STABLEFORD SCORING
By Brian Murphy
There are two ways to enjoy the new Stableford scoring system at this year's American Century Championship.
There is John Elway's view, the view of a fine golfer who can take advantage of a new scoring landscape that rewards eagles and birdies and daring, risky play.
"I think it will make everybody more aggressive," Elway said.
Read between the lines, and you can almost hear the sound of Elway calling for his 3-wood on approaches into par 5s.
There is also the view of Tom Tolbert. Or Charles Barkley, Or Chris Webber.
Your, ahem, not-so-fine golfer who, ahem, may not necessarily care for his, ahem, score to be counted in traditional golf strokes.
See, the Stableford system goes like this: 5 points for eagle, 3 points for birdie, 2 points for par, 1 point for bogey and zero points for double-bogey or higher.
So, if you see Tolbert, or Barkley, or Webber on the fine fairways of Edgewood you may notice scores that look unfamiliar. Gone is the standard that reads: Barkley -- Plus 78.
They like it that way.
"I think the new format is great," said Tolbert, who posted scores of 93-96-90 at last year's American Century. "Who wants to grind out a quadruple bogey? It takes away from beer drinking time."
"It's great for guys who stink. Everyone will be walking around with plus-numbers, and some fans who won't realize the format has changed will all think we're in the hunt."
See? Everybody wins.
For the players who are perennially in contention, like Elway and past winners Rick Rhoden and Dan Quinn, the premium will be placed on bold play.
Par 5s, especially, will be target practice for bombers looking to notch a few eagles. That two of Edgewood's final three holes are reachable par -- 5s mean it could be a long-hitter's paradise, with gambling legal in Nevada, we must remember -- as much a part of the game plan as hitting fairways.
Throw in Tahoe's 6,300-foot elevation, and the space-age travel of the golfball in today's technology-friendly golf game and you may never hear the words "He's laying up" at Edgewood all weekend.
And even if the players who contend have a small hiccup somewhere, perhaps stumbling into an unsightly triple-bogey, they can remain in the hunt for victory.
"I think we have a lot of guys who are kind of wild," Rhoden said. "They get some high numbers, but they also get a lot of birdies, and this will keep them in it more. When you're playing Stableford, you're not thinking about your score, you're thinking about how many points you're getting."
The truly beautiful part for the higher-handicap player is the lack of a penalty for double-bogey or higher. No negative points are assigned, so if a player even makes bogey, he earns a point.
Golf, normally as stingy and penurious as Scrooge, should always be so generous and friendly. Actor John O'Hurley noted as much.
This could possibly lower my odds in the casino sports book from 500-1 to 400-1, which could generate a lot of action," O'Hurley said.
"And now, I can walk off the 10th hole after taking a nine and have all of the fun, and none of the responsibility."