Jerry Rice, the soon-to-be Hall-of-Fame wide receiver, has decided to pursue another career in sports – this time as a professional golfer.

Rice will make his professional golf debut this week in a Nationwide Tour event, which operates under the umbrella of the PGA Tour. He will tee off at the Fresh Express Classic at TPC Stonebrae in Hayward, CA, on Thursday and hopes to make the cut. Rice received a sponsor’s exemption and will also serve as the host of the event, with his foundation, The 127 Foundation, receiving proceeds.

Rice, 47, has been golfing for more than 20 years and used to hit the driving range before morning meetings while he was with the 49ers. He has been a regular participant in pro-ams throughout the years.

Say what you will about Jerry Rice, but he is definitely a hard-core competitor. I worked with him for two seasons while I was at the San Francisco 49ers, and even though he was on his way out and playing second fiddle to Terrell Owens, he never gave up. Even then, when he was pushing 40, he still spent every day running up the trails in the foothills in Palo Alto at The Dish. And when he puts his mind to something, he usually succeeds. See: learning to dance the foxtrot and pasodoble, finishing second on Dancing with the Stars and becoming a household name with men and women. He does everything with 100 percent commitment.

“This is an opportunity of a lifetime here,” Rice said. “You know I’m a competitor. I don’t want to go out there and have those players who are playing on the Nationwide Tour think this is a publicity stunt for attention. It’s not. … I have the opportunity to go out and prove to everybody I can play golf.”

And I have all the faith that he will. I know when this man puts his mind to something, failure is not an option. Believe me, I’ve witnessed his dancing abilities.

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View Original Post at draftdaysuit.com

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• golf
• PGA Tour
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• 49ers
• Jerry Rice