PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- Celebrities and professionals spent the past three days practicing their swings and getting a feel for the course conditions, and now they're playing for keeps. Thursday morning marks the beginning of tournament play at the AT&T National Pro-Am golf tournament.
The largest draw will undoubtedly be Tiger Woods, the former world number one golfer who is making his first appearance at the Pro-Am since 2002, where he tied for twelfth.
Woods has been stellar at Pebble in the past -- and he is hungry for a comeback. At just 24 years old, he followed a Pro-Am win at Pebble Beach in 2000 by obliterating the competition at the U.S. Open here with a 15-stroke margin of victory. Earlier this week, Woods told reporters he was feeling "explosive" leading up to his PGA Tour debut.
Woods is playing with Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, a scratch golfer and arguably one of the best amateurs in the pack. The pair, who played together at the AT&T National at Congressional in 2009, will tee off at 10:01 a.m. from the tenth tee at Spyglass Hill Thursday morning.
Defending champions D.A. Points and Bill Murray, a tournament favorite who always attracts a crowd, will tee off at 9:06 a.m. from the first tee at Spyglass.
Spyglass will also host other celebrities and athletes, including San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain, San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh and actor Josh Duhamel. Veteran ESPN broadcaster Chris Berman, musician Kenny G and actor Lucas Black will play the Monterey Pensinsula Country Club Shore Course.
Phil Mickelson and his partner, Skip McGee, will start their day at the first tee at Spyglass at 9:50 a.m.
Play will continue through Saturday, when the field will be whittled down to the 60 pros and 25 teams with the lowest score. The final round begins at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday at the Pebble Beach Golf Links.
Complete Pro-Am Pairings: http://www.attpbgolf.com/ATT-PB-Pro-Am-Pairings-2012.pdf
