Willie Mack III made an unexpected debut on the PGA Tour, Jan. 28 in the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines – but he missed the cut after two rounds.
A week prior, Tiger Woods announced that Mack – a native of Flint – as the recipient of the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption into the 2021 Genesis Invitational field, Feb. 15-21. The exemption represents the advancement of diversity in the game of golf.
Mack was a late addition to the Farmers after the withdraw of player Kamaiu Johnson, due to testing positive for Covid-19. Both Mack and Johnson are sponsored by host Farmers Insurance.
The two events are the first ever for the 32-year-old Mack on the PGA Tour. Mack currently competes on the Advocates Pro Golf Association (APGA) Tour and Florida Professional Golf Tour, earning Player of the Year honors for both tours in 2019.
“Willie learned to golf with his dad just like I did and those are memories that will last forever,” Woods said. “I am excited to see Willie make another lasting memory when he tees it up at Riviera. Willie has endured through difficult times off the course the past few years (at one point living out of his car) and I know Charlie would be proud of how he has stayed focused on achieving his dream.”
Mack played college golf at Bethune-Cookman, winning 11 titles. In 2011, Mack became the first African American to win the Michigan Amateur Championship, played at Boyne Highlands.
“I want to thank my father who introduced me to the great game of golf,” Mack said. “My dream since I first picked up a club has been to play on the PGA TOUR. It’s really special that I will play in my first PGA TOUR event because of an exemption named after Charlie Sifford, a person I’ve long admired, and in a tournament hosted by Tiger Woods, who is the reason I got into golf.”
