Golfer 'Lord Byron' dies at 94

IRVING, Texas -- Byron Nelson, golf's courtly "Lord Byron" whose 11 straight tournament victories in 1945 stand as one of sports' most enduring records, died Tuesday. He was 94.\nHis wife, Peggy Nelson, told family friend Angela Enright that her husband appeared fine as she left their Roanoke, Va. home for Bible study Tuesday morning.\n"I'm so proud of you," he told her, something he often said about her church involvement, Enright said. When she returned, she found her husband on the back porch, which faces the woodworking shop where he spent much of his free time.\nThe Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office said he died of natural causes.\n"We have lost a giant in the game ... someone who elevated the game in every way: as a player, an ambassador and a gentleman," said Ben Crenshaw, a two-time Masters champion and winner of Nelson's tournament in 1983. "Whoever came up with 'Lord Byron,' they got it exactly right."\nKnown for his graceful swing and gentle manner, Nelson had the greatest year in the history of professional golf in 1945 when he won 18 tournaments, including the streak of 11 that no one has come close to duplicating. He captured 31 of 54 tournaments in 1944-45 and won a total of 52 events, including five majors: the Masters in 1937 and '42, the U.S. Open in 1939 and the PGA Championship in 1940 and '45.\nThen, at age 34, he retired after the 1946 season to spend more time on his Texas ranch.\n"When I was playing regularly, I had a goal," Nelson recalled years later. "I could see the prize money going into the ranch, buying a tractor or a cow. It gave me incentive."\nNelson's long, fluid swing is considered the model of the modern way to strike a golf ball and his kind, caring style with fans and competitors made him one of the most well-liked people in sports. In 1968, he was the first player to have a PGA Tour event named for him, an honor that remains his alone.\n"Today we have lost a truly wonderful gentleman," said Billy Payne, chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters. "Byron has meant so much to so many people and has been an integral and important part of this tournament since he first played here in 1935."\nJohn Byron Nelson was born Feb. 4, 1912, on the family farm in Waxahachie, Texas, and started in golf in 1922 as a caddie at Glen Garden Golf and Country Club in Fort Worth, Tx. \nNelson was voted AP Male Athlete of the Year in 1944 and 1945. He was elected to the PGA Hall of Fame in 1953 and to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974. He's now sixth on the all-time win list behind Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods.\nAlthough Nelson continued to play in an occasional tournament after 1946, he retreated to his 673-acre ranch in Roanoke, Texas, and never returned to competitive golf full time. He spent time on the course in the 1960s as one of golf's early TV announcers.\nNelson developed a widely imitated "Texas style" swing that was upright and compact, unlike some of the unwieldy swings of early players.\n"The mechanics of my swing were such that it required no thought," Nelson said. "It's like eating. You don't think to feed yourself. If you have to think about your swing, it takes that much away from your scoring concentration."\nNelson's form was so perfect, so consistent, that the United States Golf Association nicknamed the machine it uses to test clubs and balls the "Iron Byron."\n"I once watched him hit 20 drivers off a fairway in practice, and the trajectory never varied," recalled Bob Toski, who toured with Nelson and became a famous teacher.\n"And he could hit a 1-iron or a 2-iron that carried over 200 yards no more than 15 feet in the air," Toski said. "I've never seen anybody else hit the ball quite the way he did."\nFuneral arrangements were pending, with an announcement expected Wednesday. Besides his wife, Nelson is survived by his brother Charles Nelson and sister Ellen Scherman.