Occasionally on Idaho Sports Talk we have debated which minor league sport in Boise is closest to its counterpart in the pros. The Boise Hawks, Idaho Stampede, Idaho Steelheads and Boise State have all sent players to the professional ranks. But when it comes to players who make it to the highest level of their sport with great success, I will take the Albertsons Boise Open.

The 2014 Masters field is full of golfers who have played in the Albertsons Boise Open at one time or another. The list dates back to the early days of the Ben Hogan Tour through the Web.com tour. Ernie Els missed the cut in 1991. He won only $6143 that year, but has since gone on to win the U.S. Open twice and the British Open two times. I remember following Stewart Cink in 1996 after his All-American career at Georgia Tech. He tied for 2nd that year. His résumé includes a British Open Championship.  

Bubba Watson, the 2012 Masters Champion, played the Albertsons Boise Open three times.  Tim Clark is playing in his 41st major this week. He won in Boise in 2000. Zach Johnson played the tournament in 2003 and was the Nationwide Tour player of the year. He won The Masters in 2007. Bill Haas played in Boise in 2005 and held the first round Masters lead on Thursday. Kevin Stadler won at Hillcrest Country Club in 2006. He was just two strokes out of the lead after the first round of this year's Masters. The list goes on and on. Webb Simpson, Lucas Glover, and Jason Dufner are three more major champions who played in Boise. 

Sports fans have a better chance to become familiar Steelheads, Stampede, Hawks and BSU players. They spend much more time in our city during their playing days. It might be easy to forget about the players who come through our city for the annual golf tournament. The Web.com golfers are in and out in a matter of days. I enjoy all the minor league sports Boise has to offer. However, for one week in the summer, the Albertsons Boise Open is as good as it gets.