By John F. McKenna (McJack): Beau Jack, born Sidney Walker, was a great African American boxer of the 1940’s. Beau Jack came from very humble beginnings and went on to win the Lightweight Championship of the World. He was born on April 1, 1921 in Augusta, Georgia.
His maternal grandmother, who raised Beau, gave him the nickname after his mother passed away. From an early age Beau Jack was an industrious youth, walking three miles every morning to Augusta so that he could earn money shining shoes. When Jack was fifteen years old he began participating in a brutal game called “Battle Royal” to make money at the nearby Augusta Country Club. The game “Battle Royal” consisted of between five and ten black men being blindfolded and then fighting until the last man was left standing. This “game” was a brutal spectacle which became popular in the Jim Crow era south and was funded by rich white men for their own entertainment. The winner was usually showered with coins depending on how well the crowd thought that he had performed.
Despite being only 5’6” and weighing about 133 lbs, Beau Jack excelled at the game of “Battle Royal” and would frequently be the last man standing. In this way Jack became popular with the country club set. One of the tricks of the trade that Beau developed was to stand in the corner with his back against the ropes to allow the larger, more powerful participants to wear each other out. He would then knock out his last opponent, who by then was exhausted. Jack won many “Battle Royal” contests using this technique. Beau once related that on one occasion the battle came down to him and his brother, “So I knocked him out too!”
His biggest battle came during one of the early Masters Golf tournaments. Jack stated that “All those rich people had to be entertained at night, so the club put on this big battle in the dining room of the Bon-Air-Hotel.” The battle came down to one huge brawler and Beau Jack, who by now was a standout and a crowd favorite. Jack threw a long looping bolo punch, which knocked the man out. On this night the crowd began throwing not coins, but $10, $20 and $50 bills. Jack took home over one thousand dollars on that night.
After this “Battle Royal” the steward at Augusta National gave Beau a job shining shoes at the club. Most of the golfers treated Jack as if he were invisible. Only golfing legend Bobby Jones had time for him said Beau Jack years later.