Cameron Champ’s grandfather Mack passes away at 78

Mack “Pops” Champ, who was in hospice care in Sacramento, California, when his grandson Cameron delivered an emotional victory at the Safeway Open last month, has died at 78.

The cause was cancer.

The connection between grandfather and grandson took center stage at the Safeway in Napa as Cameron prevailed for his second PGA TOUR victory, earning a spot in the upcoming Sentry Tournament of Champions and The Masters Tournament, which will be his first. Cameron’s parents are not golfers, and it was Mack who taught him the game.

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Cameron wrote a farewell tribute to his grandfather on Instagram that read, in part: "Pops! Thank you for being the man you were. A role model, mentor, and the greatest grandfather I could have ever asked for. You taught me life lessons I couldn't have learned from anyone else. To be loving, caring, selfless and to have the ability to persevere through any obstacle that's in front of you."

Mack Champ was introduced to the game when his oldest brother, Clyde, found a rod and bent it into an L shape before taping up the grip for their first golf club. They hit balls in the open fields by the railroad tracks near their home, as they weren’t allowed on the course except as caddies.

Although he lived through racial discrimination as he grew up in Columbus, Texas, about 75 miles west of Houston, Mack didn’t let it dim his outlook. “It’s not where you come from,” he said, “it’s where you’re going.” (Cameron had the words stamped on his wedges.)

Not allowed to play on the nine-hole course where he caddied for 75 cents a loop, he would take up golf in the Air Force, at courses and driving ranges in Germany and England. He taught himself the swing in part by reading “Sam Snead’s Natural Golf.”

His son Jeff was a minor-league baseball player – a catcher – but Cameron was a golfer. Mack, who got close to scratch while playing overseas, bought Cameron his first golf clubs and recognized his talent. They hit Whiffle balls over Mack’s house.

Mack also caddied for a teen-age Cameron at the PURE Insurance Championship, a PGA TOUR Champions event that incorporates members from The First Tee.

It was toward the end of last season when Jeff told Cameron that Mack had cancer. After the season, Jeff revealed that it was Stage IV. Chemo gave Mack some time, but when he stopped being able to keep down food and water, he knew the end was coming.

“One day he called me and said, ‘I’m ready,’” Jeff said.

After his emotional win at the Safeway, where he wrote “POPS” on his shoes and golf balls and led the field in driving distance, Cameron dedicated the win to his grandfather.

“I think it was just kind of meant to be,” he said.