Jerry Does Golf

[Don Wassall]

This ought to be good for some chuckles. No one can dismiss how bad blacks are in golf with the time-honored bs line, "they just aren't interested."


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<DIV style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; TEXT-ALIGN: left; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; : transparent; COLOR: #000000; OVERFLOW: ; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; TEXT-DECORATION: none">
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He'd return to the range after football practice.


"I got addicted to the game. I have so much passion for it," Rice said.


Now, the Hall of Fame wide receiver is taking a swing at professional golf, and insists he's serious.


Rice will make his pro debut Thursday in a Nationwide Tour event after receiving a sponsor's exemption into the field. He also will serve as host of the 156-player tournament, with his foundation receiving proceeds.


"This is an opportunity of a lifetime here," Rice said. "You know I'm a competitor. I don't want to go out there and have those players who are playing on the Nationwide Tour think this is a publicity stunt for attention. It's not. ... I have the opportunity to go out and prove to everybody I can play golf."


The 47-year-old Rice will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in August. He has been golfing for more than 20 years and has been a regular in pro-ams. His best round is 68.


After Phil Mickelson's stirring win at the Masters on Sunday, Rice said he was so inspired he headed right to the range.


Rice would be eligible for prize money if he makes the 36-hole cut at the Fresh Express Classic at 7,188-yard, par-71 TPC Stonebrae. The Nationwide Tour works under the umbrella of the PGA Tour.


"These guys are really good golfers," Rice said. "They are one step below the PGA and a lot of these guys are going to go on and be part of the PGA. To line up against these guys, I'm honored. ... I'd love to make this cut in my debut."


He has a few thoughts on what he'll need to do to make that happen â€" hit the fairways, avoid three-putts. His touch around the greens is "something I really have to work on hard."


"I can hold my own," he said, referring to his drives. "I have been up at night visualizing my strategy what I'm going to do on every hole. The biggest thing for me is going to be being able to calm my nerves on the golf course when I hit a bad shot."


Rice has been showing off his athletic talents in other arenas of late. Last week, he threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the San Francisco Giants' home opener, with his former quarterback and fellow Hall of Famer Steve Young making the catch. Rice then turned and ran a route to catch the baseball from Young.


Rice, the NFL's career receiving and touchdowns leader, played 20 NFL seasons for San Francisco, Oakland and Seattle. He made 1,549 catches for 22,895 yards, had 14 1,000-yard seasons and scored 208 touchdowns.


Rice is not sure where this golf venture is leading. Does the senior Champions Tour figure in his future?


"I can't look down the road that far," Rice said. "I love the game of golf and that would be a dream come true. I'm just getting my feet wet right now. Hopefully it can build into that. I love the game. I've never had something that challenges me so much."http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/04/13/sports/s092301D48.DTL

 

[sport historian]

An irony that you don't see mentioned in the press is that decades ago, there were more black golfers on the pro tour than there are in the Era of Tiger. I was never a real golf fan, but some names I recall are Charlie Sifford and Jim Dent.

 

[Don Wassall]

And now for some comic relief:


<DIV id=hn-line>Jerry Rice shoots 92 in golf tournament
By PETE IACOBELLI (AP) â€" 22 hours ago


SPARTANBURG, S.C. â€" Hall-of-Fame receiver Jerry Rice set another record Thursday, although this wasn't one he'd hoped for at the BMW Charity Pro-Am.


Rice shot a 92, the highest score ever since this Nationwide Tour event began in South Carolina's Upstate in 1992.


Rice talked before the tournament of buying Cristal for everyone if he'd reached his goal and made the cut. He saw those hopes doused early when he couldn't avoid the water at The Carolina Country Club.


He put three shots into the water on the par-4 second hole for a 10. Things never improved from there. His 20-over finish was two shots worse than the 90 put up by Shawn McCaughley in 2006 at The Cliffs Valley Course.


Rice signed autographs for about 15 minutes after finishing No. 18. He then bypassed several TV cameras and media waiting to discuss his round.


"I don't want to talk about golf right now," Rice said before getting in his car. "Had enough."


Rice had hoped to put on a better show his second time as a Nationwide pro than he did in his tour debut last month at the Fresh Express Classic. Rice went 83-76 to miss the cut and had worked hard on his game since then.


Rice played like a seasoned pro at first, sticking a crisp approach to about 5 feet on No. 1. However, he spun out the birdie putt and settled for par.


That's when Rice's serious problems began. He put his tee shot into the water on the right, then saw two pitch attempts wind up wet on the way to a 10. Two holes later, Rice needed three swings to get out of a bunker fronting the green. "Last time," he told his playing partners, laughing after his second muff.


Rice's bright spot on the front came on the par-4 seventh when he converted a 6-foot putt for his only birdie of the day.


But the former NFL star known for his matchless clutch ability could not get a rally going. His tee shot on No. 8 rolled in a creek to the right of the green.


Rice steadied himself somewhat on the back nine. His worst hole, a triple-bogey on the par-5 13th was as much the result of bad luck as bad play. Rice's shot seemed perfect, hitting about 8 feet left of the flagstick to set up a birdie try. However, it spun back just enough to catch a slope and roll into the water.


"You could tell he was frustrated," said Clint Jensen, a pro grouped with Rice.


But there is good news for Rice.


He'll remain at the BMW event longer than at his last tournament. The celebrity competition calls for pros to play each of three courses in North and South Carolina before cutting to the top 60 and ties for Sunday's final round.


And Rice has a big hole to climb out of. He's 28 shots behind first-round co-leaders Martin Piller and Ted Potter Jr., who each shot 64, and will likely need an old-style Tiger Woods' rally to stick around past Saturday. [

-- I hope he was writing that sarcastically.]
[url]http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jOSE7tvHWJon4NKXonRRc68belkgD9FM7O480[/url]

And then this today:


<DIV id=hn-line>Rice disqualified at Nationwide

By PETE IACOBELLI (AP) â€" 57 minutes ago



MILL SPRING, N.C. â€" Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice has been disqualified from the Nationwide Tour event Friday because his caddie used a scope to check yardages.


Rice called the error a rookie mistake and apologized to BMW Charity Pro-Am officials. That means Rice won't take part in Saturday's third round, the last one before the field is cut for Sunday's finale.


Rice had shot a 92 on Thursday, the highest score ever since the tournament began in the Carolinas in 1992. He had rebounded a bit Friday with an 82 at Bright's Creek Golf Club before he was told of his mistake.


Rice also said he would not try to play as a pro at future Nationwide events. He missed the cut at the Fresh Express Classic last month in his tour debut.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jOSE7tvHWJon4NKXonRRc68belkgD9FMQT0G3

 

[FootballDad]

Hahahahahaha! Cheats and still shoots 20 over!

 

[icsept]

Get this joke off the course. He's taking a spot from a young professional. He should have enough dignity to not accept a sponsor's exemption and earn his way on the tour.