Bill Murray stars in Outback Pro-Am

By: Dave Wirth

Lutz, Florida — The Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am had frigid weather, but it also had Tom Watson's first career victory in Florida and Bill Murray. What golf fan could ask for anything more?

The tournament will be a financial success, with local charities receiving over a half million dollars. And this year, they attracted the biggest celebrity they've ever had in the pro-am division. As it turned out, snagging Bill Murray to play was easy.

Chris Sullivan, Chairman OSI Restaurant Partners Inc.

“Scott Simpson did it all. Scottie comes to play here, and he loves the event. He asked Bill to do it, so he agreed to do it. It wasn't hard at all.”

And to complete a perfect script, Bill Murray and his long-time pro-am partner Scott Simpson wound up winning. But to watch Murray work the crowd, you'd think he didn't care if he finished first... or last. Even the amateur in his group, Mark Carron, wasn't safe from the former SNL star.

Bill Murray, Pro-Am Champ

“What a gracious loser... but what a loser.”

There was one thing that bugged Murray: the large number of professional autographs hounds.

Bill Murray

“These guys are just pushing in your face with these giant pictures of Carl Spackler. So, I came up with a schtick. I said, okay, I'll sign for 50 bucks, and we'll give it to charity. They looked at each other, then came up with the money. I got around 800 bucks. So, we're headed to an outlet mall and buy some clothes.”

Actually, Murray donated the money to The Blooming Place for Kids, an intervention summer program for at-risk children in Clearwater.