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By Dave Lagarde
PGATOUR.com Correspondent

BOISE, Idaho -- It's a good thing the participants in Monday's $1 million Kraft Shoot-Out, the annual warm-up for the Albertson's Boise Open, were hitting golf balls and not piñatas at Hillcrest Country Club.

Jason Gore teamed with long-driving champion Jason Zuback to amass more than $400,000 for Boise-area charities on Monday. (Stan Badz/PGA TOUR/WireImage)

Had it been piñatas, so much candy would be strewn about the back nine of Hillcrest's gently rolling track that it would have taken until Thursday's opening round of the $675,000 Nationwide Tour event to pick it all up. That's because the Shoot-Out featured monster mashers -- PGA TOUR driving distance leader Bubba Watson and five-time and current World Long Driving champion Jason Zuback, along with Jason Gore and defending Albertson's champion Kevin Stadler, whose victory here helped him earn playing privileges on the 2007 PGA TOUR.

Instead, they knocked the cover off golf balls, swinging from the heels in an event that was part skins game, part closest to the pin (on par 3s and selected par 4s) and part long-drive contest. So the main attraction was length and laughs. It's a wonder that area chiropractors weren't at Hillcrest handing out their cards, considering the violent moves that were made at those little white balls.

"I'm here to swing really hard,'' said the muscular Zuback, who was teamed with Gore, sounding the day's mantra.

Watson had a different take. After watching Zuback warm up on the range, he decided that he would resist the temptation to try and air-mail him.

"I just want the Jasons to tell me, 'Good shot,' all day,'' he cracked.

Gore laughed.

"Actually, I'll be saying, 'Maybe you should play a provisional,' '' he cracked.

The object was to distribute that cool $1 million -- the purse donated by the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation -- to four Boise-area charities. So the participants played for pride, the opportunity to needle their opponents after wayward shots and perform under a little bit of pressure.

"There are no guarantees,'' Watson said in a rare serious moment. "I want to shut them out. I'm not here to be charitable.''

The Stadler-Watson team didn't pitch a shutout, but it did collect the lion's share of the loot, with six skins worth $330,000 for the Community Detox Center and five tallies in the closest-to-the-hole and long-drive competitions for $250,000 for the Treasure Valley YMCA's Horsethief Camp. The Jasons didn't do so bad, either, winning $170,000 for the Boy & Girls of Ada County in the skins and $250,000 for the 2009 Special Olympics Winter Games.

Besides that, the foursome put on a very good show.

Zuback had the biggest knock, a gargantuan 410-yard tee shot on the par-5 16th hole, easily winning the hole's long-drive contest by 87 yards over Stadler.

"Makes me look like Corey Pavin,'' Watson deadpanned.

But Stadler already had registered the shot of the day, a driver to 4 feet, 9 inches on the 284-yard, par-4 15th. The most impressive thing was he followed Zuback, who hit it to just over 27 feet with a 3-wood. Stadler knocked in the putt for an eagle 2.

Bottom line? A good time was had by all.

Watson, who graduated to the PGA TOUR in the Nationwide Tour class of 2005, plans on staying around this week and renewing some old acquaintances with his buddies still toiling on the Nationwide Tour. Brad Elder and Tim O'Neal can expect to find Watson in their galleries this week.

"I don't get to see those guys anymore,'' the colorful and genuine Watson said. "I'm going to stay the whole week, talking to the guys, watching some golf. I'll poke fun at them.''