Patty Tavatanakit: The golfer who admits it's 'odd' to think she's a major winner
RANCHO MIRAGE, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 04: Patty Tavatanakit of Thailand poses with the trophy after winning the ANA Inspiration at the Dinah Shore course at Mission Hills Country Club on April 04, 2021 in Rancho Mirage, California. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images)
How Rick Shiels used YouTube to bring new audiences to golf
TADWORTH, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 10: Rick Shiels, golf YouTuber, in action during the Hero Pro Am prior to the start of the British Masters supported by Sky Sports at Walton Heath Golf Club on October 10, 2018 in Tadworth, England. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
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PEBBLE BEACH, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 05: Rapper Macklemore plays his shot from the fourth tee during a practice round prior to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am at Monterey Peninsula Country Club on February 05, 2020 in Pebble Beach, California. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 28: Christopher McDonald attends the premiere of Warner Bros Pictures' "Motherless Brooklyn" on October 28, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 20: Jon Rahm of Spain celebrates with the trophy after winning the final round of the 2021 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course) on June 20, 2021 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
JOHNS CREEK, GEORGIA - JUNE 27: Nelly Korda poses with the trophy after putting in to win on the 18th green during the final round of the KPMG Women's PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club on June 27, 2021 in Johns Creek, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The heavily bunkered appraoch to the par 5 3rd hole on the Royal Liverpool Golf Course, on June 10, 2004 in Hoylake, England.
LYTHAM ST ANNES, ENGLAND - JULY 22: Ernie Els of South Africa poses with the Claret Jug after winning the 141st Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club on July 22, 2012 in Lytham St Annes, England. (Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)
LYTHAM ST ANNES, ENGLAND - JULY 22: Fans cheer as Ernie Els of South Africa reacts to a birdie putt on the 18th green during the final round of the 141st Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club on July 22, 2012 in Lytham St Annes, England. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
SOUTHPORT, ENGLAND - JULY 22: General View of the 12th hole during the third round of the 146th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale on July 22, 2017 in Southport, England. (Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)
WEST DES MOINES, IA - AUGUST 16: Emily Kristine Pedersen of Team Europe speaks in a presse conference prior to The Solheim Cup at the Des Moines Country Club on August 16, 2017 in West Des Moines, Iowa. (Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)
Fresh off his second major victory, Collin Morikawa is aiming to complete a golden summer in Tokyo
USA's Collin Morikawa practices ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games golf competition at Kasumigaseki Country Club in Kawagoe, Saitama Prefecture on July 28, 2021.
CNN —
“They always told me I could go back (to school) whenever. So, this is whenever.”
JR Smith may be 35 years old, but that doesn’t mean his athletic dreams are extinguished.
Smith, a 16-year NBA veteran, has enrolled at North Carolina A&T State University with the intention of joining the university’s golf team.
He is primarily pursuing a degree in liberal studies – his classes start on August 18 – but he is waiting for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to work out his eligibility before he applies for the team of one of the nation’s top historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
Smith skipped going to college and went straight from high school to the NBA in 2004 but said he began thinking about going to college during a trip to the Dominican Republic with Hall of Famer Ray Allen.
“Golf is one of those games that has you feeling really high and or can bring you down to your knees and humble you,” Smith – who is a two-time NBA champion – told WFMY News 2 Sports on Wednesday ahead of the pro-am at the Wyndham Championship.
Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR/Gety Images Smith hits his tee shot at the 10th hole prior to The Northern Trust at Ridgewood Country Club on August 22, 2018.
“And to have that feeling and knowing that all of the game’s pretty much on my own hands, and I don’t have to worry about teammates to pass the ball and receiving passes and playing defense, so I can play my game and just have fun.”
Smith can often be seen among the gallery at PGA Tour events – and he says he plays to a five handicap.
He has petitioned the NCAA to be eligible to play but it is not clear on how long that process will take.
According to NCAA rules: “An individual shall not be eligible for intercollegiate athletics in a sport if the individual ever competed on a professional team in that sport.”
It does not ban a former professional athlete from competing in a different sport.
Richard Watkins, who coaches both the men’s and women’s teams at the university, said Smith’s arrival is a “big deal.”
“It’s a big deal for A&T. It’s a big deal for him,” Watkins, who was in Smith’s gallery on Wednesday, said. “It’s not very often that somebody in his position really has an opportunity to have a thought, a dream, an idea, and to be able to go ahead and move in that direction.
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“He’s a former professional athlete, but (it’s) a unique set of circumstances. He didn’t go to college, never matriculated, the clock never started.”
The 6-foot-6 shooting guard played professionally for a host of NBA teams, winning NBA titles with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016 and Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.