It May Not Be the Week to Take Golf Seriously

Would you pay $10,000 to play four rounds of golf with, say, John Daly or Jesper Parnevik or Hank Kuehne or Mike Weir or Peter Jacobsen? How about Roger Clemens or Alice Cooper or Drew Brees or Michael Bolton or Yogi Berra?

Including the 128 professionals, plus the celebrities and a host of amateurs, a total of 384 players are teeing it up beginning today at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic at four courses in and around Palm Desert and La Quinta, where more than $40 million has been raised for desert charities.

Here’s why you might want to pay up and play.

George Lopez, who stars in the sitcom “George Lopez” on ABC, is playing with Weir, one of his pals, in the first round today at Bermuda Dunes Country Club.

“My question for Mike,” Lopez said, “is how can a guy who spends the whole week in Kapalua still be as white as the day he left? That’s some master sunblock.”

Lopez admitted that it is sort of a distraction playing with Weir.

“Well, he hits and then we take a bus ride down to our tees and then we hit.”

Lopez changes his pro partner each round, through Saturday, when the pro-am portion of the tournament is over.

“I’ve got Mike and then Justin [Leonard] on Thursday and Daly on Friday, although we will wear ankle monitors with John.”

Lopez noted that left-handers have won the last three Hope tournaments.

“I just saw Robert Gamez on the range practicing left-handed.”

As far as moving the needle in golf entertainment, Lopez said he knows he’s good at it.

“Let’s see if Donnie Hammond brings this kind of excitement. I name names.”

Lopez thanked the stenographers who worked the interview as part of the tournament’s transcription service.

“I’ll see you in court.”

The Hope is one of two pro-am tournaments on the PGA Tour (the AT&T; Pebble Beach National Pro-Am is the other) and it is the only 90-hole event on tour.