Steve Young hits a shot at the 2022 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
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The longtime Niners QB and three-time Super Bowl champion was never confused about which side of the ball to play on — until he picked up a club..
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GOLF: How’s your game?
Steve Young: I think I’ve finally cracked it.
G: Was it messed up?
SY: I grew up on the mean streets of Greenwich, Connecticut. I caddied, but I didn’t play much. I just got hold of my father’s straight sticks and started whaling. But when you play left-handed, you have some fundamental problems.
G: So you play left now?
SY: My wife wants me to do this. She said, “If you’re going to take this bad, you should go to the left.” But I said, No, I can fix that. I finally capitulated and asked for help.
G: Who is your teacher?
SY: (Former tournament player) Keith Clearwater is a friend. I send him videos. We go back and forth. The problem with golf is that you are never doing what you think you are doing. I look at my swing and go, What? No weird way!
G: Where is the solution?
SY: At the American Century Tour in Tahoe, I show up and get a tip from Annika Sorenstam, so I give it a try. Then Peter Jacobsen tells me: “It’s not a pendulum game. It’s a game about. You have to roll.” And I try it.
G: What’s more stressful: playing golf in front of a crowd or a shot from the blind side?
SY: When you’re an expert at something, stress levels are lower, even if you get Reggie White. I had some expertise in football but you put me in a stage where I don’t have that confidence, it’s another level of stress. The key, for me, is that you must have played competitive golf as a child.
G: It’s like a language – you learn very late and you always have an accent.
SY: No doubt. Jerry Rice took up golf later in life and wanted to turn pro. I said, “Jerry, that’s impossible.” He said, “I can do it.” And finally he said, “You’re right.”
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G: Any particular courses you want to play?
SY: Augusta is one. I’ve had a lot of invitations, but I haven’t done it yet.
G: That’s not something I would say about other players.
SY: i know No sympathy.
G: What is the strength of your game?
SY: It’s all relative, but I’ve run it pretty well. If I’m going to get my name on a board at a big-name event, I have to keep improving.
G: Or at least beat Larry the Cable Guy.
SY: Exactly. I thought I should start playing both ways, with left and right clubs in the bag. Maybe this will become my thing. You’re allowed to do that, right?
G: Who am I to say no? Then you challenge Tony Romo to that format and see who wins.
SY: I like your opinion. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll just go left, as my wife says.
