Who's the best golfer among local athletes?

Twenty-six New England sports stars make the list of the top 220 athlete golfers

By David Lefort, Boston.com Staff | May 2, 2007

Where’s the most likely place to find a local professional athlete during their offseason? Probably on a golf course somewhere.

Golf Digest recently came out with a list of the top-ranked athlete golfers, and of the 220 ranked, 26 of them spent at least part of their pro careers in New England.

Some local highlights from their list:

Three pitchers in the Red Sox rotation made the list: Tim Wakefield (T-65), Daisuke Matsuzaka (T-121), and Curt Schilling (T-141). Former Red Sox starters Derek Lowe (T-73) and Roger Clemens (T-84) were in the top 220 as well.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady made the top 150 (he was ranked 141st), behind a whopping 24 other former or current NFL quarterbacks, including Peyton Manning (T-63). Former Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe was ranked 156th.

Among local athletes, Bruins center Marc Savard ranked highest (tied for 25th) with a handicap of 0.7. According to Golf Digest, he in the past has tried to qualified for the Canadian Tour.

Larry Bird earns bragging rights as the top former or current Celtic on the list. At No. 60, he comes in ahead of Danny Ainge (103), Doc Rivers (T-121), Bob Cousy (132), John Havlicek (177), Bill Russell (T-181), and Antoine Walker (208).

Rounding out Golf Digest’s top 220 was Derek Jeter, with a pedestrian 30 handicap.

The full list of local athletes who made the list is below, with their rank and handicap:

T-25. Marc Savard -- 0.7 handicap
60. Larry Bird -- 3.1 handicap
T-65. Tim Wakefield -- 3.5 handicap
68. Ray Bourque -- 3.7 handicap
T-73. Derek Lowe -- 4 handicap
T-81. Cam Neely -- 4.5 handicap
T-84. Roger Clemens -- 4.6 handicap
102. Vinny Testaverde -- 5.5 handicap
103. Danny Ainge -- 5.6 handicap
117. Bobby Orr -- 6.1 handicap
T-121. Daisuke Matsuzaka -- 7 handicap
T-121. Doc Rivers -- 7 handicap
132. Bob Cousy -- 7.3 handicap
141. Tom Brady -- 8 handicap
T-141. Curt Schilling -- 8 handicap
156. Drew Bledsoe -- 9.7 handicap
T-158. Bode Miller -- 10 handicap
166. Mike Vrabel -- 10.3 handicap
177. John Havlicek -- 11.2 handicap
T-181. Jim Rice -- 12 handicap
T-181. Bill Russell -- 12 handicap
201. Phil Esposito -- 14.4 handicap
T-194. Lindsay Whalen -- 14 handicap
T-205. Tedy Bruschi -- 15.2 handicap
208. Antoine Walker -- 17 handicap
219. Rebecca Lobo -- 26 handicap

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