Three former Pittsburgh Steelers players will take part in the 2024 American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament near Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
Jerome Bettis, Patrick Peterson and Mike Vrabel will be among the 67 celebrities, many of them former athletes in other sports, that will participate in the four-day event from July 10-14 at Edgewood Tahoe Resort’s South Course.
The 35th season of the event, features a purse of $750,000 that goes toward toward local and national charities that each player represents. The tournament consists of 54 holes in a modified Stableford format. Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry won the event in 2023. Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo has won it three times, most recently in 2022.
Bettis has been a longtime competitor in the event since retiring from the NFL in 2006. The Hall of Fame running back finished tied for 37th in 2023 with 22 points.
Peterson, one of the relatively few active NFL players in the field, also played last year, while he was under contract with the Steelers. He scored 15 points and finished 45th. Peterson remains a free agent after he was released by the Steelers in March.
Vrabel, a former Steelers outside linebacker, played last year while he was the head coach of the Tennessee Titans. He finished 65th with -11 points. Vrabel is currently a coaching and personnel consultant for the Cleveland Browns.
In addition to the three former Steelers, Pitt alum, wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, will also participate in the event once again this year. Fitzgerald scored 19 points last year to tie for 40th.
Pittsburgh connections dominated the early years of the American Century Championship. Former Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Rich Rhoden has won the tournament eight times from 1991-2009, the most victories of any individual. Second on that list is former Pittsburgh Penguins center Dan Quinn, with five titles from 1992-2012. Penguins legend Mario Lemieux also won the tournament once, in 1998.
This year’s tournament will air on Friday, July 12 on Peacock from 4-6 p.m., Saturday, July 13 on NBC and Peacock from 2:30-6 p.m. and Sunday, July 14 on NBC and Peacock from 2:30-6 p.m. WPXI-TV will carry the final two rounds locally.