Storms Shorten Celebrity Pro-Am at Travelers Championship

More than a dozen notables from the worlds of sports and entertainment took part in the Travelers Championship Celebrity Pro-Am Wednesday at the TPC River Highlands in Cromwell.

Academy Award-winning actor Joe Pesci made his third straight appearance in the event, which benefits the Hole In the Wall Gang Camp and the Greater Hartford Jaycees.

For the second straight year, singer Michael Bolton participated in the tournament. He also performed a benefit show Tuesday night at the Bushnell in Hartford.

Another singer, rocker Eddie Money, played in the pro-am for the first time, and later performed a free concert in the Subway Fan Zone between the first and 18th holes.

"I've got five kids, so I'll do anything to get out of the house," he quipped, then turning serious, he said, "I'm here to support the Reach Foundation to help needy children."

The Brooklyn native is very involved with charitable causes, as a longtime supporter of the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and the Wounded Heroes Foundation. "These are wonderful kids, and due to the advancement of medicine, Magic Johnson's not the only one that's getting better," he said. "The Wounded Heroes Foundation has raised over $127 million for wounded veterans since 2000."

Sports celebrities on hand included Football Hall of Famer Andre Tippett, Boston Celtics star Ray Allen, UConn men's basketball coach Jim Calhoun and former Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie.

"Chris Berman and I are pretty good friends and Chris gets involved in this, plus it's a fun atmosphere for me," Flutie said.

UConn women's basketball associate head coach Chris Dailey said, "I have been so lucky to meet great golfers like Dustin Johnson and Bubba Watson, and really nice people like James Naughton, a Tony Award winner who's been in my group the last couple of years. These are people I never would have had the opportunity to meet."

A couple of first-time visitors to the Travelers were New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski and World Wrestling Entertainment star Mike "The Miz" Mizanin, who played with Pesci and PGA Tour professional Vaughn Taylor.

"It's great playing with Joe Pesci, it's great to meet everyone and raise money for charity," Gronkowski said. "It's my first pro-am, so I'm kind of excited."

Mizanin, who uses the catchphrase "I'm awesome!" during WWE events, seemed more awestruck Wednesday. "It's my first time ever playing in a celebrity pro-am, and this is fantastic," he said. "I'm used to playing at Ridgewood Golf Course in Cleveland, which is about five bucks to get in to play 18, so this is a little above and beyond what I'm used to."

Unfortunately for the players and fans, thunderstorms limited play to nine holes, with the afternoon group teeing off two hours behind schedule. Two-time British Open champion Padraig Harrington's team won the event with a 10-under-par 25.