*Charlie Sifford may currently be resting in peace, but the golf pioneer’s son and former daughter-in-law were apparently active in giving him anything but that financially while he lived.
The Associated Press reports that Craig and Sandra Sifford were indicted Tuesday (July 28) for stealing money from Charlie Sifford over a four-year period. The couple were charged in Cuyahoga County, Ohio Common Pleas Court with crimes that included theft, money laundering and unauthorized use of property. In addition to those charges, Sandra Sifford was charged with receiving stolen property.
The state attorney general and county prosecutor’s offices noted that that Craig and Sandra Sifford began stealing money from Craig’s famous father in 2010. The money they took was spent on travel, dining, clothes, jewelry and landscaping.
Charlie Sifford is noted for being the first black golfer to earn full-time playing privileges on the PGA Tour in 1961. Despite helping to eliminate the PGA Tour’s Caucasian only rule, the AP mentioned that Sifford still experienced discrimination from tournament organizers in the South after earning his tour card.
The golfer’s historic moment opened the door for minority golfers, including Tiger Woods, who called Sifford his grandfather. Woods gave credit where it was due, saying, that were it not for Sifford and other pioneers he might not have played the game.
Sifford’s golfing accomplishments included winning two PGA Tour events and the 1975 PGA Seniors Championship as well as an induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2004 and an honorary doctorate degree from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland in 2006.
President Barack Obama honored the golfing legend last November with the Presidential Medal of Freedom during a ceremony at the White House. While he has numerous honors under his belt, Sifford considered his most significant vicories to be the six National Negro Open titles he won. Sifford died in February at the age of 92, not long after suffering a stroke.
Chatting with the AP, the prosecutor’s office stated that an investigation into the theft of Sifford’s money was ongoing when he died. During that same month, Craig and Sandra Sifford divorced.
The investigation into the couple, which is being conducted by the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the county sheriff’s department, the county adult protective services agency and the Internal Revenue Service started after a complaint came in to law enforcement that Craig Sifford was abusing a power of attorney for his father.
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