Curry gets test against golf pros
Warriors guard Stephen Curry is fully accustomed to playing golf against other celebrity athletes. He’s also a seasoned veteran of low-key, PGA Tour pro-ams.
Soon, though, Curry will wade into another realm — competing against serious tour professionals who are one step away from the big leagues.
Curry will receive a sponsor exemption to play in this year’s Ellie Mae Classic, the Web.com Tour event in Hayward on Aug. 3-6. The Chronicle confirmed Curry’s participation Tuesday, in advance of Wednesday morning’s official announcement.
This makes perfect sense for the tournament, held annually at TPC Stonebrae. Curry offers hard-to-match star power — two-time MVP, two-time NBA champion, wildly popular in the Bay Area — to an event accustomed to sailing below the radar.
There will be no sailing below the radar this time.
Curry is an avid golfer who carries a 2.0 handicap index, according to the Northern California Golf Association website. He has posted 11 scores this month, mostly in the mid-70s (with a low of 71).
Curry, speaking in a video message the Warriors also will release Wednesday, called it a “huge honor” to play in the Web.com tournament. He wore a baseball cap in the video, with the message, “I Can Do All Things,” scrawled across the front.
“When I found out I was getting a sponsor exemption, I had a lot of emotions because I love to play golf; it’s a passion of mine,” Curry said. “But to be able to play against the next and best golf professionals will be a huge honor and huge treat.
“I’m looking forward to hopefully not embarrassing myself, but mostly having a lot of fun and hopefully raising a lot of money for the foundation. … I’m going to try to keep it in the fairway.”
The Ellie Mae Classic bene-
fits the Warriors Community Foundation. Tournament Director Trish Gregovich reached out to team officials in early June, during the NBA Finals. Curry quickly accepted the invitation.
This will be the first time he has competed in an official event against tour pros, but it’s hardly the first time he will put his golf game on public display. He’ll make his fifth appearance next month (July 14-16) in the American Century Championship, the celebrity tournament near South Lake Tahoe. His best finish there was a tie for fourth in 2013.
Curry also has played in the Wednesday pro-am at PGA Tour events in Charlotte, where he grew up, and Napa.
He played alongside Justin Thomas (now ranked No. 12 in the world) at Silverado Resort in October 2015, and with Harold Varner III (now No. 135) this past October. After the Varner round, Curry acknowledged the disparity between tour pros and accomplished amateurs.
“These guys are ridiculous,” he said. “Their misses are good shots for me. It’s just a different type of expectation. You see their ball flight and it’s something you’re not used to. …
“Sometimes off the tee, I don’t know where it’s going. Rarely do you see them hit anywhere close to a bad shot of mine. It’s fun to watch how easy it seems when they get in their zone.”
Curry is not the first big-name Bay Area athlete to play in the Web.com event at Stonebrae. Former 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice, who carries a 1.0 handicap index (slightly better than Curry), didn’t make the cut in three appearances.
Rice shot 83-76 in 2010, finishing second-to-last among players completing at least 36 holes; he shot 81-82 in 2011 (last); and he withdrew after an opening-round 86 in 2012.
Translation: It’s not easy.