Golf in the 2016 Olympics?

A great idea.

I am not sure what circumstances prevented this truly worldwide game from being an Olympic sport since 1904, but it needs to be back in the mix.

As I have heard today while watching coverage of the PGA Championship (Tiger is playing well...watch out), golf has made the necessary strides to be up for a vote in October for inclusion to the 2016 games. There is one reason I can think of that would make this date extremely important:

Tiger Woods.

Tiger will be 40 years old when these Olympics roll around. He is the main driving force behind getting golf in the Olympics and getting him to play while he is still at the height of his game is key to drive interest. The way he keeps in shape, he could play well into his 40's, but there is also the fact that he has had multiple knee surgeries and is only 33 now. He could very well develop arthritis in his knees and be on his way out before we know it. As much as I hate to think that, it could be the case. All the more reason to get him out there sooner than later with the best in the world on Sport's grandest stage.

The idea of having one tournament in which you play for your country every four years should add some terrific drama not only to the Olympics, but the game of golf. The Ryder Cup is a terrific event held every two years, but it involves only the U.S. and Europe. In the years they don't have that it is the President's Cup that pits the U.S. versus the World. However, both are team competitions, which makes them unique and intense in their own right, but not like a worldwide tournament held every four years for a Gold Medal. This could truly be a fifth major, yet the most coveted in that you only get an opportunity to win it every four years. The possibilities are truly endless when it comes to the hype, importance, and exposure for this event. Now the IOC just has to vote this thing through.

As much as I hate the idea of taking baseball and to a lesser extent, softball out of the games, I could understand why they were removed. While each is growing in global participation, they are still far from being worldwide sports. Golf is already worldwide.

One of the ideas I heard today was that they would take the Top 15 players in the world and after that they would take no more than two players from each country to fill remaining spots. With that system, if it were to be used today, over 30 countries would be represented in the Olympic Tournament. Golf is truly a worldwide game that is covered across six continents.

In addition to this I heard Jim Gray (who I am not a fan of BTW) speak to the effect that the 1992 Dream Team had not only on the Olympics, but International Basketball as a whole along with the NBA. Look at NBA rosters now as compared to 1992. The foreign influence has been dramatic, and the game has grown worldwide. Going back to '92, who was the most recognizable athlete in the world? Michael Jordan, who was at the forefront of the Dream Team.

Fast forward to today. Who is the most recognizable athlete in the world? Tiger Woods. Put him at the forefront of what could be a fantastic event and watch golf explode even more.

I can't wait to see it.

Roger and Tiger

I'd say it is a pretty good Sports Sunday when you can see Roger Federer win his first French Open and Tiger Woods come from 4 down to with the Memorial with a 65. My two favorite athletes at the top of their game...nothing like it.

Over the last few years I have gained more respect and admiration for Federer through watching him play and conduct himself. He epitomizes class as well as excellence on ad off the court. I am fully aware of how fans often percieve athletes as something they are not, but I can't help but think that Roger is a genuine individual who is worth rooting for.

As for Tiger, what else can I say? I am extremely excited about his prospects for the U.S. Open, and who wouldn't be (other than every other tour pro)? When the best player in the world does not miss a fairway on the last day of the tournament before the U.S. Open, I'd say that is bad news for the rest of the players.

Congrats to the best I have ever seen, and hopefully there is a lot more to come...

Random Question of the Day...

For some reason this just popped into my head:

We see MLB managers get thrown out of a game, sometimes NBA coaches as well. But has anyone ever seen an NFL Head Coach get tossed?

Manny: Another Sad Story

With today's news that Manny Ramirez tested positive for a PED, baseball was hit with another uppercut to its credibility, further proving that the 'steroid era' is by no means over.

Of course he has already come out with the 'My doctor prescribed it' story, but I don't care. Even if that story has a shred of truth to it (which I doubt), Manny needs to own up and leave his 'doctor' out of this. Everyone affiliated with Major League Baseball has the means to look up what substances are banned and which are not. I know of at least 83 banned substances that baseball tests for. 7 of them are drugs of abuse, 46 are steroids, and 30 are stimulants. If you are looking at taking something which you are not sure about, MLB is very clear as to what is not allowed. Furthermore, if Manny were to have any questions about this 'prescription,' there are dozens of sources at his disposal that he could double-check with first. If he took the opportunity to check first, take second, this would not have happened if you base this off of his story.

That being said, I believe that Manny, like A-Rod, knew exactly what he was taking, how long he has taken it, and what it has helped him achieve on the field. Now that may sound presumptuous, but do you blame me for thinking that? Have any of these stories, be it A-Rod, Bonds, Canseco, Clemens, Giambi, etc. led you to believe anything otherwise?

For those of you who are not so sure if Manny did something on purpose, I'll let you in on a little secret: Nobody takes PED's by accident. The next one that does will be the first. All of the pro athletes that do it know they are doing it and why they are doing it. It is a culture that starts with a few and spreads like wildfire once others realize that they may be costing themselves millions by not doing it.

The bottom line is this; I do not care what story Manny comes up with, he was cheating and got caught, period. In a way I try to view it as a good thing in that we have one less player to wonder if they are clean or not. However, it is sad for baseball because the more these names come out, the more it hurts the game.

There is no end in sight for stopping this short of allowing PED use, which will never happen. How does MLB stop this?

Brett Favre - Why?

Since the NFL Draft is over and teams are trying to set their rosters for training camp, it must be time to talk about Brett Favre...NOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Seriously though, here is my take:

If you are going to consider coming back, again, why say in an interview that you are not planning on coming back? I would be fine if he said 'Hey, I may still come back, but I want to let the Jets (or whoever he has/will/might play for) move forward as if I am not going to be a member of their team.'

To his credit, he let the Jets do that, but he didn't let the Packers always do that. He drug out the process over the last two or three years he spent by waffling on his decision, which really tainted his image. I always loved Brett Favre. I loved watching him play and respected the way he conducted himself, (especially after getting help for a painkiller problem), but the latest news from Favre is tired. I cannot keep cutting him slack. It seems as if he is addicted to having his name come up on ESPN around this time of year with talk of 'will he or won't he return,' and I'm sure I speak for a lot of people when I say enough is enough.

Why can't you just stay retired?

With this new talk of returning to the NFL with the Vikings, I can't help but speculate that this is to spite the Packers, who I guess after loving him for two decades have wronged him in some way. Could you imagine if Tommy Lasorda went to manage the Giants after he left the Dodgers? Or if Derek Jeter left the Yankees to sign with the Red Sox? How about Magic Johnson and Larry Bird switching teams straight up? It would feel dirty, and this is what this playing out to be.

I can respect someone wanting to still play. And as much as I respect a guy for leaving on a good note (Elway, Jordan (the first and second time), Billy Chapel :) ) I can't say that a guy shouldn't play if he feels like he has something to give. But to drag things out and make false statements only hurts your image and makes people dislike you more.

I guess it doesn't matter to Farve, but I wish it did.

Slumdog Millionaire: Best Picture?

This blog has been mostly sports related, but I love movies as well, so here ya go...

I know I am a little late to the party on this, but I just watched Slumdog Millionaire last night. After seeing some of 2008's most well reviewed films, I feel that the Academy got it wrong. Of course, I felt that way when the nominations came out, but this only solidified my opinion.

Don't get me wrong, Slumdog is a fine film. I am all for something that opens the eyes of everyone, American's especially. The film depicts the slums of Mumbai unlike anything I have ever seen, and it is important for those of us who have it so good to realize how good we in fact have it.

That being said, Slumdog was not the best film of 2008. The film that stood out for me more than any other was The Dark Knight. First of all, how many times does a movie exceed expectation, especially a film with the anticipation of TDK? Christopher Nolan is on the short lists for best filmmakers today, having penned and directed TDK, Batman Begins, The Prestige, Insomnia, and Memento. The fact that he recieved no love from the Academy for TDK really bothers me.

The Dark Knight was so superbly paced, written, acted, and filmed it was almost scary. Heath Ledger (who did get the love he deserved from the Academy) was amazing, as was the entire cast. Not to mention the film grossed over half a billion dollars here in America. Movies don't do that every year. You have to have the perfect combination of popularity, buzz, and quality to accomplish that. TDK did.

Again, I know it is a little late, but the Academy really tripped up by not even nomination TDK or Chris Nolan. It is time for voters to recognize that mainstream films (even superhero ones) can and should recieve serious consideration, especially when they are done as well as The Dark Knight. It was not only the most popular movie of the year, it was the best.

Nick Adenhart 1986-2009

I never met Nick Adenhart. I don't know of anyone who knew him. Yet his death early this morning struck a chord with me that I am trying to process.

For those of you who don't know, Nick Adenhart was a promising pitching prospect for the Los Angeles Angels. So promising he was chosen as the number one prospect in the Angels' organization while also earning a spot on their opening day roster. At the age of 22, Adenhart had his whole life in front of him, and the possibilites seemed to be endless.

Last night was his season opener as he got the call against the Oakland Athletics. For whatever reason he told his dad before the game that he should fly out from Baltimore because 'something special was going to happen.' He was right. For six innings he pitched shutout baseball, proving to himself and the Angels that he belonged in the big leagues. After the game he met with his father and agent Scott Boras, telling them that he 'felt like a big leaguer.' It would be the last game he would ever pitch.

After leaving the ballpark, Adenhart met with some friends and went to a club. On the drive home the car he was riding in was struck by a minivan that had run a red light. Two of the four passengers in the car were pronounced dead at the scene. Adenhart died in surgery a short time after while the fourth passenger is in critical condition but expected to survive.

Unfortunately, accidents like this happen all too often and get reported on far too little, at least on the national scene. Had Nick Adenhart not been in this accident, you would not see this on ESPN, CNN, NBC and so on. In some ways that is good, because if every drunk driving fatality was reported on by the national media, there would be no room for any other news, good or bad. On the other hand, I do not believe that enough people get the message of how serious drunk driving is, our legal system included.

At the forefront of this is the driver of the car that struck Adenhart and his friends. 22 year old Andrew Thomas Gallo was driving on a suspended license from an earlier drunk driving charge. According to all reports, Gallo ran a red light, impacted the car holding Adenhart, then fled the scene only to be caught a half hour later. His blood alcohol level was said to be above the legal limit of .08.

In my opinion, any drunk driver who is deemed to be the cause of an accident should be tried for murder in the case of a fatality occuring. Even if there is not a fatality, I believe that they should be tried for attempted murder. Any time that a person gets drunk and chooses to drive, they have already endangered every other person in their car and every driver on the road.

I view drunk driving no different than if a person was to fire a gun at a fence, not knowing if there was anyone on the other side. Are you trying to kill someone? No, but you don't know if there is anyone on the other side of the fence. Maybe you get lucky and there is nobody on the other side. Or you aren't so lucky, and you end up killing 3 people and critically injuring another.

We need to rethink our drunk driving laws. Anyone who gets caught should go to jail no matter what, and those who cause an accident should be punished more harshly than we do now. It makes me so angry to think that if this murderer had decided to call a cab that 3 families would not have to mourn the death's of loved ones.

The next time you have a drink, think about the mother, father, daughter, son, brother, sister, niece, nephew, cousin, or grandparent that you could kill if you get behind the wheel. Then call a cab or have a designated driver take you home.

God Bless all of the families that have to deal with these awful, avoidable tragedies on a daily basis.