Golf legend Bud Chapman dies at 97

He was a member of the Minnesota Golf Hall of Fame and the artist of the "Infamous Golf Holes."

July 10, 2020 at 10:42PM

Local golf legend Loyal "Bud" Chapman, a member of the Minnesota Golf Hall of Fame, died on Thursday. He was 97.

Chapman, a commercial artist by trade, created and was the artist of the "Infamous Golf Holes." The renditions, inspired by exotic locales such as Grand Canyon, Lake Superior and Africa's Victoria Falls sold worldwide.

Chapman was also an accomplished amateur golfer, winning the Minnesota Senior Amateur Championship in 1978 and 1990 and the Minnesota Senior Open in 1989. He was named the MGA Senior Player of the Year four times (1978, 1984, 1989 and 1990) to become the only golfer to win the award in three different decades.

He was elected to the Minnesota Golf Hall of Fame in 1994.

A Star Tribune story last July said he was still playing golf regularly and breaking his age.

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Joel Rippel

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Joel Rippel writes about sports for the Star Tribune.

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