by Stephen Langsam
MONTEREY, Calif., Jan. 30, 2023 – The magnificent Monterey Peninsula has often been called “the greatest meeting of land and sea.” This week, one can add “stars” as the list of celebrities playing at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am reads like a “Who’s Who” from the fields of sports, motion pictures, music, and more.
The celebrity lineup features multiple world champions from professional football, baseball, basketball, and soccer, while a red carpet could be rolled out for the award winners in television, film, and music. Then there’s Thomas Keller — a legend in the culinary world — who brings his own stars as in seven Michelin Stars.
“Building upon the rich tradition established by Bing Crosby and his celebrity friends, it is incredible to bring all these talented amateur golfers together for the week at Pebble Beach,” said Steve John, CEO of Monterey Peninsula Foundation, host of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. “Add in the fact they are here to play in the most charitable tournament on the PGA TOUR and it’s a win-win all the way around.”
Winning is something the celebrity field knows a little something about. From the sports world alone:
- Super Bowl champions: Harris Barton (49ers), Aaron Rodgers (Packers), Steve Young (49ers), and Ron Rivera (Bears).
- Super Bowl MVP Awards: Rodgers and Young, who also combined for six NFL MVP Awards.
- World Series champion: Buster Posey (three with Giants), who also won a National League MVP.
- NBA champions: Pau Gasol (two with Lakers).
- UEFA Champions League soccer titles: Gareth Bale (five with Real Madrid), who also captured six Welsh Football of the Year awards.
- Major Soccer League champion: Macklemore (minority owner of the MSL Seattle Sounders).
In addition, Buffalo Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen and retired NFL standouts Larry Fitzgerald andAlex Smith all will be teeing it up at Pebble Beach this week.
The film industry is well represented in the amateur field and featuring winners of Emmys, Golden Globes, Screen Actors’ Guild, and numerous other honors. Jason Bateman, fresh off his success in the Emmy Award-winning crime drama series, Ozark, will be making his debut at this year’s Pro-Am. Emmy-nominated Will Arnett, Bateman’s longtime friend, will join him to make for a mini-reunion on the course of the popular sitcom, Arrested Development.
Moreover, Bill Murray, Josh Duhamel, Scott Eastwood, Chris O’Donnell, Michael Peña, Ray Romano, Alfonso Ribeiro, and former Miss America Kira Dixon all will be delighting the galleries as they mark their returns to the event.
The music industry also will be shining brightly this week as Nate Bargatze, Charles Kelly, Macklemore, Pat Monahan, Lukas Nelson, Jake Owen, Eric Church, Illenium, Ben Rector, ScHoolBoyQ, and Darius Rucker bring their considerable star power to the field. The participating musicians combine for nearly 20 Grammy Awards, not to mention numerous other award honors from Billboard, Academy of Country Music, American Country, American Music, Country Music Association, and MTV.
And what would a group of stars be without having their very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame? Both Bateman and O’Donnell are among the nearly 2,750 stars so honored at the intersection of Hollywood and Vine in Los Angeles.
The four-day tournament tees off Thursday with play on Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill Golf Course and Monterey Peninsula Country Club’s Shore course. The tournament will be broadcast by Golf Channel, CBS and PGA TOUR LIVE, and aired on PGA TOUR Radio. Fans also can follow on the tournament’s social media channels: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
For more information about the tournament, visitwww.attpbgolf.com. For daily tickets, visitwww.attpbgolf.com/tickets.
For more about the Monterey Peninsula Foundation and opportunities to give, visit www.montereypeninsulafoundation.org.
