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This Day In Sports…September 19, 2005:
One of the most unique days in golf—not only here, but anywhere. In the Kraft/Nabisco Shootout, the skins game for charity that preceded the Albertson’s Boise Open, the field included the tournament champions from the day before on the PGA, LPGA and Nationwide Tours. Jason Gore, Annika Sorenstam and Troy Matteson won those respective titles. Also playing the event were Paula Creamer, Natalie Gulbis and LPGA Hall of Famer Juli Inkster, stars of America’s win in the Solheim Cup eight days earlier.
Gore had the most interesting story of the six-some. He was probably the most popular champion Albertsons Boise Open champion to that point (he won the tournament in 2002). Gore had led the 2005 U.S. Open after three rounds and had developed a legion of fans—then he unraveled with an 84 in the final round. He found himself back on what is now the Korn Ferry Tour and won three straight events on the circuit. Then Gore returned to the PGA Tour and captured his first career victory at the 84 Lumber Classic the day before coming to Boise.
Matteson actually was playing on the Korn Ferry the day before and won the Mark Christopher Charity Classic for his second title of the year. Sorenstam, one of the all-time greats on the LPGA Tour, had just won the John Q. Hammons Hotel Classic. Creamer, then a 19-year-old rookie sensation, was runnerup to Sorenstam in that event. The week before, Creamer, Gulbis and Inkster had all notched final-day singles victories to help lead the U.S. past Europe in the 9th Solheim Cup (Sorenstam was part of the European team).
The Kraft/Nabisco Shootout drew 9,000 fans to Hillcrest Country Club on a Monday afternoon, with Sorenstam and Creamer defeating Inkster/Gulbis, and Gore/Matteson. And the event got some ink in the New York Times. Eighteen years later, the Albertsons Boise Open is part of the Korn Ferry Tour Finals and is one of only four tournaments remaining from the original Ben Hogan Tour in 1990.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday.)
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