Former ace makes pitch on greens

Baseball's Opening Day is 24 hours away, and for John Smoltz that used to mean it was time to get his right arm cranked up.

But the future Hall of Famer is in the middle of a different form of spring training as he prepares to try his hand at professional golf.

Smoltz, who retired from baseball in 2009 after winning 213 major league games in 21 seasons, mostly with the Atlanta Braves, tentatively is scheduled to compete on the Nationwide Tour, golf's Triple-A circuit, in the South Georgia Classic next month.

"This is just a one-time opportunity for me," said Smoltz, a 2-handicapper who was given a sponsor's exemption to the April 28-May 1 event. "I hope to do the best I can.

"I know what comes with it. I know the talk of taking away a spot. I'm not trying to be the story. I want to respect the game the way it's supposed to be respected."

Smoltz received an endorsement from none other than Tiger Woods.

"I had not played with an amateur that had ever shot the scores he shot," Woods told pgatour.com. "He shot 69-67 on the same day. He is a hell of an athlete."

Smoltz, who is scheduled to participate in this weekend's Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational golf tournament at Shadow Creek, said he has been working hard at preparing for his first pro golf event.

"My backyard is dedicated to golf," he said. "I've got two greens and nine tees. But it's about hitting your shot under pressure. (Golf) is totally different (than baseball) because I don't have anyone to bail me out if I mess up."

■ COSTLY DANCE -- Virginia Commonwealth's first Final Four appearance won't come cheap for its fans.

Combining airfare from Richmond, Va., to Houston with hotel and game tickets, the cheapest package found online was slightly more than $1,300. And that didn't include transportation to and from Reliant Stadium, food and souvenirs.

On Stubhub, the least expensive tickets available as of Tuesday for VCU-Butler were in the top deck behind the basket at $180 apiece. For a prime seat at midcourt, six rows off the floor, the asking price was $7,223 per seat.

But you can bet a few folks from Richmond will be ready to take the financial plunge. After all, this isn't Duke or North Carolina, or even Butler, where the Final Four sometimes is taken for granted.

■ NEW DEAL COMING? -- Across town, Richmond coach Chris Mooney received a 10-year contract extension after Kansas stomped the Spiders in the Sweet 16 on Friday. So what does that mean for VCU coach Shaka Smart?

VCU president Michael Rao said he knows his coach will have many suitors as a result of the program's improbable Final Four run, which included Sunday's 71-61 beatdown of No. 1 seed Kansas. But he is confident he can keep Smart in Richmond.

"I think he knows this is a good place for him," Rao, in speaking to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, said of Smart, who earned a base salary of $325,000 this year in leading the 11th-seeded Rams to the Final Four.

How good? Depends how much money VCU shows Smart.

COMPILED BY STEVE CARP
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL