After coming up just short in his successful, but then major-less career, Davis Love III finally broke through in a big way on this day in 1997 at the PGA Championship.
The American won his first and only major, finishing with a total of 269 to beat out runner-up Justin Leonard – who had won his first major in that year’s US Open – by five strokes.
The signature moment of the tournament came on the final day when Love III approached the 18th green and the rain stopped to give way to a rainbow.
It was sentimental and surreal for Love III, who had lost his father – a PGA professional – to a plane crash in 1988. He became the second son of a PGA pro to win the PGA Championship.
1933: New York Yankees legend Lou Gehrig plays in his record-breaking 1,308 consecutive game.
1938: Henry Armstrong wins his third boxing championship, adding the lightweight title to his featherweight and welterweight triumphs.
1973: Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants hits the final home run of his career, No660, to finish third all-time.
2002: India’s Mithali Raj makes the then highest score in a women’s Test with a double century (214) in a draw against England.