Rod Curl

Rodney Dean Curl (born January 9, 1943) is an American professional golfer best known for being the first full-blooded Native American to win a PGA Tour event.

Rod Curl
Personal information
Full name	Rodney Dean Curl
Nickname	Little Beaver[1]
Born	(1943-01-09) January 9, 1943 (age 82) Redding, California
Height	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Weight	160 lb (73 kg; 11 st)
Sporting nationality	United States
Residence	Jupiter, Florida
Career
Turned professional	1968
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour Pro Golf Tour
Professional wins	3
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	1
Other	2
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	T15: 1975
PGA Championship	T20: 1980
U.S. Open	T30: 1978
The Open Championship	CUT: 1975

Born in Redding, California, Curl is a Wintu Indian.^[2][3] Before taking up golf at age 19, he was an outstanding baseball player at Central Valley High School in Shasta County, California.^[4]

Curl joined the PGA Tour in 1969 and played regularly through 1978. He had 42 top-10 finishes in official PGA Tour events including one win and a half-dozen second and third-place finishes. In 1974, he won the Colonial National Invitation in Fort Worth by one stroke after runner-up Jack Nicklaus bogeyed the 17th hole and a birdied the last.^[5][2][6][7]

Curl played in a limited number of Senior Tour events after reaching the age of 50 in 1993. He lives in Jupiter, Florida and is a corporate instructor with VIP Golf Academy.

Professional wins (3)

PGA Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	May 19, 1974	Colonial National Invitation	70-67-71-68=276	−4	1 stroke	Jack Nicklaus

Pro Golf Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	May 29, 1988	Pointe Royale Invitational	68-71-64-64=267	−13	4 strokes	Ben Theobald

Other wins (1)

• 1977 World Indian Open^[8]

See also

• Spring 1969 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
• 1985 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates