U.S. Open qualifying: John Smoltz takes his shot
John Smoltz begins his quest to qualify for the U.S. Open today at the Marietta Country Club.
The ex-Brave and current baseball announcer will be among 144 golfers competing. The top nine golfers and two alternates at the Marietta Country Club advance to the sectional round of qualifying. The other local qualifying event will be held at Planterra Ridge Golf Club in Peachtree City.
If Smoltz, a plus-2 handicapper, survives the 18-hole event, the 36-hole sectional qualifier will be all that stands between him and a spot in the U.S. Open field.
The U.S. Open is June 14-20 at Pebble Beach Golf Links.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution will have a reporter at Marietta Country Club, so check back to see how Smoltz fares.
–David Purdum
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54 comments Add your comment
Bad Beat
May 9th, 2010
8:57 pm
Good luck Smoltzie.
Ezekiel
May 9th, 2010
9:01 pm
Bet he doesn’t break 80…
brad
May 9th, 2010
9:23 pm
I wonder if Smoltz could be our 5th starter this year, then play golf next year. I’m sure he could be better than 0-6.
Tom
May 9th, 2010
9:48 pm
Brad, I think the only way he would be better is if he could hit too
Tech82
May 9th, 2010
10:26 pm
Ezekiel – I’ve played with Smoltz several times and I promise you he’ll break 80. He may or may not make it to the sectionals but he’ll post a respectable score.
Box
May 9th, 2010
11:32 pm
Tom,
All of our old HOF rotation could hit better than our present top eight are hitting now.
peter
May 9th, 2010
11:58 pm
Some guys are capable of concentrating when it matters……Good luck to John!
Pete Rose
May 9th, 2010
11:58 pm
I’m betting on you John!
tech28
May 10th, 2010
12:06 am
tech82, i played with bobby jones, i was a friend of bobby jones, you sir are a weak name-dropper and a total douchebag……
techsucks
May 10th, 2010
12:31 am
tech28… you are a moron. good luck john!
steveooooo
May 10th, 2010
12:48 am
good luck john and its not kenshins fault we cant score runs when he pithces our offence is horrible for him
is30303
May 10th, 2010
1:29 am
good luck john. had the pleasure of meeting him a few times, very unassuming but always working on his craft scary and inspiring at the same time.. if he fails, it won’t be due to a lack of effort.
DamnDawg
May 10th, 2010
5:20 am
Kick some major arse John!
Rick Woodson
May 10th, 2010
5:36 am
Baseball, basketball and football players play golf when they retire. Pro golfers don’t play baseball, basketball and football when they retire.
Smoltz biggest fan
May 10th, 2010
6:57 am
I also have played with Jon and I can assure you he will not only break 80 but qualify for the big match this summer. I don’t think he will win the whole thing, though.
Rob
May 10th, 2010
7:03 am
One would assume that if you have played with “Jon”, you would spell his name correctly! Really?!?
ND
May 10th, 2010
7:17 am
Rob, the dude claims to be “Jon’s” biggest fan too!
sugarfoot
May 10th, 2010
7:18 am
Who cares?
Old Fan
May 10th, 2010
7:29 am
He’s lucky to draw Marietta Country Club. Planterra Ridge is a real bear from the tips.
Jon Smoltz
May 10th, 2010
7:31 am
I have never played with any of you guys. You aren’t my friends, d-bags. John Smoltz won’t qualify, his short game will lose it for him.
Tami
May 10th, 2010
7:41 am
Hope Smoltzie does well. This might just be another career for him. It’s been talked about for years.
Skip
May 10th, 2010
8:00 am
I hope hes better at golf than he is at calling Braves games. I’m the best and he knows it.
Cecil34
May 10th, 2010
8:06 am
I would like to play a round with John.
But not from the tips…..
I wish him luck.
mowreck
May 10th, 2010
8:08 am
brad, that 0-6 wouldn’t be there if we could hit the ball!
Ezekiel
May 10th, 2010
8:08 am
tech82, it is one thing to shoot good scores on Tuesday afternoon at Hawks Ridge. It is entirely different to play in a professional tournament with all the pressure and the course set up for a U.S. Open qualifying. You may have played with Smoltz and seen him shoot great rounds on Tuesday afternoons, I’ve played in professional tournaments and seen guys who don’t have experience fold up like card tables.
Yeah
May 10th, 2010
8:20 am
I hope Smoltzie can make it! He needs to make the money from the Open more than someone else who may be trying for his big break and hoping to put food on his table for his kids.
CW
May 10th, 2010
8:24 am
I too have played with Jon Smoltz before. Good guy, bad golfer. He didnt break 100 when I played with him. Of course my Jon Smoltz is a used car salesman from Habersham County
Big Dawg
May 10th, 2010
8:28 am
ezekiel- you really think that someone who has pitched game 7 of the world series is going to fold under the pressure of a “qualifier”?
Joey
May 10th, 2010
8:29 am
Tiger Woods said a few years ago that Smoltzie ws the only amateur he had ever played with that had the skills to play on the PGA Tour.
I think Smoltzie waited a few years to late for this. Putting skills for most start diminishing for players in their 40s.
But best of luck!
StayThirstyMyFriends
May 10th, 2010
8:31 am
Will Smoltz have his psychiatrist wearing a red shirt in the gallery?
StayThirstyMyFriends
May 10th, 2010
8:38 am
Um, “Yeah”, even if Smoltzie qualifies and then wins the US Open, he won’t get money. He’s an amateur. Just saying . . .
Hann Shanndy
May 10th, 2010
8:58 am
I wonder if he’ll blame someone else when he doesn’t make the cut?
EW
May 10th, 2010
9:00 am
How can you call a blogger a name dropper, they are posting under an alias…isn’t the point of name dropping so that others will envy you?
Ringo
May 10th, 2010
9:02 am
One thing is for sure, Smoltz could care less what any of us post on here, good or bad. Get over yourselves, who cares!!!!!!
BIG Nick
May 10th, 2010
9:31 am
Forget golf, we need him back on the mound…
Dr. Phil
May 10th, 2010
9:41 am
Smoltzie’s chances of playing championship golf are much better than the Braves’ chances of getting out of the basement. Wren has just about built the perfect losing team.
chris
May 10th, 2010
9:52 am
i hope smoltz chokes, and i wish he and glavine would just retire quietly
Thunderstruck
May 10th, 2010
9:55 am
Ezekial – its the first Monday qualifier. It isn’t exactly professional tournament atmosphere. Smoltz is a +2. That means when he plays he actually GIVES strokes to the course vs the other way around. He’ll post a respectable number.
haterH8ER
May 10th, 2010
9:56 am
All you haters are awful people who somehow take pleasure out of sucking the fun out of everything for the rest of us. I’ll bet you guys are terribly unhappy in your own lives.
GO SMOLTZIE!!! I’ll be rooting for him all day, just like I did every time he took the mound for the Bravos. He is a superior athlete with a track record of performing in huge pressure situations. Today’s local qualifier shouldn’t be a problem. Tee it high and let it fly my friend.
Jack P
May 10th, 2010
10:10 am
Give it up John. You are not going to make it. You ego is bigger than your skills.
JD
May 10th, 2010
10:13 am
Smoltzie, good luck to you man. We here in Atlanta wish you the best round of golf you have ever played. Miss you out there on the diamond but this is a bigger fish for you to fry right now. Make it or not, we are proud of you and all of the wonderful years you gave us on and off the field. Keep up the good work.
jacks a jerk
May 10th, 2010
10:25 am
@Jack P, P is your middle initial right and your last name is nis.
Buzz
May 10th, 2010
10:31 am
What most of you don’t realize… is that this is the FIRST stage of qualifying. I wish him luck, but to make out of the SECOND stage would be saying something. Playing from the tips wont be a problem for John he is very long off the tee. GOOD LUCK!!!
Buzz
May 10th, 2010
10:33 am
OLD FAN you make me laught!!! Marietta is 3-4 shots harder than Planterra ridge maybe even more!!
Chipper
May 10th, 2010
10:36 am
Is Hooters open yet?
braves fan
May 10th, 2010
10:39 am
If someone cannot put food on the table, maybe he needs to get off the golf course and get a job.
Lefty
May 10th, 2010
10:41 am
I thought you were only up against the players on your course. Thus, the course you are playing should not matter. Am I mistaken?
I'm a Man, I'm 40
May 10th, 2010
10:48 am
Wonder if Smoltz will smack that ball around like he did his ex-wife back at Ocean Forest. If he does, then he is a shoe-in to make the Open!
Monday News; Local, State, National, and yes…sports. « Columbus, Georgia: Theresa Style…
May 10th, 2010
11:03 am
[...] John Smoltz wants to play golf and he wants to do it big. The former Atlanta Braves player will play today in Marietta at the Marietta Country Club for a chance to play in the U.S. Open. If he makes it today, he has to play another 36 holes to actually play in the tournament. [...]
Buzz
May 10th, 2010
11:22 am
Lefty you are correct! There are probably 8 qualifying spots at each course.
Carlos
May 10th, 2010
12:17 pm
Does anyone know what time he tees off?
john davis
May 10th, 2010
9:12 pm
He shot 76. The low round of the day was 65. A good many 68″s and 69″s.
doc
May 13th, 2010
10:08 pm
yes!!!
doc
May 13th, 2010
10:08 pm
golf isnt that easy, sorry john.