven, and looking back on my life, I probably won’t have the chance to go,” Zoller famously said. “I think winning the Masters is the closest thing I can get.”
Zoeller went on to win 10 PGA Tour titles, including another major victory at the 1984 U.S. Open at Winged Foot. He won the title in an 18-hole playoff over Greg Norman, only to surrender the next day waving a white towel at the 18th hole, thinking he had lost the match.
“Fuzzy is unique,” USGA CEO Mike Whan said in a statement. “We thank him for everything he did for golf. I hope we can all remember his unmistakable joy.”
Zoeller continued to excel on the Champions Tour, winning twice on the Senior Tour, including the 2002 Senior PGA Championship when he beat Hale Irwin and Bobby Wadkins by one shot.
Despite his success on the court, Zoeller’s reputation was tarnished off the course after he made a racial slur toward Tiger Woods at the 1997 Masters. Speaking immediately after Woods’ record-setting win at Augusta National, Zoeller said: “You know what you do when he gets here? You pat him on the back, say congratulations and enjoy it and tell him not to serve fried chicken next year.”
Zoller later apologized for the gaffe. He subsequently received death threats for his comments and wrote in 2008 that the incident was “the worst thing that has ever happened to me in my life”.
“If people expected me to feel the hurt I caused others, I’m here to tell you that they got their wish,” Zoeller wrote. “I’ve cried a lot. I’ve apologized countless times for things I’ve said in jest that don’t reflect who I am. I have hundreds of friends, including people of color, who will attest to that… However, I have come to terms with the fact that this will never go away.”
Zoeller’s wife, Diane, died in 2021. He is survived by four children: Sunny, Heidi, Gretchen and Miles, as well as multiple grandchildren.
