Category: Golden State Warriors

HAYWARD, CA – AUGUST 03: Trying to look over a mound on the left side of the fairway, Stephen Curry prepares for his second shot on his first hole during the first round of the Ellie Mae Classic at TPC Stonebrae in Hayward, CA on Thursday, August 03, 2017. (Photo by Douglas Stringer/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)

By Jeremy Harness

HAYWARD–Well, at least Steph Curry doesn’t have to go home having to worry about making a living as a professional golfer. He’s pretty good at the job that he has right now.

 A month and a half removed from winning his second NBA title in three years with the Warriors, the sharpshooter tried his hand at professional golf and, even though he came up plenty short of advancing into the weekend, he proved plenty of doubters wrong in the process.

 Starting on the 10^th hole again on Friday, Curry got off to a nice start in parring the first four holes before recording a birdie at the 14^th. He then sandwiched another birdie with two bogeys to finish his first nine at even-par for the round.

 However, things began to fall apart for him on the second nine. He bogeyed the second and third holes and then dropped a shot at the sixth and eighth holes to wrap up his round with a four-over 74.

 The two-time NBA MVP missed the cut by 11 shots, but by all accounts, he did very well given the odds he was facing and the amount of experience he was giving up to the rest of the field.

 Curry isn’t the first athlete from another sport to try and make his mark on the golf world at this event. Seven years ago, NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice, an avid golfer in his own right, did not fare nearly as well.

 Rice struggled out of the gate with an opening-round of 83 before rebounding with a 76 the next day and, like Curry, missed the cut by a wide margin in what was called the Fresh Express Classic at the time.

 As for the rest of the field that made the cut, which was at three-under, they are all looking up at Andrew Yun at this point. The Stanford grad shot a 65 on Thursday to keep within striking distance and then fired an eight-under 62 in Friday’s second round to take the lead by two shots.

 Yun dropped a shot on his ninth hole after making two birdies on his first nine but really caught fire on his second nine. He went seven-under on that particular nine including a pair of eagles on both of the par-fives to go along with three birdies.

 Two shots behind him is Bay Area native Brandon Harkins, who carded a 65 after shooting a six-under 64 in the first round. He has plenty of company, too, as there is a seven-way tie for third at 10-under.

Golden State Warriors NBA basketball player Stephen Curry hits his approach shot from the eighth fairway as his caddie, Jonnie West, left, looks on during the Web.com Tour’s Ellie Mae Classic golf tournament Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017, in Hayward, Calif. Curry shot a 4-over-par 74. West is the son of basketball Hall of Famer Jerry West. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

By Jeremy Harness

 HAYWARD–The Ellie Mae Classic, held at Hayward’s TPC Stonebrae, has a field of elite golfers. However, the one with the least amount of experience is getting most – if not all – of the attention this week.

 And apparently, that is perfectly fine with everyone involved.

 Warriors star guard Stephen Curry, who has gotten his golf game down to a scratch handicap, drew large crowds at the first round and is expected to draw even bigger ones for Friday’s second round.

 However, chances are that he won’t make it into the weekend, meaning that the crowds would slim down at that point. Here’s an idea of the long odds that Curry is facing this week, given he makes the cut: A bet of $1,000 on Curry winning the tournament would pay out an amount of $250 million

 With that said, Curry gave a very nice showing in the first round of this tournament in Thursday’s first round. Starting on the 10^th hole, he got off to a shaky start, bogeying three of the first five holes for a score of three-over par.

 However, he got things back together with a birdie at the par-5 15^th and ran off four straight pars before having to settle for a bogey at the second hole. He then sandwiched a double bogey at the par-4 fifth a pair of birdies before finishing his round with a bogey at the par-5 ninth.

 After all was said and done, the two-time NBA MVP, who on Thursday played with defending tournament champion Stephan Jaeger, who set a PGA Tour record last year in this tournament with a first-round 59, finished with a four-over score of 74 and a tie for 145^th.

 “I would obviously like to make the cut and see if that’s in the cards,” Curry said. “It would probably require me to play two of the best rounds I’ve probably played in my life. But why not take advantage of the opportunity that I got right now?”

 Here’s what Curry has to go up against.

 Nicholas Thompson grabbed the lead by one stroke with an opening-round, bogey-free score of 63. He got off to a hot start, as he tore through his first nine holes by going five-under and then ran off two more birdies on the second nine to grab the lead as Friday rolls around.

 Right behind Thompson are five players who are tied for second, all of whom shot rounds of 64 on Thursday. Meanwhile, there are six more players who are just one stroke behind them with five-under rounds.

 Jaeger, who won this tournament last year, did not blister this course like he did in 2016, but he is still in the hunt after shooting a three-under 67. He finished his first nine at even-par after exchanging a bogey with a birdie, but he came alive on the back nine, running off four birdies in a seven-hole span before taking a bogey on his final hole.