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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Longtime former PGA TOUR Commissioner Deane R. Beman has been named as the seventh recipient of the TOUR's Lifetime Achievement Award. The announcement was made today during a ceremony at THE PLAYERS Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. at a tournament and course that Beman was instrumental in developing.

Pete Dye (left) with 1982 PLAYERS champ Jerry Pate (center) and Deane Beman. (WireImage)

Created in 1996, the Lifetime Achievement Award honors individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the TOUR over an extended period of time through their actions on and off the course.

A two-time U.S. Amateur champ, Beman also won the British Amateur prior to winning four times on the PGA TOUR. He became the second Commissioner of the PGA TOUR in 1974 and remained in that post until his retirement in 1994.

During his tenure he oversaw an incredible period of growth in which TOUR assets grew an an astonishing rate while purses climbed from $8.2 million in his first year to $56.4 million at the end of his tenure.. He was the architect of the business structure that has made the TOUR the success that it is today.

Among his many achievements were the development of the Tournament Players Club network, THE PLAYERS Championship, the Champions Tour and the Nationwide Tour. He made TOUR events synonymous with charitable giving, spearheaded the growth of televised tournaments and created the finest player retirement plan in all of sports.

"Deane Beman elevated the PGA TOUR to major sports stature," said current TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem. "Deane did many things that others said could not be done and we would not be standing here today at TPC Sawgrass if not for his drive and vision.

"He is a man of unique talents who was never willing to simply maintain the status quo," said Finchem. "He never saw a challenge that he would not meet and conquer."

Beman joins Gene Sarazen, Byron Nelson, Arnold Palmer, Sam Snead, Jack Burke Jr. and Pete Dye as winners of the Lifetime Achievement Award.