Steve Jones admits he was a bit conflicted at first when learning the date of his Colorado Sports Hall of Fame induction.
After all, for a guy who not long ago wondered whether he’d ever play Tour golf again, every tournament is cherished, and he could have played in a Champions Tour event this week in Duluth, Ga. Moreover, any tournament is an opportunity for a breakthrough, as Colorado resident Mark Wiebe proved two years ago when he won on the Champions Tour the same day he was inducted — in absentia — into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.
But in the end, Jones couldn’t bypass Thursday night’s Colorado Sports Hall of Fame induction banquet at the Denver Marriott City Center.
“In the very beginning, yeah (it was a tough choice skipping a Champions Tour event), but when you really think about it, my parents raised me pretty well to think correctly,” Jones said before Thursday’s dinner. “And thanks to that upbringing, I made the right decision to come here.
“There’s no way you can miss something like this. It’s the biggest golf honor in my life that I’ve been given.”
Inducted with Jones on Thursday were former Bronco Steve Atwater, ex-Avalanche captain Adam Foote, Rockies original manager Don Baylor, former NFL kicker Don Cockroft and ex-major league pitcher Stan Williams.
(Jones is pictured above taking a photo of Olympic swimming gold medalist Missy Franklin on Thursday.)
Jones, who grew up in Yuma, Colo., and played golf at the University of Colorado, has been one of the most successful Tour players the state has ever produced. In joining fellow former Buff golfers Hale Irwin and Dale Douglass in the CSHOF, Jones won eight times on the PGA Tour, with the highlight certainly being his victory in the 1996 U.S. Open.
Coincidentally, his Colorado Sports Hall of Fame induction falls during the 25th anniversary year of his victory in the 1988 Colorado Open, and of his first PGA Tour win, the 1988 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.
Jones, 54, hasn’t won yet on the Champions Tour, but after not playing in a PGA/Champions Tour event from the middle of 2007 until the beginning of 2011 because of a severe case of tennis elbow, the fact that he’s competing at all is a plus.
“I could get in 15-16 (tournaments this year), which is better than the 10-12 I’ve gotten in the last couple of years,” said Jones, who is conditionally exempt on the Champions circuit this season. “But the key is just playing well.”
Jones has made a total of 26 official Champions Tour starts since making his debut in the spring of 2011. He’s posted three top-20 finishes.
As has been the case throughout his career, injuries have held Jones back. Most notably, an irregular heartbeat, a thumb injury, shoulder issues and the tennis elbow have sidelined Jones six full tour seasons since 1990. Right now, it’s nothing major, but wrist, finger and nagging ligaments are hampering him.
“It’s crazy how things keep coming up as you get holder,” he said.
Jones, an Arizona resident, only gets back to Colorado an average of about once a year these days, but he drew a nice contingent of support to Thursday’s induction. His wife, Bonnie, attended, along with his parents and in-laws, plus numerous representatives of CU and the Colorado golf community.
Among the “surprise” guests were former CU golf teammate Tom Woodard, who is being inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame this year, and Valerie Simpson, wife of the late Mark Simpson, who made Jones his first CU recruiting signee. Also on hand were childhood friend from Yuma Rich Holden, longtime CU associate athletic director/sports information Dave Plati, Buff golf coach Roy Edwards and Ron Rope, who, unbeknownst to Jones at the time, funded more than a quarter of Jones’ scholarship costs at CU in the late 1970s and early ’80s.
“He helped with my scholarship to get me to Colorado with a full ride,” Jones said of Rope. “And for me, I’m glad I went to Colorado and not New Mexico State.”
For more information about Jones going into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, CLICK HERE.
