ShareThisKenny G isn't just a world-renowned saxophonist -- he's also a scratch golfer.
Really.
But playing golf in front of a small crowd of fans, he said, is more nerve-wracking than performing before a sold-out arena.
"The golf is a lot tougher, way tougher," Kenny G said Wednesday. "Here is the thing about golf -- you can practice and not get better. You really can. If you practice a musical instrument, you're going to get better. It almost doesn't matter how you practice, but just practice.
"But golf, if you practice golf incorrectly, you can make yourself worse."
Kenny G is the title sponsor of the new Kenny G Gold Pro-Am, which was held Wednesday as a prelude to the start of the Honda Classic here. The Grammy Award winner played the Pro-Am in a fivesome with 2007 Honda Classic winner Mark Wilson, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright, former Miami Dolphins wide receiver Nat Moore and former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann.
Kenny G said he started playing golf as a kid, but didn't get serious about it until 10 years ago when he took it up again following a long layoff. He was at about an 11 handicap, but coach Craig Koy, who also works with PGA Tour pro Bob Estes, now has him down to a scratch.
He even once shared a trophy with Tiger Woods after his team -- with Phil Mickelson -- tied for first with Woods' team in the 2001 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.
"I love golf so much," Kenny G said. "I love the idea of it, I love practicing it. It's like music -- you can never master it, but you always get excited about learning."
His love of golf was one reason he wanted to be associated with the Honda Classic. He also wanted to make sure to be involved in ways other than swinging a club.
So in addition to the Pro-Am, Kenny G will make a trip to the Child Life Institute, a non-profit organization established through the Nicklaus Children's Health Care Foundation -- the primary beneficiary of the Honda Classic. He is scheduled to perform for ill children, including a 14-year-old who has been instructed to take up a wind instrument as part of his therapy for a lung disorder.
"We are going to set up and play a couple songs -- it should be a really nice moment," he said. "I mean, that's what it's all about, anyway."
Kenny G also will play a private benefit concert Thursday night in Jupiter, Fla.
"At first it was just come down and play in the Pro-Am, but I thought, 'Well, you know, if you're going to have me come down there, let's make it more important. I should do more things,"' Kenny G said.
"We want to just make it a little bit more fun, for me, as well as everybody and I'm excited about it."
(Laurel Pfahler is a sportswriter for Scripps Treasure Coast (Fla.) Newspapers, The Stuart News, Fort Pierce Tribune and Vero Beach Press Journal. E-mail pfahlerl(at)scripps.com.)
