El Paso Legend Lee Trevino Broke Golf Records And Punched A Mayor

If you've ever driven down Lee Trevino Drive on the East Side, you've probably been late to Whataburger. But the street's namesake has a story that deserves more than a passing glance.

Lee Trevino is one of the greatest golfers who ever lived. Six major championships. 92 professional wins. A World Golf Hall of Fame plaque. But the part that doesn't make it into the trophy case? The man was forged right here in El Paso. And his most legendary moment had nothing to do with a golf club.

From Cotton Fields to a Caddie Bag

Trevino was born on December 1, 1939, in Garland, Texas. He never knew his father. He was raised by his mother and grandfather, who worked as a gravedigger, in a house with no electricity and no indoor plumbing. By age 5, he was picking cotton to help the family get by.

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At some point, an uncle handed him an old golf club. That was all it took.

By 8 years old, Trevino was caddying at Glen Lakes Country Club. He dropped out of school in eighth grade to focus on the game full time. At 17, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, where he served four years as a machine gunner with the 3rd Marine Division. He spent part of that time quietly sharpening his golf game against officers, building a talent that nobody outside of El Paso would hear about for years.

El Paso Made Him Who He Was

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After his discharge in 1960, Trevino made his way to El Paso. He landed at a course called Horizon Hills Country Club, arriving every morning at 5 a.m. to wash the carts and open the golf shop.

He also had a few hustles running on the side. One of his favorites was offering to play holes using a quart-size glass Dr Pepper bottle as his only club. He would take bets, win, and pocket the cash. That particular stunt eventually caught the attention of Dr Pepper, who signed him to an advertising deal.

But the story that cemented the Trevino legend happened one afternoon when a white Cadillac rolled into Horizon Hills. Out stepped Raymond Floyd, at the time one of the hottest young pros on the PGA Tour, in town to play a money match against "some Mexican kid." Trevino came out to meet him, grabbed Floyd's bag from the trunk, walked him to his locker, shined his shoes, and handed him a Coke. Floyd looked around and asked who he'd be playing that day.

"Me," Trevino said.

Trevino won.

Twenty Days That Changed Golf History

Trevino made the PGA Tour in 1967, and the rest of the world started catching up to what El Paso already knew.

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In a historic 20-day stretch in 1971, he defeated Jack Nicklaus in an 18-hole playoff to win the U.S. Open. Two weeks later, he won the Canadian Open. The following week, he took The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. He became the first golfer to win all three titles in the same calendar year and was named the PGA Tour's Player of the Year.

He would go on to win six major titles, including two U.S. Opens and two PGA Championships. Only Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson earned more money on tour during his era. He was named to six Ryder Cup teams and captained the 1985 squad.

Fun Fact: Lee Trevino also had a teeny tiny cameo in Happy Gilmore but years later would admit that he regretted doing the cameo. The reason? The movie used lots of bad words and Trevino did not read the script before agreeing to do it. Seriously, one of the biggest golfing bad...butts didn't like that they cussed so much in Happy Gilmore.

The $200 Bet That Ended With a Punch

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In 1978, Trevino and El Paso Mayor Ray Salazar had a $200 bet on a trivia question: who won the last El Paso Open, held back in 1959? Salazar guessed one of the Hebert brothers. Trevino knew the answer was Marty Furgol.

Trevino was right.

When he showed up to collect, Mayor Salazar had arranged a little surprise. A TV news crew was waiting. The mayor produced two large bags of pennies and dumped the first bag over Trevino's head, apparently thinking a national golf legend would find penny rain charming on camera.

Trevino made himself very clear: do not pour that second bag.

Mayor Salazar laughed and started to pour.

Trevino punched him and people congratulated him for it. Don't believe me? Check out Trevino's words himself from this Golf Digest article! 

The Street, The Legacy

PNC Championship - Round One

Lee Trevino Drive carries his name for a reason. He came back to El Paso regularly for years to host a Cancer Treatment Benefit Golf Tournament he personally organized. He earned his place in this city through work, hustle, early mornings, and one perfectly timed right hand.

You could make a strong argument that Trevino belongs on El Paso's sports Mount Rushmore alongside Don Haskins, Don Maynard, and Bobby Richardson. He has 92 professional wins. He has a Hall of Fame ring. And he has the distinction of being the only golfer in history to punch a sitting mayor on live television and receive nothing but congratulations for it.