Gary Player was the 1st South African golfer to appear on postage stamps, a high honor indeed

On this day, In 1976 The Black Knight, Gary Player was offically honored on South African postage stamps. Most importantly he was the first golfer to be featured on any countries stamps. Its a high honor and top company when you compare some of the other South Africans that have been privileged the same way. In 1966, Louis Botha, a South African politician who was the first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa was featured on the stamps. Or just a year before Player was featured it was Dr Nicolaas Johannes Diederichs who served as the third State President of South Africa from 1975 to 1978. Other popular figures such as Winston Churchill, Desmond Tutu & Queen Victoria were also featured on the stamps. In 2000, The Big Easy Ernie Els was honored the same way.

Gary Player in 1976…

By 1976 the Black Knight was a legend in his own right. Two Green Jackets, 1 U.S. Open title, three Claret jugs and two PGA Championships. Add one more Masters title in 1978 and your come out with nine major championships, tied fourth all-time. Player became only the third golfer in history to win the Career Grand Slam, following Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen. He is of course included in the “Big Three” with Arnold Palmer & Jack Nicklaus. In conclusion, Mr. Player is honored over and over again for being a global ambassador to golf, by spreading his love the for game.