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Ron Cerrudo, a former two-time PGA Tour winner (three total wins to his name regardless of tour), has passed away at the age of 79. The golfer passed away on April 24 at his adopted home in South Carolina.
He played on the Tour completely full-time from 1968 to 1977, eventually leaving the Tour golf world to become a successful club professional and instructor. He was born in Palo Alto, California on February 4, 1945, and was the 1964 California Amateur of the Year. He went to college at San Jose State University.
After Cerrudo stopped playing on tour, he began what would develop into a 23-year run as a golf teaching pro primarily in Hilton Head. He would later spend 21 years as the Director of Golf Instruction at Daniel Island Golf Club.
Ron Cerrudo once reflected on what it was like to win
Before turning pro, Ron Cerrudo played an amateur event, one that would prove to be instrumental to his career. He believed lessons could be learned from everything, including when he rushed a putt that would have put him in a three-way playoff.
He said via the Tour website:
“It just goes to show you what one careless move can cost you. But it taught me a lesson, and maybe it’s for the best.”
After a while as a pro, the lessons he learned ultimately translated into a victory, and he said that it was so exciting:
“It’s a bigger thrill than anybody knows. I was starting to get the feeling of a bridesmaid, wondering if I was ever going to win anything.”
It only took 15 more months for him to capture a second pro victory. He had to start playing more forward to build up a lead late that would seal his win:
“You’ve got to be aggressive to win. You start playing it safe and the field’s going to go right by you.”
Just three months ago, the South Carolina Golf Hall of Fame added Cerrudo to its 2024 class. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Madeline, as well as his two daughters, Katherine Erdman and Stacy Artherton. He also has two siblings, a brother Gordon and a sister Deborah.
His obituary read:
"Ron will be remembered for the way he loved his family and, of course, his passion for golf."
A celebration of life is to be held Friday, May 10, 2024 at the Daniel Island Club, the place he spent so much time as a professional instructor throughout his career.
