Jim Colbert
Sport: Golf
Born: March 9, 1941
Town: Elizabeth
James Joseph Colbert was born March 9, 1941 in Elizabeth. His family moved to Kansas City when Jim was a boy. There he was introduced to his two favorite sports, football and golf. Jim was the star of the Bishop Miege High School football team. During his senior year he married the school’s homecoming queen. Jim and Marcia celebrated their 50th anniversary back in 2009.
Jim earned a football scholarship to Kansas State in 1960. After limited success on the gridiron he turned his attention to golf, and by his senior season he was one of the nation’s best college golfers. Jim finished second in the NCAA championships in 1964.
Jim went to Qualifying School in 1965 with hopes of making it onto the PGA Tour. He barely made the cut, and struggled as a rookie to stay on the tour. Jim won his first PGA event in 1969, at the age of 28. He won seven more tournaments over the next 14 seasons, including two in 1983. Jim’s best finish in a major was a third-place finish in the 1971 US Open. He also finished fourth in the 1974 Masters.
After earning around $2 million as a touring pro, Jim joined the Senior Tour in 1991, was named Rookie of the Year, and began winning tournaments right and left. He made another $9 million over the next two decades. Jim won nine in 1995 and 1996 alone. In 1993, he won his one and only Champions Tour major, the Ford Senior Players Championship, defeating Raymond Floyd by one stroke. During this time he worked as an analyst for CNN and designed golf courses. Jim and his wife live in Las Vegas.
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