Stadium Golf Tour gives golfers chance to play a ’round’ this week inside Tiger Stadium

If you’re a golfer, you may have sat in the upper reaches of Tiger Stadium at an LSU game, peered down toward the field and wondered, “How much club would it take to hit the Eye of the Tiger down there?”

Wonder no more. The Stadium Golf Tour is here, and taking aim at targets on the venerated field of Tiger Stadium is the game.

Michael Wiggins, president of the Stadium Golf Tour, said the concept is going to six college football stadiums around the country this year as well as some major soccer stadiums in the United Kingdom.

But the tour starts here in Baton Rouge, with players being allowed to take their swings in Death Valley from Thursday through Sunday.

“We wanted to go to cool stadiums with great fan bases,” Wiggins said. “So LSU is right on top of the list.”

As big as Tiger Stadium is, Stadium Golf is no grip it and rip it long driving contest. A talented golfer like former LSU All-American Sam Burns could probably hit the Pete Maravich Assembly Center from Tiger Stadium’s south end zone with a 5-iron.

The Stadium Golf folks will supply clubs – 8- and 9- irons, pitching wedge and sand wedge – and 18 balls per round. All participants need to bring is a golf glove.

Players will enter at Gate 20 on the southeast corner of Tiger Stadium and be escorted to the “clubhouse,” which is on the club level high above the south end zone. From there they’ll proceed to the first tee, which is in Section 642, high up in the east upper deck, aiming for the first green just to the LSU bench side of midfield.

The second tee is also in the east upper deck. Holes 3, 4 and 5 start from perches in the lower bowl, holes 7 and 8 utilize the west upper deck and the ninth tee is lodged in the south upper deck club level next to the clubhouse.

There is no putting. Wiggins said the objective is simple.

“Not hitting the field is a double bogey,” he said. “Hitting the (football) field but not hitting the outline of the green is a bogey. Par is hitting the green, birdie is hitting a 10-foot circle around the hole and there are actual cups so you can hit a hole in one.”