Gretzky Part of NBC Pebble Beach Celebrity Golf

Pebble Beach, Calif. – June 17, 2010 – Mark Wahlberg, Drew Brees, Wayne Gretzky and contest winner Peggy Ference, the first-ever female winner, attempt to break 100 at the 2010 U.S. Open course at Pebble Beach in the third annual “Golf Digest U.S. Open Challenge,” airing this Sunday on NBC from 1:30-3 p.m. ET, prior to NBC Sports’ final-round coverage of the 2010 U.S. Open. The concept of “The Golf Digest U.S. Open Challenge” was born after the second round of the 2007 U.S. Open when Tiger Woods mentioned that there was no way a 10-handicapper could break 100 because of the way U.S. Open courses are set up. Assisting the competitors on their quest to break 100 are their golf-pro caddies. Rickie Fowler caddies for Wahlberg, Bubba Watson for Brees, Ricky Barnes for Gretzky, and Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin for Ference. Golfers of all handicaps were eligible for the contest, not just golfers with a 10-handicap. The round was played under the exact same course conditions and USGA rules that the U.S. Open competitors will face the following week. In the December 2009 issue, Golf Digest asked readers to describe in an essay of no more than 60 words how playing in the “Golf Digest U.S. Open Challenge” at Pebble Beach would significantly change their lives. Ference wrote about playing at Pebble as a 10-year-old and outdriving her dad for the first time during that vacation. She also wrote about being unemployed for the past two years and how she hoped that being the first woman to play in the Challenge might somehow lead to a job (note: Peggy was recently hired as a regional business director for a biopharmaceutical company). NBC SPORTS DIGITAL AT THE U.S. OPEN NBCSPORTS.COM: NBCSports.com will simulcast NBC Sports’ Thursday and Friday live broadcasts (3-5 p.m. ET), live stream on the weekend the 7th and 17th holes, and offer live post-game coverage all four days with the U.S. Open Wrap-up Show presented by Lexus, hosted by Bill Patrick, Brian Crowell and Jennifer Mills. The site also will offer highlights, interviews and analysis, as well as live blogging. This week also marks the debut of NBCSports.com’s new live-stream video player that will offer users a significantly upgraded, high-quality video experience for this event. NBC SPORTS MOBILE: Fans can get U.S. Open news and scores wherever they are with NBC Sports Mobile. The NBC Sports Mobile site will offer the latest news and videos from NBCSports.com, along with complete leaderboards throughout the weekend, by visiting HTTP://M.NBCSPORTS.COM on their mobile device. Users on the go can also get news and scoring alerts sent right to their phone by texting “GOLF” to 51515. MOBILE TV: NBC Sports’ complete coverage of the U.S. Open will be available on both NBC 2Go and NBC Sports Mobile.