Baseball Hall of Famer John Smoltz chasing the American Century Championship
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Most people know Baseball Hall of Famer John Smoltz for his prowess on the mound, but the 59-year-old has really turned to golf.
Smoltz qualified for the US Senior Open in 2018 and hopes to do so again this year. He said his game is in the best place it’s ever been and praised his health for where he is today.
“The game is at its best. The goal is to always wish you could play tomorrow when the game is at its best, but that’s the beauty of golf. You know, you’ve got to have it when it’s important,” Smoltz told Fox News Digital in a recent interview.
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John Smoltz watches his eighth tee shot during the first round of the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, Fla., on Jan. 29, 2026. (Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
“The game is at a level now at 59 where hopefully some of the things I can do because I’m physically able with two new hips and some procedures done. I’m at a point where I know if I can continue to get a little better on the green, I’m going to play the type of golf that I want to play.”
Smoltz will be competing in this year’s American Century Championship, which will be held July 10-12 at Edgewood Golf Course in Lake Tahoe. The Atlanta Braves legend has come close to winning, finishing second last year to NHL great Joe Pavelski, but never won.
The American Century Championship uses a Modified Stableford scoring system rather than traditional stroke play, meaning that instead of counting total strokes, players are awarded points based on their score for each hole.
An albatross is worth 10 points, a hole-in-one is worth eight points, an eagle is worth six points, a birdie is worth three points, a par is worth one point, a bogey is nothing and anything two over par or worse is worth deducting two points.
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Hall of Famer John Smoltz is inducted during the baseball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at the Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown, NY, on July 27, 2025. (Gregory Fisher/Imagn Images)
Smoltz said he didn’t start fast enough in the first round, forcing him to play the running ball.
“I’m starting slow. Every tournament I make the second and third rounds with a really big hole. I make a ton of pars. It’s very tiring to say I make a lot of pars. That would be great, but it’s not in this tournament. I think one time I made 29 pars in a row in one tournament and it was like a nauseating upset. One point apart,” Smoltz said.
Smoltz said his slow start was due to a consistent mindset and emphasized the importance of making birdie putts.
“You get triple the number of birdies. So, like last year, I think I made seven or eight birdies in the last round to finish second. I couldn’t knock out Pavelski, but I’m like, where was that? Where were those birdies in the first round?” Smoltz said.
“So, I definitely have to start better. I’m like not eating too much in the first round of a three-round tournament, which always gets me into trouble, but it doesn’t give me the best fighting chance to increase the round if I hit the ball well.”
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John Smoltz tees off during the Capital One MLB Open at Shadow Creek Golf Course in North Las Vegas, Nev., on Nov. 14, 2025. (Photos by Lucas Peltier/MLB via Getty Images)
Smoltz played in the American Century Championship in 2000, when he had Tommy John surgery and missed the entire season, and received permission from his late manager, Bobby Cox to play.
“I had a preview of it when I was playing. I had Tommy John surgery. I had the greatest manager in the world in Bobby Cox. He let me play because I was out the whole year and it was during the stroke play back in the day, when Michael Jordan and all those elite athletes were playing in the stroke play. I did well. I hung my own,” Smoltz said.
The World Series champion called the event something you mark on your calendar and said it was a great event.
“American Century is unbelievable. They do a great job of putting on the event all these years. It’s a mark on your calendar and there’s nothing better to get in the way of the event. But I think the biggest thing about the golf course and everything is just that I get so much joy out of playing and I want to win so bad that I have to get all that angry when I get there,” Smoltz.
The tournament has raised more than $8 million for state and national charities. American Century Investments donates 40% of its profits to the Stowers Institute for Medical Research and has launched a tournament fundraiser to drive direct donations to Stowers each year.
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John Smoltz watches his tee shot on the second hole during the first round of the American Family Insurance Championship at University Ridge Golf Course in Madison, Wis., on June 11, 2021. (Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
This competition will be broadcast on NBC and Pigogo.
The eight-time All-Star spent 21 seasons in the major leagues, 20 of those with the Braves. He spent his final season with St. Louis Cardinals and the Boston Red Sox.
Smoltz has a career record of 213-155, a 3.33 ERA and 154 saves, as he converted to a reliever a few seasons after his Tommy John surgery.
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