Biography of Lee Trevino

Trevino had three short holes behind his shack and it was there that he actually started playing the game, using old, discarded clubs. On his seventeenth birthday, Trevino enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps. By the fourth year of his service, he had matured to make the rank of Lance Corporal. He spent the last eighteen months of his service playing golf with the officers in the afternoons. On returning to civilian life, his time revolved around working and playing in golf clubs.

Trevino's awkward style convinced some critics his stay on the Tour would be a short one, but he did not take long to silence his critics, winning the U.S. Open the following year at Oak Hill. In just a four-week period in 1971, Trevino won three of golf's biggest competitions in succession - the U.S. Open, the Canadian Open and the British Open. It seemed Trevino would continue to dominate the world of golf until June 27 1975. While playing in the Western Open, Trevino was struck by lightning - a freak accident that permanently damaged the flexibility and sensitivity of his lower back's vertebrae. A series of painful operations enabled Trevino to renew his game. He adjusted his playing habits to accommodate his unfortunate disability, and, within two years, Trevino scored an impressive victory in the Canadian Open (a feat he would repeat in 1979) and later stunned the golfing world when he lifted the U.S. P.G.A. trophy at the age of 44 in 1984.

A man celebrated for his humor and showmanship on the fairway, off-course Trevino is a surprisingly humble and private individual. The roots of his impoverished childhood run deep, a fact witnessed by his quiet generosity to numerous charities where Trevino demands complete confidentiality about his philanthropy.