No bluff: Poker and golf as one.

Byline: INSIDE THE OUTDOORS By Mike Stahlberg The Register-Guard

By my count - and forgive me if I missed some - 123,456,789 poker hands have been dealt on cable television since Golf Extra last appeared in October.

Golf, of course, is the antithesis of poker. Golf is played outdoors, by healthy, active participants who breathe clean air, and who need not stare down their opponent before deciding whether to pitch or putt. Golf is a sunny game; poker is dark and brooding.

So - other than to make the point that it's been a long offseason - why is the golf columnist even talking about poker?

Because the games of poker and golf are being combined in the new World Series of Amateur Golf, to be held next week in Las Vegas.

Promoters say the tournament "combines the skill of golf with the wagering savvy of poker." They call it "the most exciting golf wagering tournament since the Skins Game."

Players in this golf tournament format have to ante up before teeing off at each hole. Antes start at $100 and double every three holes.

Players then can bet, raise, call, check or fold with no limit after each round of shots, and may go "all-in" even if they cannot match the bet.

"Wagers on each individual shot will depend on the player's position, their confidence to make the next shot, and the position of their opponent," said World Series of Golf President Tom Lieweke. "The result is a dramatic competition in which every shot counts, and wagering strategy is just as important as skill."

In other words, it's "The Texas Hold-em of golf," as the Web site (www.worldseriesof golf.com) puts it.

As in poker, the order of play rotates - the player leading off could putt first even if he is closest to the hole.

As in poker, there is a conclusion to every hand, or hole - players who tie split the pot.

And, as in poker, a player is eliminated once he's out of money.

The "buy-in" for this tournament is $10,000 - just as in the World Series of Poker. The field is limited to 180 amateur golfers, who will tee off in groups of five on Sunday. Handicaps will be used to group players of similar skills, but no strokes will be awarded.

The winner of each first-day match moves on to the second round, when the 36 survivors will go off in six groups. The six second-round winners will compete in the final round with $450,000 in prize money at stake, with the winner to receive $250,000.

Golfers finishing in seventh through 36th place get their $10,000 back. Under the rules of golf, players who take prize money will lose their amateur status.

The World Series will be played at Primm Valley Golf Club, a Tom Fazio-designed course. Organizers say they have an agreement with NBC-TV to televise the event nationally, June 23-24.

Aside from the high drama afforded by the occasional close finish in a major championship, watching golf on TV is like watching poker on TV, only with better scenery.

I suspect the World Series of Amateur Golf will be one of those things that happens in Vegas and stays in Vegas. But who knows? Maybe people will be dying to find out whether the guy who went "all-in" while standing over an 18-foot putt is really good, or just bluffing.

Mike Stahlberg can be reached at [e-mail].