Hall of Fame golfer Juan 'Chi Chi' Rodriguez dies at 88

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Juan "Chi Chi" Rodriguez, a Hall of Fame golfer, died on Thursday at age 88.

Rodriguez’s death was announced by Carmelo Javier Ríos, a senator in Rodriguez’s native Puerto Rico. No cause of death was provided.

No one from Puerto Rico had ever made it to the PGA Tour, and Rodriguez was not only determined to get there, but to beat the best.

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Juan Antonio "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez of Puerto Rico competed in the 1990 Transamerica Senior Golf Championship event of the Senior PGA Tour on October 21, 1990, at the Silverado Country Club in Napa, California.  (David Madison/Getty Images)

"They told me I was a hound dreaming about pork chops." He once told Sports Illustrated.

Rodriguez learned to play golf by hitting tin cans with a guava tree stick and found work as a caddie. According to a biography provided by the Chi Chi Rodriguez Management Group, he claimed he could shoot a 67 by age 12.

Before joining the PGA Tour in 1960, he served in the U.S. Army from 1955 to 1957. Rodriguez won eight times during his 21-year career and played on one Ryder Cup team. 

Following his PGA career, he played on the Champions Tour from 1985-2002 and won 22 times on that tour. His total combined career earnings were more than $7.6 million.

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Juan Chi Chi Rodriguez (R) and his wife Iwalani attend Marc Anthony Concert at Coliseo Jose M. Agrelot on September 11, 2015, in San Juan, Puerto Rico.   (GV Cruz/WireImage)

He was best known for antics that included twirling his club like a sword, or doing a celebratory