Michael Jordan with his cigar on the 4th hole
Ray Allen walking to the tee box
Rick Reilly and wife (notice the SI logo on the left sleeve)
Jerry Rice doing interviews after his Friday round
Michael Jordan signing autographs after Weds. practice round
Kenny Lofton eyeing his next shot
Wayne Gretzky walking to his tee shot on the 9th hole
Tony Romo and his caddy discussing his tee shot
I was lucky enough to spend all day Friday at Edgewood Golf Course in Lake Tahoe for the American Century Championship. This tournament features 80 celebrities (some better golfers than others) and a day at this tournament for a sports fan is like being in the candy aisle as a kid. To be honest, I didn't get to see as many players as I wanted because most of my attention was focused on the 9:50 a.m. group consisting of Michael Jordan, Ray Allen and Kenny Lofton. Obviously the latter two weren't the real draw for me. I took a ton of pictures and was able to observe some interesting things, so here it goes.
1)Michael Jordan is a bigger icon than most of us realize: There were times when Jordan would walk through a crowd with another huge star (Jerry Rice, Tony Romo, Ray Allen, John Elway, etc.) and 99% of the time, the other celebrities would go untouched and almost unnoticed because everyone's attention was with MJ. It was remarkable to see in person, especially since it wasn't like he was the only great athlete or actor there.
2) Jordan LOVES to bet: Ok, I know this is common knowledge, but I am here to confirm its true. Throughout his round (mostly on the back nine), Jordan was betting nice chunks of money with a few of his friends who were walking alongside him. On the par 4 15th, Jordan shanked his tee shot left and short. This allowed his friend (referred to as Big Mike) to place $100 wager that Jordan wouldn't make par. MJ took the bet, double bogeyed and went on to hand Big Mike a $100 bill right there. Next hole was the long par 5 16th. This time Jordan proposed the bet placing $500 on a birdie and another $500 on par. Jordan didn't make either and again handed Big Mike $1000 cash right there on the course. Did I mention Jordan loves to bet?
3) Rick Reilly needs a new wardrobe: Rick Reilly, FORMER writer for Sports Illustrated and current writer/ blogger/ personality for ESPN wore a SI black polo to go with his Bear Bryant-esque hat. Did anyone tell him that him leaving SI for ESPN was controversial, so he might want to avoid wearing the insignia of his former employer, especially at a nationally televised event.
4) Quarterbacks have other QB's back: After the threesome of Romo, Rodgers and Roethlisberger finished up their Friday round, Ed Werder from ESPN immediately went over to Aaron Rodgers with a mic and camera and tried to get an interview regarding the Brett Favre situation. Before Ed could even ask his questions, Romo rolled his eyes and said "you have to be kidding me" and Roethlisberger exclaimed "leave him [Rodgers] alone, he doesn't want to talk about it." As expected, Werder ignored the two QB's and went on relentlessly trying to get some sound from Rodgers who refused to comment all the way into the locker room.
5) With all the actors and outgoing celebrities, who knew the Great One was also the nicest one: There are some funny characters at this event. Sir Charles and his "hitch-tastic" swing, Ray Romano who always seems one step ahead of everyone else when it comes to one liners, Billy Joe Tolliver who makes white trash look cool and Jeremy Roenick who once again shoved his Best Damn Mike into everyone's face. But with all these participants, the quiet and often bland Wayne Gretzky was the nicest celebrity on Friday. In between holes (regardless of a birdie or bogey), the Great One signed hundreds of autographs, joked with fans, threw balls into the crowd and seemed totally comfortable with playing without having to compete.
Those are a few observations from this weekend...there is a chance more will follow.
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