Bob Hope Classic Tees Off Today
LA QUINTA -The $5.1 million Bob Hope Classic began today at four La Quinta courses, threatened by the third in a series of powerful winter storms.
Rain has not affected the pro-am tournament since 1980, when play was suspended, tournament spokesman Toby Zwikel said.
Play will only be suspended if there is lightning or large water pools at any course, according to Zwikel. The decision ultimately will be in the hands of the PGA Tour, which will examine all four courses this morning before play begins, he said.
“As of now, everything is on schedule and every golf tournament has to see how the weather is. We’ll just have to see how things play out for the rest of the week,” Zwikel said Tuesday.
Defending champion Pat Perez expressed fears about the rain.
“It looks like the weather will put a damper on things,” Perez said at a Tuesday news conference, adding that he noticed some standing water while playing in a practice round.
“Obviously the ground crew and everyone is great so they will do their best. The greens are in phenomenal shape. That’s not going to be a problem. It will just be a matter of standing water in the fairway.”
The tournament will be held at the SilverRock Resort, the La Quinta Country Club, the Nicklaus Private Course and the Arnold Palmer Private Course at PGA West.
Celebrities slated to play include actors Kurt Russell and John O’Hurley; musicians Kenny G. and Alice Cooper; Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria, former baseball and football star Bo Jackson and singers Michael Bolton and Clay Walker.
The celebrity field will play at SilverRock Resort course.
The tournament has again drawn a lackluster field. Mike Weir, 37th on the official world golf rankings, is the top-ranked golfer in the field. A year ago, the tournament was unable to attract any of the top 15 ranked players, while in 2008, it was unable to attract any of the top 20.
The tournament is not directly affected by Tiger Woods’ decision to take an indefinite leave from the tour to focus on his marriage following reports of infidelity. Woods, golf’s top-ranked player, has never played in the tournament.
Advance ticket sales were about even with last year despite the down economy, Zwikel said.
“Obviously we’ll have to see if the weather impacts that as the week goes on,” he said.
