Frank “Fuzzy” Zoeller, winner of the Masters and U.S. Open, has died at the age of 74, according to multiple reports. A cause of death was not immediately available.
Zoeller, who hailed from Indiana and played collegiately at the University of Houston, is the last player to win the Masters in his debut in the event. He earned his green jacket in a three-hole playoff over Tom Watson and Ed Sneed in 1979.
“I’ve never been to heaven, and thinking back on my life, I probably won’t get a chance to go,” Zoeller famously said. “I guess winning the Masters is as close as I’m going to get.”
Zoeller went on to win 10 PGA Tour titles, including another major triumph at the 1984 U.S. Open at Winged Foot. He won the championship in an 18-hole playoff over Greg Norman, the day after he infamously waved a white towel in surrender on the 18th hole thinking he’d lost the tournament.
“Fuzzy was one of a kind,” USGA CEO Mike Whan said in a statement. “We are grateful for all he gave to golf. I hope we can all remember his unmistakable joy.”
Zoeller continued his excellent play on the Champions Tour, winning twice on the senior circuit, including a title at the 2002 Senior PGA Championship, in which he prevailed over Hale Irwin and Bobby Wadkins by a single shot.
Despite his success on the course, Zoeller’s reputation off the course was scarred after he made racially insensitive remarks about Tiger Woods at the 1997 Masters. Speaking immediately following Woods’ record-setting win at Augusta National, Zoeller said, “You know what you guys do when he gets in here? You pat him on the back and say congratulations and enjoy it and tell him not serve fried chicken next year.”
Zoeller later apologized for the gaffe. He would go on to receive death threats over his remarks and in 2008 wrote that the incident was “the worst thing I’ve gone through in my entire life.”
“If people wanted me to feel the same hurt I projected on others, I’m here to tell you they got their way,” Zoeller wrote. “I’ve cried many times. I’ve apologized countless times for words said in jest that just aren’t a reflection of who I am. I have hundreds of friends, including people of color, who will attest to that … Still, I’ve come to terms with the fact that this incident will never, ever go away.”
Zoeller’s wife, Diane, died in 2021. He is survived by his four children, Sunny, Heidi, Gretchen and Miles, as well as multiple grandchildren.
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