This Day in Golf History: April 23

Only a handful of players have won the first PGA Tour event they played, and one of them is Marty Fleckman, who was born on April 23, 1944, in Port Arthur, Texas. Fleckman passed qualifying school in October 1967, and just about a month later he won the first pro event he entered, the Cajun Classic, beating Jack Montgomery in a one-hole playoff with a birdie. Also, on this date in 1937, Don Massengale was born in Jackson, Texas. He was a second-tier player on tour who came close to everlasting golf fame by finishing as runner-up in the 1967 PGA Championship. He won twice on the PGA Tour, and passed away at just age 69 in 2007.