Columnist Victoria Sun: Barkley, ex-jocks hit the links here

Victoria Sun

Wednesday, March 13, 2002 | 10:39 a.m.

Victoria Sun is a Las Vegas Sun sportswriter. She can be reached at victoria@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4078.

When Hall of Fame baseball pitcher Rollie Fingers was finished with baseball, he discovered that he missed competing.

He also found that he wasn't the only former professional athlete feeling that way.

So in 1990 Fingers and a group of others decided to hold a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe to give the guys a chance to compete again.

From there, the Celebrity Players Tour showcasing the golf skills of former athletes, actors and entertainers was born. "A lot of the guys, they're pretty good golfers," Fingers said. "They were golfers when they played their respective sports.

"It's very competitive. Come Saturday, every putt means a whole lot. Guys don't want to miss putts or make bad shots."

This weekend, the CPT will make its first stop in Las Vegas during the Las Vegas Celebrity Classic being held Thursday through Sunday at SilverStone Golf Club.

Headlining the field are former NBA star and NBA analyst Charles Barkley, All-Pro running back Marshall Faulk, former Major League Baseball greats Johnny Bench and Joe Morgan and actors such as Ray Romano.

Tournament director Dave Miller would like the CPT to have an annual tournament here.

"The players only have a couple of West Coast tournaments so it's an opportunity for these guys to get out to the West Coast," Miller said.

"Las Vegas offers a lot for the athletes and corporate sponsors because it is an exciting city."

The Las Vegas Celebrity Classic is the second of 14 tournaments on the CPT schedule. From its humble beginnings, the CPT now has more than 120 active players.

Fingers, a 4-handicap, believes the ex-jocks enjoy the golf tour because they get to compete against athletes that they didn't get a chance to match up with before.

"It's a lot of fun," Fingers said. "You get a chance to meet a lot of different basketball, football and baseball players and play against them."

The CPT has raised more than $4 million for local charities. Project Sunshine will be the beneficiary of the Las Vegas Celebrity Classic and the players will be fighting for a total purse of $200,000.

"It's an incredible competitive outlet for these guys," Miller said. "They're all golf fiends."

A unique feature of each CPT event is the autograph tent. Each group of celebrities and athletes are required to sign autographs for fans following their round for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the next group comes off the green.

The autograph tent is free for all fans in attendance.

"One of the reasons I think it's good from a fan's standpoint is because the players are very fan friendly," Miller said. "They understand that they're not Tiger Woods or David Duval so while they take their golf seriously, they know that they're there to have fun."

The celebrities will play a pro-am on Thursday and Friday that starts at 10 a.m.

They will then compete in a 36-hole tournament Saturday and Sunday beginning at 9 a.m.

Tickets for the event are $10 and valid for all four days. Children 10-under and military personnel with ID are free.

There are a limited number of spaces for the pro-am and limited tickets for celebrity dinners being held Wednesday and Friday night.

Call 656-4653 for more information or log onto www.celebritygolfclassic.com.

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