Why PGA Tour players are wearing purple ribbons this week

If you’re tuning in to coverage of this week’s Sony Open – part two of the PGA Tour’s “Hawaii Swing” – you might notice players and their caddies are wearing purple ribbons on their caps.

And for good reason.

The gesture is a mark of respect to long-standing golf journalist and broadcaster Tim Rosaforte, who passed away earlier this week after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease.

Affectionately known throughout golf circles as ‘Rosie’, Rosaforte died in Palm Beach Gardens in Florida on Tuesday. He was only 66.

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After distinguished stints at Golf Digest, Golf World and Sports Illustrated, he joined the Golf Channel in 2007 where he remained until his retirement in 2019.

In all, Rosaforte covered more than 150 major championships, worote three books, won more than 40 writing awards and, in 2014, received the PGA Lifetime Achievement Award in Journalism. 

He was, quite simply, a master of his craft.

Tributes have poured in since news of his passing broke, including this statement from PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan. 

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“The PGA Tour family lost a friend today in Tim Rosaforte, one of the great golf journalists of his generation,” he wrote. “Tim was an amazing storyteller and spent much of his energy showcasing what sets golf apart from other sports – the people and the personalities.”

As a mark of respect, players and caddies taking part in this week’s Sony Open at Waialae Country Club – as well as tour officials and media representatives on-site – have taken to wearing purple ribbons. Purple is the official colour of the Alzheimer’s movement. 

For more information on Alzheimer’s disease and the important work being done to defeat it, please visit the official website of the Alzheimer’s Society.