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By T.J. Auclair 鈥�02

If there were a Mount Rushmore of modern-day golf journalists, Tim Rosaforte 鈥�77 would be on it.

A giant in the world of golf journalism, Rosaforte earned a bachelor鈥檚 degree in journalism and played on the 溏心vlog免费B站 football team.

Jaime Diaz, an awarding-winning golf writer and friend of Rosaforte, notes that there are parallels between Rosaforte鈥檚 football-playing days and his writing. He describes a phone call with Dave Campo, former Dallas Cowboys head coach and assistant football coach at University of Bridgeport (Conn.), where Rosaforte was a player in his first year of college, before he transferred to 溏心vlog免费B站.

鈥淚 called Dave Campo when I was writing a story about Tim in 2014, when he won the PGA of America Lifetime Achievement Award in Journalism,鈥� says Diaz, a longtime writer at Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest, and Golf World before moving to Golf Channel. 鈥淐ampo hadn鈥檛 seen Tim since his football days but had instant memories of him. Campo described him as, 鈥榓 good player who studied film, took angles, understood limitations, and played hard. He was one of those rare athletes who got almost all of it out of himself.鈥� I think Tim did that in his journalism career, too. Tim read that and said to me, 鈥業 will always keep that. That鈥檚 me. I took that football formula and that鈥檚 my life.鈥欌��

A legendary golf insider whose extensive contact list includes the likes of Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, as well as past U.S. presidents and countless Fortune 500 CEOs, Rosaforte began his remarkable career at the Tampa Times in 1977. He had stops at the Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel, The Palm Beach Post, and Sports Illustrated before heading to Golf Digest and Golf World, followed by a broadcast and writing career with Golf Channel. In 2019, the 66-year-old Rosaforte鈥攁rguably the most recognizable figure in golf media鈥攚as diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer鈥檚, leading to the difficult decision to retire after a career that spanned four decades. The 2020 Masters Tournament, normally held in April, but postponed until November due to the COVID-19 pandemic, marked the first time Rosaforte had missed the Masters since 1983.

鈥淚 really didn鈥檛 know he was having memory issues,鈥� says Craig Dolch, another award-winning golf writer and one of Rosaforte鈥檚 dearest friends. 鈥淗e called me in late-December 2019 to tell me he was leaving the Golf Channel but didn鈥檛 get into specifics. I had heard from others that something was wrong鈥攈e originally thought it was anxiety. When I saw him at the 2020 Honda Classic, it hit me how he was struggling. We talked a little about it, but it was more about two old friends trying to catch up. It鈥檚 heartbreaking. I miss playing golf with him. I miss going to concerts with him. I miss calling him and bouncing ideas off him. I miss his smile.

鈥淩osaforte had two cell phones working at the same time. Arnold on line one, Tiger on line two.鈥�
鈥擩im Nantz, CBS Sports lead announcer for golf, the NFL, and the NCAA Final Four

鈥淭im forever changed the golf media business, becoming the first true insider who gave you facts and inside info, not outrageous opinions,鈥� Dolch adds. 鈥淗e managed to stay relevant to two generations of star golfers.鈥�

Jim Nantz, CBS Sports lead announcer for golf, the NFL, and the NCAA Final Four, describes Rosaforte as one of the most connected and trusted members of the golf media, someone who is on top of everything happening at the highest level of the sport.

鈥淗e had two cell phones working at the same time,鈥� Nantz says. 鈥淎rnold on line one, Tiger on line two.

鈥淭o see Tim struggle with Alzheimer鈥檚 has been sad and shocking at the same time,鈥� Nantz continues. 鈥淗is mind was razor sharp for so long and then, all of a sudden, he was lost. Sadly, due to my father鈥檚 own battle with this insidious disease, I know the heartache it has caused for all who love Tim. Genevieve [Rosaforte鈥檚 wife] and the girls have handled the caregiving side of this with beautiful grace. It鈥檚 the untold story of Alzheimer鈥檚. There are more people whose lives are changed almost overnight than just the one who is suffering from the disease.鈥�

Rosaforte authored five books, covered 147 major championships and 17 Ryder Cups, and won over 40 awards for writing, including a Golf Writers Association of America 鈥淕rand Slam鈥� for first-place magazine coverage in features, columns, event coverage, and special projects. In 2020, he became the 12th person ever to be awarded honorary PGA of America membership.

鈥淭im has connections like Tom Brady has rings.鈥�
鈥擱ich Lerner, host and commentator, Golf Channel

鈥淵ou hear the phrase 鈥榩ro鈥檚 pro,鈥欌�� says Rich Lerner, a longtime colleague of Rosaforte鈥檚 at Golf Channel. 鈥淭im is the quintessential pro鈥檚 pro. Busts his tail every day, working the smallest event with as much determination and focus as the biggest. I鈥檇 joke with him, 鈥�30 years into a legendary career, you鈥檙e hustling like a rookie trying to make an impression in his first week.鈥�

鈥淭im has connections like Tom Brady has rings,鈥� Lerner adds. 鈥淧residents, Hall of Famers, superstars, actors. Rosie鈥檚 phone is a valuable piece of equipment. It speaks to his greatest strength: Trustworthiness. People trust Tim. Athletes will share with a reporter if they trust the reporter. Tim is, without question, one of the best golf journalists ever. Tim鈥檚 as generous and sweet as he is tough. He never let go of the old football player鈥檚 instinct for the ball, but he has a soft heart, too. For the 20 years my wife, Robin, and I, ran our charity golf event, Tim always made an appearance and a donation. He cares about the people in his life and about his work. One of the best human beings I have ever known. Loyal. Gives a damn. Smart. Tough. Good-hearted.鈥�

In recent months, fellow 溏心vlog免费B站 graduates Steve Napoli 鈥�77 and Tom Ryan 鈥�75, Hon. 鈥�99, put together a team鈥攚hich includes Rhode Island鈥檚 own Brad Faxon, an eight-time PGA Tour winner鈥攖o work with the University to create the Tim Rosaforte III 鈥�77 Endowed Scholarship in Neuroscience.

鈥淚鈥檝e been in the golf industry my whole life and we crossed paths a lot,鈥� explains Napoli, the 2003 recipient of the PGA of America Bill Strausbaugh Award, a national award given to an instructor who excels in mentoring fellow PGA professionals. 鈥淗onestly, I was sitting home one night, and I heard what was going on with Tim. I sent Tom [Ryan] a text and said, 鈥楬ey, Tom, wouldn鈥檛 it be nice if our alma mater could honor Tim in some way?鈥� Then, quite frankly, it took on a life of its own.鈥�

Ryan, former chairman, president, and CEO of CVS/Caremark, was happy to get involved.

鈥淲hen we approached 溏心vlog免费B站 and the foundation about it, they were thrilled,鈥� Ryan says. 鈥淭hey couldn鈥檛 have been happier, and they ran with it. It was easy to do. Tim鈥檚 one of the great guys. People want to help him and his family and have some legacy at 溏心vlog免费B站 for Tim. That鈥檚 the real key鈥攈ave a legacy for Tim. This endowment will go on in perpetuity and help students in years to come.鈥�

The cause is close to Ryan鈥檚 heart.

In 2013, Ryan and his wife, Cathy, formed the University鈥檚 George & Anne Ryan Institute for Neuroscience鈥攏amed in honor of Ryan鈥檚 parents鈥攖o support innovation in discovery science and translational medicine in the fight against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer鈥檚.

鈥淚 lost my dad to Alzheimer鈥檚, and I lost my mom because she took care of him,鈥� Ryan says. 鈥淎lzheimer鈥檚 really killed them both, so it鈥檚 near to our family. We鈥檙e trying to make a difference and collaborate with other institutions around the country and the world. There鈥檚 no one who doesn鈥檛 know someone who has dementia or Alzheimer鈥檚. It鈥檚 going to be a health-care tsunami with our aging demograpics. We must find a way to slow the progression and ultimately find a cure to this heartbreaking disease.

鈥淏rad, Steve, and I met Tim and Genevieve for breakfast,鈥� Ryan adds. 鈥淚 presented some scholarship options that could be endowed in Tim鈥檚 name. It was a short discussion. The Rosaforte family wanted to help students majoring in interdisciplinary neuroscience.鈥�

Faxon can鈥檛 remember when he first met Rosaforte, but says he was 鈥渙mnipresent鈥� if you were a player on the PGA Tour.

鈥淎ny time in my career that Tim came up to me, or called, I answered,鈥� Faxon says. 鈥淚t was always with a smile. The way he asked questions, he earned your trust. Every player felt the same. He had the ability to garner contact information to get the inside-the-ropes trust and you always felt you could tell him things off the record and feel secure. We had an extra bond because of his Rhode Island connection.鈥�

Faxon says that bond with Rosaforte was especially noteworthy to him after the United States lost the 1995 Ryder Cup鈥攁 biennial competition between the best golfers in the United States and Europe鈥攊n heartbreaking fashion.

鈥淲e all had to go in the pressroom,鈥� Faxon remembers. 鈥淎nd you know those times when there鈥檚 just nothing more to be said? This was one of those times. I remember sitting next to Tim and we didn鈥檛 say anything. It was just comforting. There wasn鈥檛 anything to say. A lot of journalists need a quick quote, but he sat there with us like he had lost, too.鈥�

Like so many other giants in the golf world, Jack Nicklaus and Annika S枚renstam鈥攁rguably the greatest male and female golfers in history鈥攈ad a special bond with Rosaforte.

鈥淭im has been a great friend for some 40 years,鈥� says Nicklaus, who has more all-time major wins (18), than any other golfer in history. 鈥淗e is also one of this generation鈥檚 great golf journalists.鈥�

鈥淭here’s no one who doesn’t know someone who has dementia or Alzheimer鈥�s. We must find a way to slow the progression and ultimately find a cure to this heartbreaking disease.鈥�
鈥擳om Ryan, 鈥�75, Hon. 鈥�99, former president, chairman, and CEO of CVS/Caremark

鈥淭im has always been such a good guy and a hard worker,鈥� recalls S枚renstam, a World Golf Hall of Famer and 72-time LPGA winner. 鈥淚 remember him before his time at Golf Channel, back when he was writing and covering a lot of LPGA events. He always had the inside scoop because he had the trust of the players.鈥�

Rosaforte was a mentor to so many, including this writer. I鈥檓 a 2002 溏心vlog免费B站 graduate and I shared many media center lunches and conversations at PGA Tour events with Rosaforte for more than 15 years.

He loved the fact that, like him, I was a 溏心vlog免费B站 grad. When he wasn鈥檛 telling me stories from his days as a 溏心vlog免费B站 football player in the 1970s, he would often joke, 鈥淲e鈥檝e got to be at least the third and fourth most popular 溏心vlog免费B站 journalism grads behind Christiane Amanpour and John King, right?!鈥�

Longtime award-winning golf writer Helen Ross explains that Rosaforte has always had the ability to make his subjects want to open up, allowing him to bring compelling stories to life.

Ross also credits Rosaforte for an opportunity that led to her dream of covering golf full time.

鈥淚 really got to know Tim when I served with him on the board of the Golf Writers Association of America,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd on a personal level, my life would have been a lot different had he not told me that the PGA Tour was looking for a managing editor for its new website back in 1995. He knew I wanted to write about golf full time, and I know he put in a good word for me. Not sure I鈥檝e ever told him, but I will always be grateful for his support.鈥�

Dolch will never forget the human side of Rosaforte.

In 2005, when Dolch was covering the U.S. Open at Pinehurst, his then-14-year-old son Eric was diagnosed with near-fatal encephalitis鈥攁n inflammation of the active tissues of the brain caused by an infection or an autoimmune response鈥攚hich led to a life-changing brain injury.

When Eric was hospitalized in 2005, Rosaforte drove to Miami several times to take Dolch out to eat and to see Eric when he was in a coma.

In early 2006, when Dolch and his son were in Boston for rehab, Dolch received a call from Rosaforte.

鈥淚 got a call from Tim saying he was planning a family fundraiser the week of the Honda Classic,鈥� Dolch remembers. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 ask him to; he just did it. And he did all the planning鈥攈e just asked me for some names of people I wanted to invite. He asked Raymond and Maria Floyd to host and pay for the fundraiser at Old Palm. Because of Tim, folks like Jack and Barbara Nicklaus, Don Shula, Olin Browne, Jesper Parnevik, Tom Fazio, JoAnne Carner, and Jimmy Roberts showed up. It raised more than $100,000 for our family. How do you say thanks to someone who does that?鈥�

The way Rosaforte quickly organized this star-studded event for Dolch鈥檚 family left an impression on Diaz as well.

鈥淥ne of most amazing nights I ever saw. Tim galvanized the Palm Beach golf world鈥攖he center of the universe鈥攁nd got everybody to come to the dinner and donate money,鈥� Diaz says. 鈥淣icklaus, Floyd, [Greg] Norman, [Nick] Price. I went with Bob Toski. People were there because Tim asked, and they knew Craig. They were moved by this community effort and what Tim did with his resources.鈥�

For Diaz, that event encapsulated the person Rosaforte is.

鈥淭o me, I always tried to be as good a sportswriter as I could, but what people remember most is, 鈥榃hat kind of guy was he?鈥欌�� Diaz says. 鈥淚 think Tim leads the league in leaving people feeling good.鈥� 鈥�

If you wish to contribute to the Tim Rosaforte endowed scholarship to assist students in the field of neuroscience, visit . For information, contact Eric Schonewald at 401.874.9017 or eschonewald@uri.edu.

T.J. Auclair听graduated from 溏心vlog免费B站 in 2002. He has covered professional golf since then, traveling to more than 70 major championships, spending 13 years at Turner Sports as a writer for PGA.com. Currently, he is director of content for听The Caddie Network.

PHOTOS: Andrew Redington/Getty Images; Courtesy PGA of America
Courtesy Tom Ryan; David Cannon/Getty Images