A tee-rrific gift! Michelle Obama buys art of Augusta National's 12th hole from exoneree who served 27 years for a murder he didn't commit as a Christmas gift for Barack

 Michelle Obama gifted former president Barack Obama a work of art for Christmas that she purchased from an exoneree who served 27 years behind bars for a murder he didn't commit.

The former first lady reached out to Valentino Dixon, 50, of Buffalo, New York, after his story of exoneration was told in a segment of HBO Real Spots that aired in October. 

Dixon was convicted in 1992 of second-degree murder, attempted murder, assault, and criminal possession of a weapon. He was sentenced to 38 years to life in prison for a crime he didn't commit.

He spent 27 years behind bars before he was exonerated in 2018. 

Moved by Dixon's story, Michelle arranged the purchase of his painting showing the famed Augusta National 12th hole for Barack, who is an avid golfer. 


For Christmas, Michelle Obama gifted former president Barack Obama with a work of art she purchased from an exoneree who served 27 years behind bars for a murder he didn't commit

For Christmas, Michelle Obama gifted former president Barack Obama with a work of art she purchased from an exoneree who served 27 years behind bars for a murder he didn't commit

The former first lady reached out to Valentino Dixon (pictured), 50, of Buffalo, New York, after his story of exoneration was told in a segment of HBO Real Spots that aired in October. She purchased this 20x30 drawing of the Augusta National 12th hole

The former first lady reached out to Valentino Dixon (pictured), 50, of Buffalo, New York, after his story of exoneration was told in a segment of HBO Real Spots that aired in October. She purchased this 20x30 drawing of the Augusta National 12th hole 

Dixon shared the news on Instagram on Christmas Day, saying: 'Happy Holidays everyone, Michelle Obama purchased this Augusta National 12th hole 20x30 drawing for Barack as a Christmas gift.'

He continued: 'It was an honor and a privilege, God is good.'

In an interview with WKYC, Dixon said Michelle's 'not too big to reach out to somebody on my level, who is really nobody in comparison, so that's just a great feeling'.

Dixon added: 'The drawing is going to be sitting in Barack's office, that alone is enough for me.'

The drawing of the golf course is not only special because Michelle took notice, it's also the same golf course that sparked Dixon's art career while he was in prison. 

Less than a year after his release, Dixon returned to prison to tell inmates how golf saved his life.

'I played twice (and) I am no good at it,' Dixon said during a visit to a penitentiary in Washington in 2019. 

Yet it was this sport that ultimately got him out of jail and which now allows him to lobby for reform in the US penal system before unexpected audiences. 

On Sunday, Dixon shared a video of himself drawing another version of the Augusta National Golf Course

On Sunday, Dixon shared a video of himself drawing another version of the Augusta National Golf Course

Dixon shared on Instagram that this time he will be drawing a 40x60 version of the golf course (pictured)

Dixon shared on Instagram that this time he will be drawing a 40x60 version of the golf course (pictured)

Valentino Dixon works on artwork later purchased by Michelle Obama
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Dixon, who grew up in a rough neighborhood of Buffalo in the northeastern United States, had never before set foot on a golf course when his life was upended one night in August 1991.

That was when a fight broke out in front of a restaurant and shots were fired, leaving one man dead.

Two days later, on the basis of an anonymous tip, police arrested Dixon, who was at the time the young father of a six-month-old baby girl.

Another man later told reporters that he was the one who actually pulled the trigger that night, but the authorities refused to speak to him.

'Eight witnesses cleared me of the crime. When I went to trial, my lawyer did not call any of those witnesses. So, I was convicted and given a 39-year sentence,' Dixon explained.


For the first seven years in prison Dixon said he was simply bored, but then he began 'drawing my butt off'. 

He spent up to 10 hours per-day drawing, refining his technique and impressing those around him.

After being shown a photo by a prison guard, Dixon drew a picture of the 12th hole of the famous Augusta golf course in Georgia. 

That launched him on a journey to draw other clubs, and even to invent his own. One day, he wrote to a journalist penning a column called Golf Saved Me in the magazine Golf Digest.

Recognizing his talent, the reporter did some research on Dixon and penned a long article about him.

For the first seven years in prison Dixon (pictured in May 2019) said he began 'drawing my butt off'. He spent up to 10 hours per-day drawing. After being shown a photo by a prison guard, Dixon drew a picture of the 12th hole of the famous Augusta golf course in Georgia

For the first seven years in prison Dixon (pictured in May 2019) said he began 'drawing my butt off'. He spent up to 10 hours per-day drawing. After being shown a photo by a prison guard, Dixon drew a picture of the 12th hole of the famous Augusta golf course in Georgia

That launched him on a journey to draw other clubs, and even to invent his own. Dixon (pictured in May 2019) watches inmates at a Washington, DC, prison during a screening of a documentary about how he was wrongfully convicted of killing a man in 1991

That launched him on a journey to draw other clubs, and even to invent his own. Dixon (pictured in May 2019) watches inmates at a Washington, DC, prison during a screening of a documentary about how he was wrongfully convicted of killing a man in 1991

That article garnered attention at Georgetown University in Washington, which had a study program dedicated to clearing people who had been wrongly convicted. 

Three students started investigating Dixon's case and finally produced a documentary about him.

In front of their camera, the prosecutor in charge of the case admitted having sought traces of gunpowder on the suspect's clothes in 1991 and finding nothing, a vital piece of information he had always kept to himself.

'Twenty-seven years later, without doing it on purpose, he confessed,' Marc Howard, the professor in charge of the program at Georgetown, said of the prosecutor. 'Valentino's lawyer was able to use that to get him out of jail.'

On September 19, 2018, Dixon walked out of prison a free man.

Since then, he was has been trying to be a 'good grandfather' and catch up on all the new technologies that have transformed the world while he was locked up.

He has also been working to help the two million or so Americans who are behind bars, and whose sentences he says are all too often 'excessive'.

In May 2019, Dixon made his first trip back to a prison since his release.

'I don't want to be here, but I got to be here, to show support,' he said at the time.

'I am not nervous at all. It's like a second home, I hate to say it, but that's the reality. I am used to being around guys who are incarcerated.'

The man with a broad smile earned laughs and approval from his audience of around 30 men and women in orange prison uniforms who had come to hear him speak, and who thanked him as he left for the visit.

The next day, Dixon headed to a completely different world, invited to talk to members of a St Louis golf club in Missouri, as he had already done at the Masters in Augusta.

'I have been speaking at golf clubs, you know, just trying to inform people in the golf community about the issues in regard with prison reforms, because these are not issues that they would normally either know about or come into contact with,' said Dixon, who has met golf champions like Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus.

'So I am the link between the inner city and the golf course,' he said.

Howard, the Georgetown professor, attended one of the meetings. 

'Valentino has a great deal of charm, everyone loves to hear him speak,' he said. 'Two worlds meet in him and his story.'

A tee-rrific gift! Michelle Obama buys art of Augusta National's 12th hole from exoneree who served 27 years for a murder he didn't commit as a Christmas gift for Barack A tee-rrific gift! Michelle Obama buys art of Augusta National's 12th hole from exoneree who served 27 years for a murder he didn't commit as a Christmas gift for Barack Reviewed by CUZZ BLUE on December 28, 2020 Rating: 5

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