Judy Corcoran

Fred Corcoran: the Man Who Sold the World on Golf Judy Corcoran

Fred Corcoran was golf's first promoter, business manager, press agent and international tournament director. In 1936, a year before he became the tournament manager of the PGA, there were 22 tournaments nationwide. By the time he left in 1947, there were 45 tournaments and the purse had increased 300%. Fred Corcoran loved a good show and could put one on. He was probably the most complex and fascinating personality in the history of the game, and he might have been the richest had others seen the future as he did. With Sam Snead, Ted Williams, Tony Lema, Gene Sarazen, Walter Hagen, Babe Zaharias, Bing Crosby, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Ben Hogan, Ken Venturi, Jack Sharkey, Stan Musial and Peter Gogolak as his friends and clients, Fred Corcoran put golf on the map and told a million stories about it.