Caruso beats nerves, Jost in 1st golf tourney originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Alex Caruso likes to joke that he only posts his good golf scores to social media, not his forgettable rounds.
But throughout this weekend in Lake Tahoe, Nev., the Chicago Bulls guard put his skills and his missteps on public display with nowhere to hide. Caruso participated in the celebrity-studded American Century Championship for the first time.
“To say I wasn’t nervous would be a lie,” Caruso said in a Zoom conversation with NBC Sports Chicago.
Caruso finished tied for 61st in the 87-player field in the modified Stableford scoring system weighted by handicap. Caruso’s typically is around 12. He posted rounds of 87, 91 and 86 on the 6,709-yard, par-72 Edgewood Tahoe South course.
“My overall golf game coming into this was feeling pretty good,” Caruso said. “It was just a lot of fun to be out here. It’s such a sweet event, such a sweet destination. A lot of cool and more important people than me. It’s a privilege to be here.”
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Indeed, as Caruso spoke, the wind rustled pine trees and Lake Tahoe sparkled behind Caruso. This natural beauty is a big reason why Caruso is attracted to the sport.
“Being outside, seeing different courses, playing in different states and cities, it’s just a lot of fun,” he said.
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And then there’s the competitive aspect. Former Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro, who won the event last year and finished tied for 18th this year, has talked in the past about the allure of trying to master a sport different than the one in which he made his profession.
Caruso can relate.
“It’s just the repetition. You start from a young age playing a certain sport. You have the muscle memory and the brainpower to remember that. You try to switch it up and go to a different game, it’s hard to do,” he said. “There’s a competitiveness and the perfection mindset of athletes. It’s something we want to be good at and we’re not immediately good. And even if you are good, there’s always another level. You’re always chasing being a little bit better, get a couple strokes lower. It’s just a great sport.”
Caruso did beat Seth Curry, Vince Carter and Charles Barkley from the basketball world and Saturday Night Live mainstay Colin Jost, among other celebrities. Steph Curry, Kyle Lowry and Andre Iguodala bested him. But he sounded like an experienced tournament pro in ruing his missed opportunities.
“I had a bunch of lip-outs,” Caruso said.
Expect the Bulls guard to be back. He's too competitive not to be.
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