Legendary sports writer Jenkins dies at 89

FORT WORTH, Texas — Dan Jenkins, the sports writing great and best-selling author known for his humor, has died. He was 89.

TCU athletic director Jeremiah Donati confirmed Jenkins died Thursday in his hometown of Fort Worth.

Jenkins started his writing career at The Fort Worth Press and rose to stardom at Sports Illustrated. He wrote best-sellers “Semi-Tough” “Baja Oklahoma” and “Dead Solid Perfect” and was a columnist for Playboy and Golf Digest.

Jenkins played golf at TCU and was a close friend of the late golf great Ben Hogan, also a Fort Worth native. Jenkins, a recipient of the PEN/ESPN Lifetime Achievement Award for Literary Sports Writing, is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Jenkins is also a member of the National Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame, along with the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. In addition, the PGA of America gave him the lifetime achievement award in sports journalism.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.