In front of a sold-out crowd, the celebrities gathered at Edgewood Tahoe did not disappoint Friday. It was the first round of the American Century Championship (ACC), kicking off three days of golf, fun and entertainment. The purse is $750,000, but it is much more than the money the celebrities are vying for – bragging rights and putting up great rounds of golf to start with.
The two-day NBC television coverage begins Saturday.
Former NHL All-Star Joe Pavelski will start play on Saturday as the first-round leader after having three birdies in the first 18 holes of play for a score of 23 points. The others that headed into the clubhouse in the top ten were former winners Vinny Del Negro and Steph Curry, Taylor Twellman, Adam Thielan, Alex Caruso, former winner Tony Romo, Mardy Fish, John Smoltz and Annika Sorenstam.
Pavelski has finished in the top three in each of the last three years, and he said now that he is retired, he can dedicate more time to golf.
“The round was good,” said Pavelski, who retired after 18 seasons last summer. “Obviously, the first tee and first round excitement was there. Nerves were there.”
The Stableford scoring system used at the tournament rewards points for eagles (6), birdies (3), pars (1), bogey (0), and a double bogey or worse (-2).
The biggest shot of the day turned out to be from NBA legend Charles Barkley. He spent years trying to play better and not end up with the worst score in the field. He hit left-handed, one-handed, and nothing worked until he got a golfing coach who told him to stop trying to hit like a pro (who normally is a much smaller build than him), and not to be afraid of playing at the golf course. Charles said he would practice at the driving range, and could hit balls all day long, but it was a different story on the course.
“It was humiliating and embarrassing to suck,” said Barkley. “I had never been bad at anything.”
The sportsbook had Barkley with an over/under of 65.5 points last year, and he came in under for the first time at 58th place, and those betting against the house again may be filling their wallets again if Barkley continues playing as he did Friday.
“Last year was the first year I won money for my friends,” added Barkley, who said he now has more friends. “I don’t want to let them down.”
“I’ve put a lot of time and effort in, and I was very happy with the way I played today,” said Barkley. He is tied for 24th with 9 points.
LEADERBOARD (points)
The second round starts at 7:35 a.m. at Edgewood. It is sold out. The pairings sheet can be found HERE.
