2-time golf major champ Fuzzy Zoeller dead at 74

Nov. 27 (UPI) -- Two-time major winner and golf great Frank Urban "Fuzzy" Zoeller Jr. has died of unknown causes at age 74, his family announced on Thursday.

Zoeller is the last person to win the prestigious Masters during his first appearance, which required him to win a three-man playoff in 1979.

The win made Zoeller the first to win the tournament in his first appearance since 1935, according to the BBC.

Zoeller also won the 1984 U.S. Open at Winged Foot after he initially conceded the win to Greg Norman. But the pair finished tied, and Zoeller triumphed in a playoff the next day.

Zoeller was a very popular player, but a quip following the 1997 Masters, won by Tiger Woods at age 21, cast a shadow over Zoeller's career.

The Masters winners traditionally choose the menu for the annual Champions Dinner the next year, which prompted Zoeller to make a racially insensitive comment when asked about his reaction to Woods' win.

"You pat him on the back and say, 'congratulations and enjoy it,' and tell him not to serve fried chicken next year," Zoeller told the reporter.

"Got it? Or collard greens or whatever the hell they serve," he added.

Zoeller apologized afterward and said his words were taken out of context. Additionally, Zoeller also won eight other PGA Tour events on top of two PGA Tour Champions wins, including the Senior PGA Championship, The Guardian reported.

He also completed in three Ryder Cup competitions and was awarded the U.S. Golf Association's Bob Jones Award for sportsmanship in 1985.

Zoeller won $5.82 million in career earnings while competing in PGA Tour events, which ranks 386th and well behind Woods' leading career total of $121 million.

While on the course, Zoeller had a memorable demeanor marked by a fast play and whistling while between strokes.

Zoeller played collegiate golf for Edison Junior College, now Florida SouthWestern State College, in Cypress Lake, Fla., and afterward at the University of Houston, before becoming a professional golfer in 1973.

Zoeller was preceded in death by his wife, Diane, in 2021, and is survived by three children.