Bryant University

Al Martino
Men’s Golf
Hall of Fame Class of 1987

Al was on his way to an outstanding golf career before cancer caused his untimely death at the age of 22. While a Bryant freshman in 1973, Al won the individual title in the Yale Invitational.  In both his freshman and sophomore years, he qualified for the national NCAA Division II tournament. Cancer treatments forced him to withdraw from Bryant the following year.  He underwent three operations over a two month period to remove cancerous tissue from his stomach. 

Only six months after the third operation he returned to competitive golf and won the Rhode Island Public Links championship. A month later he underwent a fourth operation, but it failed to stop the spread of the cancer and he died on Jan. 29, 1977.His battle against the effects of his illness is one of the most courageous sports stories in Rhode Island history. “I tried not to let the fact that I had cancer show,” Martino said after winning the Public Links title.  “I wanted to show people who have cancer that they can still go out and do things.”