Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Local golf roundup: Lineups set for 49ers/Giants Charity Shoot-Out at Pebble Beach

A lineup for the 49ers/Giants Chevron Charity Shoot-Out is set, but there still could be some shuffling depending on what happens in Sunday's Super Bowl.

Earlier this week, Monterey Peninsula Foundation CEO Steve John said that as things stand, the Shoot-Out, to be held on Tuesday as part of AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am week at Pebble Beach Golf Links, will feature four former players representing the San Francisco 49ers and six San Francisco Giants players.

The 49ers will be represented by past Super Bowl winners Harris Barton, Jerry Rice, Dwight Clark and Brent Jones. The Giants squad will consist of All-Star pitchers Matt Cain and Ryan Vogelsong, broadcasters Mike Krukow and Dave Flemming, former All-Star first baseman Will Clark and current manager Bruce Bochy.

Still, there's the issue of the Super Bowl. Should the 49ers lose to Baltimore, John said there's a possibility that the 49ers squad could expand a bit. On the flip side, if the 49ers win the championship parade will likely be held on the same Tuesday in San Francisco, meaning that the 49ers would be represented by only the four players.

"Ideally, what we're looking for is eight guys taking on eight guys," John said. "But that depends on what happens Sunday. We'll see what unfolds and we'll deal with it."

Due to the uncertainty, a few weeks ago, tournament officials had tossed around the idea of having the Giants squad take on some of the other athletes scheduled to compete in the Pro-Am

such as Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and recently retired tennis great Andy Roddick.

According to John, that scenario will not occur.

"It's really been a great problem to have. So we win the Super Bowl. Bummer," John said, tongue in cheek. "I mean, we have the potential to have both the World Series and Super Bowl champions."

The Shoot-Out will take place at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, with teams competing over the old whiskey route at Pebble Beach ? holes No. 1, 2, 3, 17 and 18 ? for a $100,000 charity purse. The Niners have won each of the last two competitions.

Exemptions:

South Korea's Si Woo Kim, who at age 17 became the youngest player to ever earn his PGA Tour card at this past fall's Q-School, will make his tour debut at the AT&T Pro-Am.

John recently called Kim's manager to relay the good news that he would be getting a sponsor's exemption, allowing Kim's first PGA Tour experience to be at Pebble Beach.

"I got a call back from his manager who left a message saying that Si Woo got my message that he was in but that he didn't believe it," John said. "Si Woo wanted me to call back and tell him again. He couldn't believe he was in. He's over the moon that it's happening."

This past year's Q-School was the last one where players could advance directly to the PGA Tour. Beginning this year, Q-School will only guarantee spots on the developmental Web.com Tour.

While Kim advanced, under current regulations the age for tour membership is 18. He'll turn 18 in June, but by then there will only be a handful of events left, meaning Kim most likely will lose his card.

Other players recently granted exemptions were Alameda native Matt Bettencourt, former world top-ranked amateur Patrick Cantlay and 2011 U.S. Amateur champion Kelly Kraft. Kraft beat Cantlay in the Amateur finals.

Previous exemptions went to Jordan Spieth, the only player other than Tiger Woods to win the U.S. Junior Amateur multiple times, Camilo Villegas, Billy Andrade and Bret Nutt, the son of former Foundation CEO Ollie Nutt. Bret and Ollie will be paired together.

Celeb Watch:

When Patriots head coach Bill Belichick recently joined the Pro-Am field, it was natural to think that quarterback Tom Brady would also return to the tournament. Brady will not play, however. His sister is getting married in Hawaii.

John said that there is still one "big name" celebrity who will join the field. The mystery person (guess here is Niners head coach Jim Harbaugh) will be announced on Monday.

Woods Out:

John confirmed this week that Farmers Insurance Open winner Tiger Woods will not be playing in this year's AT&T Pro-Am. Last year, Woods made his first Pro-Am appearance in 10 years. The 2000 Pro-Am winner hasn't played in both the Farmers Insurance Open and AT&T Pro-Am since 2002. Some have speculated that he appeared in last year's Pro-Am as a courtesy to AT&T, a former Woods sponsor.

Fan Experience:

Fans attending next week's AT&T Pro-Am can expect some new experiences both on and around host course Pebble Beach. For starters, there's a new grand entrance that will welcome fans who arrive at Pebble Beach.

"It's now an arrival to the tournament," John said. "It's one of the biggest things we've done."

Fans getting off shuttle buses and walking by the Polo Field driving range also will get a better view of players practicing. Usually, there's a 10-12 foot fence blocking the view for those idling by. That fence has been lowered to around 4 feet.

"Spectators can now easily see guys hitting balls on the lower range," John said.

On the course, there's a new grandstand area behind the 17th green. There's also an expanded grandstand area at the 17th tee box. The United Fairway Club, an upscale lounge overlooking the 17th, has sold out but there will be a limited number of daily ticket upgrades ($50 per day) available on site.

Tickets for the tournament can be purchased at

www.attpbgolf.com or by calling 800-541-9091.

3M Scholarship:

Alyssa Ferrell of Salinas High and Lyla Mahmoud of Pacific Grove High won the 3M Scholarship Essay Contest in conjunction with the AT&T Pro-Am. The two seniors each won a $3,500 college scholarship from 3M and will be invited to participate as standard bearers in Wednesday's 3M Celebrity Challenge.

Poppy Recognized:

The pro shop at Poppy Hills has again been named to Golf World's list of Top 100 pro shops. It's the sixth time in the past seven years that Poppy Hills' pro shop has received the honor.

Aces:

Darian "Dad" Houde aced the 104-yard 10th hole at Pacific Grove GL using a 9-iron. Back in November, Houde aced the same hole using the same club.

AT&T Juniors:

Austin Murphy shot 40 and Katrina Mendez shot 36 to win the Platinum titles at the recently held AT&T Pebble Beach Jr. Golf Association Winter Classic at Quail Lodge. In Gold play, winners were Grace Chen (39) and Drew Sharek (36).

Jerry Stewart can be reached at 384-7916 or at

jerry_stewart@sbcglobal.net. Follow him on Twitter @jstewmonterey.

Source: http://www.montereyherald.com/sports/ci_22477360/local-golf-roundup-lineups-set-49ers-giants-charity?source=rss

dave matthews ambien wwdc heart attack grill madden 13 cover dalai lama tamera mowry

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.