Lakers guard Austin Reaves fails to qualify for Korn Ferry Tour event

Lakers guard Austin Reaves failed to qualify for a Korn Ferry Tour event Monday in Knoxville, Tenn., shooting six-over-par 76 at Willow Creek Country Club.

Reaves, an avid golfer, played in a tournament setting for the first time since high school.

His plus-6 was 73rd out of 79 players.

“Like, I was nervous,” Reaves said in a phone interview with The Times. “This was the first time I got on the tee box like I was locked in to win this … and it didn’t go that way.”

Reaves’ love of golf has led to the guard signing an endorsement deal with apparel brand Travis Matthew. He also has a golf-specific social media channel named “Hillbilly Bogey,” a play on his “Hillbilly Kobe” nickname from college.

Before last season, one of his trick shots went viral, and earlier this offseason Reaves had a hole-in-one on a simulated hole No. 7 at Pebble Beach while playing in an event at Riviera Country Club.

The idea to qualify for the tournament came without much planning, he said.

“I was laying on the couch the other day and I was bored, and I called [my friend Trent Swaim] and said ‘Find me a Monday qualifier around here,’” Reaves said.

Soon after, he was booked to play in Monday’s event.

After his round, he said his putting did him in and guessed that had his short game been better, he might have finished one or two shots under par. He had a six on a par-three hole that featured included him trying to save an errant tee shot with a left-handed chip out of the mud. Reaves golfs right-handed.

Reaves, an undrafted free agent in the 2021 NBA draft class, just finished his third year with the Lakers, averaging 15.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists a game.

He played in all 82 games (not including the in-season tournament final and the play-in game) this past season.