Jacksonville Jaguars’ Kicker Scobee fires an 81 in US Open Bid
// May 11th, 2010 // No Comments » // Josh Scobee, Player News, Winn-Dixie Open
By Garry Smits
Josh Scobee didn’t qualify for a U.S. Open sectional tournament.
He didn’t even win a bet with Jaguars teammate Maurice Jones-Drew that he would break 80 in an 18-hole U.S. Open local qualifier Monday at the Timuquana Country Club.
But Scobee, the Jaguars kicker for the last six years, is glad he took the chance, which could have resulted in playing in the U.S. Open June 17-20 at Pebble Beach.
“It’s a lot different from competitive football,” Scobee said after shooting 81 — 11 shots behind a playoff for the final Open sectional berths. “But I had fun. I hit some decent shots, hit some bad shots and learned a lot. The course was in perfect shape and the weather was perfect. I enjoyed my first experience at competitive stroke-play golf.”
Scobee, who didn’t begin playing golf until his rookie year in the NFL in 2004, has practiced several times in the past week at Timuquana. His handicap at Deerwood was enough to meet the standard for Open qualifying (1.4 or lower) and his target score was a score in the low-70s.
But the greens at Timuquana were fast and many of the pins more difficult than country-club players are accustomed to seeing.
“They were much faster than they were two days ago, when I last played here,” he said.
Scobee has a good swing, hits it long and was usually around the greens. But he admitted that his chipping and putting left something to be desired if he wanted to be competitive in events such as Open qualifiers.
“I didn’t chip and putt well, and that’s what you need to score,” he said. “Everyone knows that.”
Scobee made one birdie, on a 6-foot putt at the par-5 12th hole (he started his round at No. 10). He shot 40 on Timuquana’s back side, his front, and 41 on the front.
Scobee said one big difference between kicking in the NFL and playing golf at the highest level is the variety of shots required in golf.
“When you’re kicking, you want to do the exact same thing on every kick,” he said. “But in golf, every shot is different and you can’t improve your lie.”
Another big difference: the quiet. “I’m so used to being out there [in a football game] where the people are screaming when you’re trying to do your job,” Scobee said. “It’s a little different [in golf] when everyone is quiet.”
Former Florida State golfer Tommy Rymer won the qualifier with a 68, including a 32 on the back. He recovered from shaky putting on the front nine, when he had 19 putts, and had only 11 putts in the back. Rymer’s highlight-reel shot was a blast out of a bunker at No. 12 for eagle.
Matt Borchert, a former University of North Florida player, finished second with a 69. Four players tied at 70: former Jacksonville University player Russell Knox, former Georgia player Brian Harman, current North Florida PGA section champion Rod Perry of Port Orange and Nationwide Tour member Bret Guetz of Scottsdale, Ariz.
Guetz birdied the first playoff hole, the par-4 first, on a 1-foot putt to advance first. Perry shot a par on No. 9 while Knox and Harman bogeyed to get the next spot.
Knox then sewed up the final qualifying position when he birdied No. 1 on an 8-foot putt, after Harman missed from 10 feet.
