Curtis to wear Bolts at U.S. Open

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Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008
By Casey Pearce, Chargers.com

San Diego will be on display to the sports world this weekend as Torrey Pines hosts the 108^th U.S. Open Championship, and a former major winner will be displaying Chargers colors as he pursues another title.

As part of his partnership with Reebok, American golfer Ben Curtis, whose resume includes a 2003 British Open title in addition to nearly $6.5 million in winnings on the PGA Tour, will wear Chargers colors throughout the weekend. Reebok is the official apparel company of the NFL, and Curtis dons the colors of the local NFL team at each PGA stop.

“The Chargers are a great organization and hopefully I can represent them well,” Curtis said.

Chargers kicker Nate Kaeding and punter Mike Scifres visited the La Jolla course Wednesday afternoon to present Curtis with the shirts he’ll wear during the tournament. Kaeding is proud to have Curtis representing the Bolts this weekend.

“I can't imagine how many millions of people will be watching this tournament, and at a great venue like this, to have the Chargers colors represented, especially by a major championship winner like Ben, is great for the organization,” Kaeding said. “This whole event is so great for the city of San Diego in general. To be part of it is great.”

Kaeding and Scifres are among several Chargers who are avid golfers. They spent the afternoon touring the South course at Torrey Pines while watching a few players take their practice rounds. Kaeding was particularly excited to see 2007 Masters Champion Zach Johnson, who grew up just a few miles from Kaeding in Iowa.

“It was nice to see Zach and to get out here and take in the course,” said Kaeding, who plays to a handicap of approximately seven. “It’s absolutely beautiful. It’s going to be a great weekend.”

In addition to wearing the Blue and Gold this weekend, Curtis will also wear an emblem that he hopes brings awareness to a worthy cause. The left sleeves of his shirts feature a blue ribbon that represents Curtis’ support of prostate cancer research. Reebok will donate $5,000 to the Prostate Cancer Foundation for every birdie Curtis makes at the Open, or a minimum of $20,000, and will also give $1 million if he makes a hole-in-one on Sunday.

“It's a great deal, a great cause,” Curtis said. “Reebok called last week and wanted to do something special for Father's Day weekend. We thought this would be the best thing.”

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