Fred Corcoran
Encyclopedia
Fred Corcoran was an American
sports promoter, agent, administrator and amateur golfer, who had a diverse career in the world of golf
, baseball
, boxing
, ice hockey
and other sports. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame
in 1975, as one of the first honorees who had not had a career in competitive golf. Corcoran is honored annually, with the Corcoran Cup, a golf tournament featuring the nations top blind golfers, founded in 1978 by Corcoran's business associate Dick Ryan, to raise funds for Guiding Eyes for the Blind
, an organization that trains dogs for the visually impaired.
, Corcoran started in golf as a nine-year-old caddy
at Belmont Country Club, carrying bags for Francis Ouimet
and Alexa Stirling
. At the age of 12, he became the youngest caddie master in America, collecting five cents from every boy who carried a bag. As a young man he worked for the Massachusetts Golf Association, with Donald Ross at Pinehurst
, and as the official scorer for the United States Golf Association
. Among his innovations was the first tournament scoreboard that reflected birdies, pars and bogies in different colors; this method caught on immediately and is used around the world today.
's tournament manager and the business manager of Sam Snead
. During the 1940s, he took golf from a minor curiosity to a major business. He later served as the PGA's Promotions Director.
Both idea man and publicist, with a pinch of hustler thrown in, Corcoran raised the awareness and business of golf through many avenues. In 1940, he put together a charity match between Gene Tunney
, Babe Ruth
, Gene Sarazen
and Jimmy Demaret
, where he brought the Fred Waring
band and "Colonel" Stoopnagel, of radio fame, to follow the match with a sound truck, offering an absurd commentary. A year later, he arranged for a three-course match between Ty Cobb
and Babe Ruth, which allowed them to settle their long-term rivalry on the golf course. He established golf's first Hall of Fame that year as well. He managed three United States Ryder Cup
teams, and was official scorer at 34 USGA championships. During World War II
, Corcoran worked for the Red Cross and USO, staging golf exhibitions with the help of Bing Crosby
and Bob Hope
, and bringing sports shows to the troops with Lefty Gomez
and Jack Sharkey
.
as a personal manager of certain tour players at the same time he was promoting and running tournaments where those players competed against others. There was also controversy over how Corcoran should be paid for his services to the Tour, and expenses incurred doing his jobs; the Tour was at the time still a loosely-run, evolving branch of the PGA of America, with little structure or assigned responsibilities and chain of command for the weekly tournaments around the large country. Few disputed Corcoran's skills and worth, but budgets were tight and prize moneys low in the wake of the Great Depression
, and professional golf in the USA was but a shadow of what it would become decades later. Corcoran was fired and re-hired several times during this period, but took the conflict in stride, and emerged with his reputation intact.
After World War II, Corcoran helped found the Ladies Professional Golf Association and the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA). He was well known for providing anecdotes, quotes, and stats to golf writers from a file cabinet inside his head. He worked at the Tournament Director of the LPGA from 1950-54. He also managed the career of Babe Zaharias
, entering her into the 1945 Los Angeles Open as the first woman to play a PGA Tour event. He managed golf star Marlene Bauer Hagge, and baseball superstars Ted Williams
and Stan Musial
.
, Gary Player
and Roberto DeVicenzo
; it was supported during this period by the top American stars such as Sam Snead
, Arnold Palmer
, Jack Nicklaus
, and Lee Trevino
, who traveled the world to compete in it. The World Cup became a significant championship, and had an invaluable role in broadening golf's international profile and appeal.
Corcoran also worked as Tournament Director for the Thunderbird Classic
and the Westchester Classic golf tournaments, which were at the time, the richest in golf. He managed the business of "Champagne" Tony Lema
, Ken Venturi
, and Tom Weiskopf
. He orchestrated the move from the AFL
to the NFL by New York Giant placekicker, Pete Gogolak
. In 1975, Corcoran was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame
in the lifetime achievement category, and he won the William D. Richardson Award in 1960. In 1964, he published his autobiography
, "Unplayable Lies."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sports promoter, agent, administrator and amateur golfer, who had a diverse career in the world of golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
, ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
and other sports. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame
World Golf Hall of Fame
The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site serves both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 golf organizations from all over the world.The Hall of...
in 1975, as one of the first honorees who had not had a career in competitive golf. Corcoran is honored annually, with the Corcoran Cup, a golf tournament featuring the nations top blind golfers, founded in 1978 by Corcoran's business associate Dick Ryan, to raise funds for Guiding Eyes for the Blind
Guiding Eyes for the Blind
Guiding Eyes for the Blind is one of eleven accredited schools in the U.S. for training guide dogs — dogs trained to lead the blind and visually impaired...
, an organization that trains dogs for the visually impaired.
Early life
Born in Cambridge, MassachusettsCambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, Corcoran started in golf as a nine-year-old caddy
Caddy
In golf, a caddy is the person who carries a player's bag and clubs, and gives insightful advice and moral support. A good caddy is aware of the challenges and obstacles of the golf course being played, along with the best strategy in playing it. This includes knowing overall yardage, pin...
at Belmont Country Club, carrying bags for Francis Ouimet
Francis Ouimet
Francis DeSales Ouimet was an American golfer, who is frequently referred to as the "father of amateur golf" in the United States. He won the 1913 U.S. Open, and was the first American elected Captain of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews...
and Alexa Stirling
Alexa Stirling
Alexa Stirling Fraser was a North American amateur golf champion.Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Alexa Stirling was coached in golf from a young age at the Atlanta Athletic Club's East Lake Golf Club course by Stewart Maiden, the club's professional, who had learned his golf at Carnoustie, Scotland...
. At the age of 12, he became the youngest caddie master in America, collecting five cents from every boy who carried a bag. As a young man he worked for the Massachusetts Golf Association, with Donald Ross at Pinehurst
Pinehurst Resort
Pinehurst Resort is a historic upmarket golf resort at Pinehurst, North Carolina, USA. It has hosted a number of prestigious golf tournaments.-History:...
, and as the official scorer for the United States Golf Association
United States Golf Association
The United States Golf Association is the United States' national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the Rules of Golf. The USGA also provides a national handicap system...
. Among his innovations was the first tournament scoreboard that reflected birdies, pars and bogies in different colors; this method caught on immediately and is used around the world today.
PGA tournament manager, agent
In 1936, he became the PGA TourPGA Tour
The PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
's tournament manager and the business manager of Sam Snead
Sam Snead
Samuel Jackson Snead was an American professional golfer who was one of the top players in the world for most of four decades. Snead won a record 82 PGA Tour events including seven majors. He failed to win a U.S...
. During the 1940s, he took golf from a minor curiosity to a major business. He later served as the PGA's Promotions Director.
Both idea man and publicist, with a pinch of hustler thrown in, Corcoran raised the awareness and business of golf through many avenues. In 1940, he put together a charity match between Gene Tunney
Gene Tunney
James Joseph "Gene" Tunney was the world heavyweight boxing champion from 1926-1928 who defeated Jack Dempsey twice, first in 1926 and then in 1927. Tunney's successful title defense against Dempsey is one of the most famous bouts in boxing history and is known as The Long Count Fight...
, Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
, Gene Sarazen
Gene Sarazen
Gene Sarazen was an American professional golfer, one of the world's top players in the 1920s and 1930s. He is one of five golfers to win all the current major championships in his career, the Career Grand Slam:U.S...
and Jimmy Demaret
Jimmy Demaret
James Newton Demaret was an American professional golfer. He won 31 PGA Tour events in a long career between 1935 and 1957, and was the first three-time winner of the Masters....
, where he brought the Fred Waring
Fred Waring
Fredrick Malcolm Waring was a popular musician, bandleader and radio-television personality, sometimes referred to as "America's Singing Master" and "The Man Who Taught America How to Sing." He was also a promoter, financial backer and namesake of the Waring Blendor, the first modern electric...
band and "Colonel" Stoopnagel, of radio fame, to follow the match with a sound truck, offering an absurd commentary. A year later, he arranged for a three-course match between Ty Cobb
Ty Cobb
Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb , nicknamed "The Georgia Peach," was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. He was born in Narrows, Georgia...
and Babe Ruth, which allowed them to settle their long-term rivalry on the golf course. He established golf's first Hall of Fame that year as well. He managed three United States Ryder Cup
Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is jointly administered by the PGA of America and the PGA European Tour, and is contested every two years, the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe...
teams, and was official scorer at 34 USGA championships. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Corcoran worked for the Red Cross and USO, staging golf exhibitions with the help of Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
and Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
, and bringing sports shows to the troops with Lefty Gomez
Lefty Gómez
Vernon Louis "Lefty" Gomez was an American left-handed major league pitcher who played in the American League for the New York Yankees between 1930 and 1942. Considered one of the great pitchers of the day, Gomez was a seven-time All-Star and a five-time World Series Champion with the Yankees...
and Jack Sharkey
Jack Sharkey
Jack Sharkey was an American heavyweight boxing champion. He was born Joseph Paul Zukauskas , the son of Lithuanian immigrants, in Binghamton, New York but moved to Boston, Massachusetts as a young man...
.
Founds LPGA, GWAA
From the mid-1930s to the late 1940s, there was some friction and dispute on the PGA Tour over Corcoran's perceived conflict of interestConflict of interest
A conflict of interest occurs when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other....
as a personal manager of certain tour players at the same time he was promoting and running tournaments where those players competed against others. There was also controversy over how Corcoran should be paid for his services to the Tour, and expenses incurred doing his jobs; the Tour was at the time still a loosely-run, evolving branch of the PGA of America, with little structure or assigned responsibilities and chain of command for the weekly tournaments around the large country. Few disputed Corcoran's skills and worth, but budgets were tight and prize moneys low in the wake of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, and professional golf in the USA was but a shadow of what it would become decades later. Corcoran was fired and re-hired several times during this period, but took the conflict in stride, and emerged with his reputation intact.
After World War II, Corcoran helped found the Ladies Professional Golf Association and the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA). He was well known for providing anecdotes, quotes, and stats to golf writers from a file cabinet inside his head. He worked at the Tournament Director of the LPGA from 1950-54. He also managed the career of Babe Zaharias
Babe Zaharias
Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias was an American athlete who achieved outstanding success in golf, basketball, and track and field...
, entering her into the 1945 Los Angeles Open as the first woman to play a PGA Tour event. He managed golf star Marlene Bauer Hagge, and baseball superstars Ted Williams
Ted Williams
Theodore Samuel "Ted" Williams was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year Major League Baseball career as the left fielder for the Boston Red Sox...
and Stan Musial
Stan Musial
Stanley Frank "Stan" Musial is a retired professional baseball player who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals . Nicknamed "Stan the Man", Musial was a record 24-time All-Star selection , and is widely considered to be one of the greatest hitters in baseball...
.
Develops World Cup of Golf
Corcoran's own modest, self-described claim to fame is that he three-putted in 47 counties. In 1955, Corcoran took over the ailing Canada Cup, which traveled the globe to promote international goodwill through golf with team and individual championships. The Canada Cup became the World Cup and was played under Corcoran's direction until his death in 1977. The World Cup introduced to the world such international stars as Seve Ballesteros, Greg NormanGreg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO is an Australian professional golfer and entrepreneur who spent 331 weeks as the world's Number 1 ranked golfer in the 1980s and 1990s...
, Gary Player
Gary Player
Gary Player DMS; OIG is a South African professional golfer. With his nine major championship victories, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of golf. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974. Player has won 165 tournaments on six continents over six...
and Roberto DeVicenzo
Roberto DeVicenzo
Roberto De Vicenzo is a former professional golfer from Argentina. He won more than 230 tournaments worldwide in his career including eight on the PGA Tour and most famously the 1967 Open Championship.-Biography:...
; it was supported during this period by the top American stars such as Sam Snead
Sam Snead
Samuel Jackson Snead was an American professional golfer who was one of the top players in the world for most of four decades. Snead won a record 82 PGA Tour events including seven majors. He failed to win a U.S...
, Arnold Palmer
Arnold Palmer
Arnold Daniel Palmer is an American professional golfer, who is generally regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men's professional golf. He has won numerous events on both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour, dating back to 1955...
, Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus , nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. He won 18 career major championships on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional golfers of all time. In addition to his 18 Majors, he was runner-up a...
, and Lee Trevino
Lee Trevino
Lee Buck Trevino is an American professional golfer. He is an icon for Mexican Americans, and is often referred to as "The Merry Mex" and "Supermex". He won six major championships over the course of his career.-Early life:...
, who traveled the world to compete in it. The World Cup became a significant championship, and had an invaluable role in broadening golf's international profile and appeal.
Corcoran also worked as Tournament Director for the Thunderbird Classic
Thunderbird Classic
The Thunderbird Classic was a golf tournament on the PGA Tour from 1962 to 1968. It was played at two locations, the Upper Montclair Country Club in Clifton, New Jersey in 1962 and 1966-1968 and the Westchester Country Club in Rye, New York in 1963-1965....
and the Westchester Classic golf tournaments, which were at the time, the richest in golf. He managed the business of "Champagne" Tony Lema
Tony Lema
Anthony David "Tony" Lema was an American professional golfer, who rose to fame in the beginning of golf's modern era, but had his young life and career cut short in an aircraft accident. His most prestigious victory was the 1964 British Open.-Biography:Lema was born in Oakland, California, to...
, Ken Venturi
Ken Venturi
Kenneth Venturi is an American former professional golfer and golf broadcaster.-Early years and amateur career:Venturi was born in San Francisco, California. He learned golf from an early age, and developed his game at Harding Park Golf Course and other public courses in the area...
, and Tom Weiskopf
Tom Weiskopf
Thomas Daniel Weiskopf is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. His most successful decade was the 1970s, and he won 16 PGA Tour titles between 1968 and 1982. After winding down his tournament career, Weiskopf has become a noted golf course...
. He orchestrated the move from the AFL
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
to the NFL by New York Giant placekicker, Pete Gogolak
Pete Gogolak
Peter Kornel Gogolak is a retired American football placekicker in the National Football League for the New York Giants and in the American Football League for the Buffalo Bills. He is widely considered the chief figure behind the game's adoption of soccer style placekicking...
. In 1975, Corcoran was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame
World Golf Hall of Fame
The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site serves both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 golf organizations from all over the world.The Hall of...
in the lifetime achievement category, and he won the William D. Richardson Award in 1960. In 1964, he published his autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
, "Unplayable Lies."