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Smoltz will tee off at 9:21 a.m. ET Thursday with Jim McGovern and Bob Ford at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

Baseball Hall of Famer John Smoltz set to tee off in U.S. Senior Open

John Smoltz is trading his glove for a club.

The Hall of Fame pitcher and current MLB analyst will fulfill another athletic dream of his when he is among the first groups to tee off at the U.S. Senior Open on Thursday at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

“I think this is the coolest thing I’ve ever done,” Smoltz told USA TODAY Sports. “Qualifying was the most emotionally fired up I’ve ever been.”

Smoltz qualified for the event earlier this month in Georgia when he won a three-man playoff at the 18-hole event to claim the third and final spot.

“I think this is because it’s such an individual thing,” Smoltz added. “Baseball is team oriented and I had some incredible moments and I’m grateful to have played baseball at the highest level. Golf has been a secondary goal and, even when I started to play 30 years ago, I wanted to get to that next level.”

An eight-time All-Star and Cy Young Award winner, Smoltz finished his 21-year career with a record of 213-155 with 154 saves and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015 — his first year on the ballot.

He is set to tee off at 9:21 a.m. ET Thursday with Jim McGovern and Bob Ford.

The U.S. Senior Open Championship is scheduled to run June 28-July 1.

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