Local legend Joe Johnson continues storied golfing career
Ralph
Gaillard
Golf-N
Around
He started caddying at
Reynolds Park Golf Course
during summer vacations when
he was 10 years old. Segrega
tion and Jim Crow politics did
not allow African Americans to
play golf at local golf courses.
Together with some of his
friends, they made a makeshift
three-hole golf course in the
schoolyard at 14th Street Ele
mentary School.
It was on that makeshift
course that he taught himself
how to play golf.
He entered the prestigious
Forsyth Invitational Golf Tour
namcnt in 1967. It*as the first
time African Americans were
allowed to participate in the
tournament. In his first outing.
Joe Johnson became the first
African American to win the
tournament.
Johnson recently remi
nisced, "When I was 12 years
old. Reynolds Park Golf Course
allowed African Americans to
play on Mondays and Fridays."
During the summers. John
son and his friends would head
for Reynolds Park on Mondays.
Spending their caddy earnings,
they would rent clubs and play
at Reynolds Park. The first nine
holes at Winst6b Lake Golf
Course were opened when he
was a sophomore at Atkins
High School. It was at this time
that he dropped his interest in
other sports, devoting all of his
free time to golf.
Johnson posted 25 amateur
tournament wins, including the
Forsyth Invitational. After the
Forsyth win. he turned profes
sional in 1967. He traveled on a
local "minor league" pro^our
and has posted two wins on that
tour's senior circuit: the
Skyview Open in Asheville and
the Black Hall of Fame Tourna
ment in Greensboro.
Johnson looked up to Wad
dell Fair, one-time assistant pro
at The Lake. Johnson said,
"Waddell used to win all the
tournaments. The way he
played motivated me to get bet
ter."
James Black and Chuck
Thorpe were two pro golfers
that also inspired Johnson.
"They both had confidence,
believed and were cool under
pressure."
Johnson advises new golfers
to "go to a teaching pro and get
the basic fundamentals before
beginning to play. Starting out
on your own can breed bad
habits that are very difficult to
correct. Family and friends can.
leach you to drive a car. but
they cannot teach you to play
golf." ?
Johnson said there are many
outstanding golfers in our area,
and in another time, they had
the ability to play on the PGA
Tours. They include Gene
Williams. Floyd Green. Richard
Carter, Lester Kimber, Leonard
Jackson. Robert and Willie
Bethea, just to name a few.
"These guys can play, and they
motivated me to practice and
get better," Johnson said.
Johnson told the following
story that occurred after he won
the Forsyth Invitational. The
tournament director advised
him there would be a banquet in
which he would be honored and
presented the winning trophy.
The director said he would call
him with the date. etc. Johnson
has never gotten that call. Jerry
Jones, then the pro at Winston
Lake Golf Course, put on a ban
- quet. with more than 1(H) peo
ple in attendance, where John
son was honored for winning
the tournament. Johnson said it
was a "very emotional experi
ence and something I w ill never
forget."
He said, "Golf taught me
discipline and patience." He
credits his wife. Carolyn, with
his successes in golf. "She has
always supported me 100 per
cent. I could not have done it
without her support and encour
agement."
Like the before-mentioned
local golfers who did not have
the opportunities. Joe Johnson
also possessed the talent, skills
and game to play on the PGA
Tours. Ask anybody around
who knows golf and they will
echo that statement. For that
matter, he js still one of the best
golfers around. Johnson is a
fine person, one of the good
guys, and a credit to his people
and this community. If you
know Johnson, you aft better
for having passed his way.
Also, in this writer's opin
ion. Forsyth Invitational Golf
Tournament still owes Johnson
a banquet for w inning the 1967
tournament.
Until next time, keep it in
the fairway.
Wake women fall short in comeback at ACC tourney
<>
BY SAM DAVIS
THE CHRONin F.
GREENSBORO
Being cast in an unfamiliar
role might have taken a toll
on Wake Forest's women's
basketball team in its open
ing-round battle against
Maryland in the ACC Bas
ketball Tournament. The
Lady Deacon players found
themselves the higher-seed
ed teanj in a tournament
game for the first time in
their careers.
And judging from the
way they came out in the
second half, it might have
been too much for the Lady
Deacons.
"This was a different sit
uation for us. as (we) were
the higher-seeded team,"
said coach Charlene Curtis
of Wake Forest. "This is the
best season we have had at
Wake Forest in a long time.
Our players played a little
tight. We played like we
had a lot to lose rather than
relaxing and playing bas
ketball."
Wake went 10:11 with
out scoring and watched
Maryland stretch a tenuous
29-28 advantage to a 54-28
margin before the l-ady
Deacons began a comeback
attempt.
The Lady Deacons final
ly reached their stride in the
second half, getting three 3
pointers from Jennifer
Johnson, but their deficit
was too much to overcome
and Maryland put an end to
Wake Forest's season.
"Obviously, the best
team won tonight in terms
of execution," Curtis said.
"Maryland did a great job
pushing the ball in the sec
ond half and their players
did a great job of running
the floor."
The Lady Deacons made
only 11 of 40 second-half
field goals after connecting
on 11 of 19 in the first half.
Maryland made 12 of 17
from the field in the second
half and had most of them
as the Terps ran out to their
wide margin.
Wake Forest went on a
24-6 run to get within 60-52
with 3:35 left to play. How
ever, the Lady Deacons
couldn't get much closer
until the final seconds of
the game.
"We could have given up
and rolled over when we
were down by 21 points,"
Curtis said.
"We tried to fight back,
but we let it get away from
us.
"I thought we missed
"some crucial free throws,
and Maryland made theirs
down the stretch," Curtis
added. "At the end of the
game when we were trying
to come back, we took the
ball to the basket and we
got some good looks and
timely offensive rebounds."
The Deacons finished
the season 5-11 in the ACC
and 12-16 overall. Both
totals are highs for the Dea
cons since Curtis took over
the program. She said the
future is bright for the Lady
Deacons, who were led by
Tonia Brown's 11 points
and 10 by Eafton Hill.
Tracy Alston, Bianca
Brown and Jennifer John
son scored 11 each while
LaChina Robinson added 8.
"Tracy Alston has
played great defensively all
year, and Tonia Brown had
a very goodjyear for us in<>
the ACC this season." Cur
tis said. "1 feel as if the pro
gram is in good hands with
players like this, and that
will make us better."
Lady Rams
frxnn puyt HI
sha Harris. However, the Lady
Rams went on a drought late in
the first half and Virginia State
went on a 12-0 run to take a
30-25 lead at the -half. The
Lady Rains' offensive woes
continued in the second half,
and they found themselves
down by 11 with 6:48 left.
That's when coach Daymond
Lindell's team began to force
tempo with its defense and the
Lady Rams forced four straight
turnovers.
Becky McKee, who was
named the game's MVP, had
several big plays to help the
Trojanettes push the lead buck
to 13 with 4:26 remaining
before WSSU started a run that
helped the Lady Rams Cut the
lead to 61-57 with 47 seconds
left. Howe.ver, the Lady Rams
couldn't make a basket and the
Trojanettes held on for the win
to earn an automatic berth in
this week's NCAA Division II
South Atlantic Regional play
offs.
Despite the loss, the Lady
Rams have much of which to
be proud. They finished the
season with a 17-12 record. If
LindeH's team had captured the
victory, he would have become
the first rookie coach to win
the CIAA tournament in either
the men's bracket or women's
bracket.
After defeating Virginia
Union 75-60 in the opening
round, the Lady Rams defeated
Elizabeth City 49-44 in the
quarterfinals and N.C. Central
65-53 in the semifinals.
WSMX SPORTS TRIVIA
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