The Sports Sauna at the PGA Turning Stone Championship

The last golf tournament I went to was the US Open at Oak Hill in Rochester, NY a few years ago. I was worried that this significantly smaller tournament would kill all my enthusiasm for watching golf in person that I took from that tournament. I didn't need to worry. It was still a lot of fun today, on only the second day of the tournament. I'm excited to return for the final round on Sunday. A few highlights...

Best Shot
Nothing really stands out. We didn't see any long putts. Actually, we saw a lot of missed putts. There were a couple near chip-ins. I think Jason Gore's monster drive on the dogleg 15 was the most exciting shot to watch. We were standing right behind him when he blasted it.

Runner Up: Vaughn Taylor's punch through the trees on 7 on his way to saving par.

Most Revealing Moment
I overheard Chad Campbell, in the midst of a mediocre round, ask a random course volunteer how his day was going. Campbell has a schlep-y demeanor, but I guess he's a pretty nice guy. 95% of PGA players are not celebrities. Nobody really comes off as aloof. Many of the guys at this tournament are trying to grind their way into the top 125 on the money list, which gets you full exempt status for the 2008 Tour. Unlike team sports, all the pressure is on the individual in golf. You're very aware of that aspect when you're standing right next to a guy who's got to figure out a way to save par with his ball buried in the rough.

Runner Up: Jason Gore started shadow boxing his caddy while waiting to hit. He really is as fun a guy as we thought he was. I think he ended up missing the cut, but he was in good spirits the whole way around. He's like the new and improved John Daly, in that he hits it long and he's actually a good guy.

Favorite Spot
From the 8th tee you can watch the action on the 7th green and the par 3 16. The spot is on an outer corner of the lay out, so not too many people there. We followed groups most of the day, but it's nice to find a spot to hang out and let the players come to you for a while.

Best Outfit
Jesper Parnevik, of course. Passed him on the way out.

Biggest Mullet
Charley Hoffman edged out Stuart Appleby

Possible 2008 Superstar
John Rollins is for real. He's got a nice intensity about him.

Impressions of Atunyote Golf Club
It's playing a little easier than the organizers hoped. I expect they'll try to make it even harder next year. Like many courses, it will take a few decades before the course really comes into its own. The CEO of Turning Stone, Ray Halbritter, has high goals for the course, like moving the tournament up in the schedule and trying to get a major somewhere down the road. I don't think that's unrealistic in the long run. Designer Tom Fazio has done very well.

Mike Tirico Show Unveiled

I just finished listening to the first installment of The Mike Tirico Show (1-3pm EST on ESPN Radio) and, well, I'm giddy!

First, let me refer back to my thoughts on the transition away from the Dan Patrick show which I jotted down on Monday. This is what I wrote:
"Here's what I would have done if I was ESPN: I've got a endless array of smart, interesting personalities I can put on the radio, so why not flex that power? Scott Van Pelt was fantastic when he came on a couple times for Dan Patrick this summer. Trey Wingo was also very good. Linda Cohn is an intelligent woman... Why not give each of these guys the full three hour slot one day a week? That would keep Tirico from becoming over-exposed, which is a real danger at this point. And the variety of opinion would make for interesting radio."

What ESPN is actually doing is even better than what I had come up with. I'll get to that in a second. Since Mike Tirico was my childhood idol and the main reason why I went to Newhouse at Syracuse University, I felt obligated to listen to the whole show and take notes. Here's what I thought:


Segment 1
The first thing Mike said was that he didn't like that the show was named after him because he didn't want the show to be about him. In one obvious way, this first show was very much about Tirico: he did it live from the radio studios of WAER, located inside Newhouse on the SU campus, where he first got his start in broadcasting. (Tirico was in town because the school opened up Newhouse III yesterday.) But Mike set a tone over the course of the entire show that made it clear that the show was not about him at all. In fact, I don't remember him offering a single sentence of opinion on any of the stories he touched on over the course of two hours.

Tirico spent the segment explaining some of his thoughts on how the show would work. He said he would be joined by three personalities later in the show that would be regular co-hosts for the show. He ended the segment teasing the first guest, Bob Costas, who was also in town for Newhouse III.

Grade: A, I was left with high hopes for the show's co-host-heavy format.


Segment 2
Costas, who I should point out is not one of the co-hosts, spent most of the segment recounting his two greatest personal athletic achievements. It was a fun topic, though it did take perhaps a little too much time.

Tirico squeezed in two good questions at the end. First he asked Costas to comment on the McNabb/black QB issue. As usual, Costas provided the best answer I've heard so far. He refused to dismiss McNabb's complaints or racism as a continuing issue in sports, but he gave plenty of evidence that racism is no longer a major problem in the NFL. He noted that last year all three of the Jag's QBs were black, and when Leftwich was cut, another black QB, David Garrard, took his place. Costas said Warren Moon clearly faced racism in trying to get an opportunity in the NFL 15 or 20 years ago, but in 2006 Vince Young was drafted before Matt Leinert.

Then Tirico brought up Major League Baseball's Wild Card playoff system, which Costas had criticized when it first came out. Costas admitted, "I was wrong...it played out better than I thought." He said one of the best parts about it was an advantage that even the pro-Wild Card people hadn't foreseen; it allows the Red Sox and the Yankees to meet in the post-season. The downside, Costas said, is still that there is now nothing really at stake for the Red Sox and the Yankees in the regular season. They are both very likely to make the playoffs.

Costas is a genius, so I wanted to recap his thoughts. Let's move along...

Grade: A-, the show got away from Tirico a bit with Costas's ramblings.


Segment 3

Tirico unveiled his first co-host: Scott Van Pelt! I was ecstatic that Van Pelt was going to be a part of the show. Like I said Monday, the guy is fantastic on the radio. He's just a lot of fun. He introduced himself a little bit, then they talked baseball. Van Pelt warned Yankee and Red Sox fans not to ignore the fact that the Indians and the Angels are really good teams and have better records. Good point.

Grade: B+


Segment 4

Scott Van Pelt remained on the air the rest of the way as a sort of sidekick, a role he plays quite well. Actually, it just occurred to me that his jokester style is a great match to Tirico's plain pleasantness. The second co-host phoned in: Kirk Herbstreit!

Herbstreit was slightly unexpected, but I like the idea. Just to prove he could contribute during football's off season, Van Pelt and Tirico shared two stories about Herbstreit calling them randomly to discuss some non-football sports event. Then the three of them all started making fun of each other. Fun times.

Grade: B, they lost my attention just a bit in the second half of the segment.


Segment 5

They opened the segment with that famous clip of the Flutie Hail Mary, and it turns out the guy shouted "He did it! Flutie did it!" is Dan "The Duke" Davis, the guy who does the sports updates all day for ESPN Radio. It was his birthday, so Tirico and Van Pelt wished him a happy one.

Then they quickly brought on the 3rd and final co-host: Michele Tafoya! It had to be a woman, of course, and they picked a good one. Does anyone dislike Tafoya? She's recognizable and well-spoken. Actually, she's the biggest X-factor of the four hosts. We'll see what she brings to the table. She had an odd start. After Tirico said Michele's job would be "keeping the guys straight" Tafoya playfully asked if the guys would turn gay if she wasn't around. Everyone laughed uncomfortably.

The second half of the segment featured a surprise caller. Dan Patrick called to wish Tirico and Co. good luck in his old slot. He was very funny.

Grade: A-, DP was fantastic.


Segment 6

Tim Finchem led off the segment talking about the new drug testing policy announced by golf's various governing bodies. Van Pelt finished up the interview asking about the FedEx Cup.

The show ended on the highest possible note. Tirico brought in a guest who is always guaranteed to please me. He's the most sports-aware coach out there and he's the greatest sports figure in Syracuse history: Jim Boeheim.

Boeheim, I have to say, sounded his age (62) over the radio. (That reminded me of my prediction of the over/under for how many years Boeheim has left: five.) They talked US basketball then Tirico finished with a quick question about SU hoops. Boeheim said he's got a good group of young players this year and that he's excited about their chances, though college basketball is always tough these days.

Grade: A+, anytime Boeheim is on a show, it gets an A+.


Overall

Like I said, I think this Tirico +3 idea is even better than my idea of rotating hosts. I like the people they've selected and I think if anyone can pull that sort of show off, it's Tirico who seems to gel with almost anybody. I think 2 hours is a great amount of time, rather than 3, because Tirico tends to sound uber-intelligent and that can start to wear on listeners (see: Bob Valvano). The Van Pelt-Tirico relationship is key. If they start clicking, the show could really take off.

Grade: A

No Worries

This happens to be our 300th post. Here's a link to the first column. Since I've started the blog, I've been rejected for a 10hr/week job as an editorial assistant in the sports department of the Syracuse Post-Standard and have been offered a grand total of zero book deals. However, I did complete a 45 page masters research paper called "American Anglophobia in the Interwar Period: Tension between Two World Powers." If you want to read about why some Americans hated Great Britain between the two World Wars, let me know and I'll email you the paper. I dunno, I think its interesting.

What I wanted to write about today is the New York Mets, the team that I followed longer than any other. Their lead shrank to 1 1/2 games over the Phillies last night. They've matched their season high with a 5-game losing streak. And Mike Pelfrey (2-7, 5.23) takes the mound tonight as the Mets try to avoid getting swept by the pesky Nationals.

I'm not worried. This is the best team in the National League and it will win the division when its all said and done. With a different roster, but the same season trajectory, I'd be in a panic. For instance, if the Mets had traded rosters with the inexperienced Brewers then led the division all year only to see the lead diminish to 1 1/2 games on September 19, that would be cause for alarm.

But again, this is the best team in the NL, with great chemistry and a fantastic coach who continues to be pushing the right buttons, even if things don't quite work out. Last night with only one out left the Mets managed to cut the lead to one and put runners on first and third before Ruben Gotay struck out to end the game. On the face of it, that sounds bad for Gotay, but in fact he had a great at-bat against the underrated Chad Cordero. Gotay was the right pinch hitter in that situation.

Two innings before, one of the best pinch hitters in the majors also came to the plate with a chance to do some damage. Marlon Anderson struck out, too. It was the right call by Willie, but it didn't work out.

Meanwhile, Shawn Green is hitting. Jeff "I'm thrilled for one last shot at a World Series before I retire" Conine contributed off the bench. Endy "The Catch" Chavez went 3 for 3. Reyes is fine. Davey is awesome. Luis Castillo continues to make Omar Minaya look like a genius. Milledge is clicking. Alou has a 22-game hitting streak and, hopefully, a quad that's feeling OK. Delgado is about to return.

Before last nights game the team had a players only meeting for forty minutes. Presumably, the 4 errors they had given up on Monday was a hot topic. Last night they scored 8 runs, out-hit the Nationals and had the winning run on base in the ninth. And they committed zero errors. They didn't get the win, but they didn't play like crap either. Here's a quote from the AP story:

"Ninety-nine percent of the time, we win this game," New York third baseman David Wright said. "We take a lot of positives from this. We played extremely well defensively. It was one of the best games of the season offensively."

Last night's loss rests on John Maine. I love what Maine has given the Mets this year, and he's going to have a solid career, but the kid is clearly tired. The home run to Ronnie Belliard was a pitch that stayed up. If El Duque wasn't out for the regular season at least, I would have liked to see Willie take the ball from John last night then watch cameras follow John out to his car, away from the stadium and into his living room where he throws on a pair of sweatpants, grabs a beer and settles in to watch the rest of the Mets season and rejuvenate for next year.

The Phillies are shaky and erratic, as evidenced by the way they tanked after sweeping the Mets a few weeks ago. Their best pitcher, Cole Hamels, looked iffy over 3 innings in his first outing in a month. The rest of their rotation looks a lot less pretty than it did in March. When Burrell is hitting, that lineup is horrifying, but he's cooled down: no HRs or RBIs in his last 8 games. Last night in the late innings, with the Mets trailing, (I am) Keith Hernandez confidently predicted that the Phillies would fade away and not even take the wild card. I agree. I wouldn't want to face them in the playoffs, but I don't think they'll make it that far.

Speaking of the wild card, I didn't even address that safety net because I don't feel like it will come into play. If the Phillies take the lead in the NL East, check back with me. Until then, I'm not worried.

A Non-ESPN Link!!

Speaking of sports broadcasting, Michael McCarthy has been writing one of the few columns on sports television out there for as long as I remember. The craziest thing? He writes for USA Today! To be honest, the USA Today sports section is pretty solid. I used to live by it and CNN International's World Sport (always led with tennis!) when I was out in Singapore in 1996-98 and the Internet was still in its infancy.

Anyway, if this sports media stuff interests you, he's worth a glance every week. My ulterior motive: I wanted to start to fulfill my promise to provide more non-ESPN.com links.

One final nugget, if you missed Barkley in the booth on MNF tonight, I pity you. He's approaching National Treasure status (the honorary title given to awesome people like Bill Murray for instance, not the surprisingly solid Disney movie).

Mike Tirico to ESPN Radio

I've listened to a lot of ESPN Radio this summer and followed Dan Patrick's departure with interest. I debated with my brother over who should fill his slot. A great radio show has an announcer (or announcing team) that has some kind of unique schtick. Mike and Mike in the Morning are a great pairing because of their contrasting personalities. Colin Cowherd's uniqueness is a combination of his sense of humor, his preparedness, and his grating not-made-for-radio-yet-somehow-likable voice. Patrick had a different sense of humor, got great guests and is a fantastic interviewer. I like Eric Kuselias a lot, but he's a tier below Cowherd.

Meanwhile, John Seibel and Doug Gottlieb are crap, as are everyone else on ESPN Radio from 4pm to 2am, especially Amy Lawrence but ESPECIALLY Fred Coleman. I actually like listening to the latter for the unintentional comedy of his inane comments and constant stream of ill fitting cliches. Jason Smith, if you're awake after 2am, is pretty solid. Definitely Kuselias level, which is good enough for that time slot.

Mike and Mike, The Herd, and Dan Patrick was a great lineup. ESPN needed to get somebody special to fill Patrick's slot. Today they announced Mike Tirico would be the man to jump in that hole. (Actually, Tirico will only take 1-3pm. The final hour will go to the Stephen A. Smith Show, which broadcasts from 2-4 in NYC.) As much as I love everything Tirico has ever done, I'm not ready to say this is a slam dunk.

Tirico has a lot in common with Patrick. Despite his history in radio (he did sports radio at Syracuse University and was one of the first personalities on ESPN Radio when it started in 1992), Tirico is, like Patrick, a TV guy. They both come off as highly intelligent, thoughtful guys. They're both extremely polished, especially compared to a Colin Cowherd, for instance. Patrick sucks up to everybody. Tirico gels with anybody.

There's huge differences, too. Patrick turned out to be a strongly opinionated guy on his radio show. It's hard to imagine Tirico being as fierce with his opinions. That may be because Tirico's play-by-play background has less room for personality than Patrick's SportsCenter anchoring background. Also, Tirico is black. With the constant stream of stories where race may or may not be a factor, that is a significant trait.

I have heard Mike on the radio a couple times over the past month. As it turned out, he really was one of the least opinionated guys I've ever heard on the radio. Still, he was interesting, mainly because of his intelligence. I just didn't hear anything to suggest he might have that certain something that makes a good host or hosts great. But he didn't sound awful.

Here's what I would have done if I was ESPN: I've got a endless array of smart, interesting personalities I can put on the radio, so why not flex that power? Scott Van Pelt was fantastic when he came on a couple times for Dan Patrick this summer. Trey Wingo was also very good. Linda Cohn is an intelligent woman. (Oddly enough, when I caught her on in the Patrick slot, I discovered that her New York City accent is magnified 100x on the radio. I actually think it was because she was trying to be more opinionated. Could be fatal for her, and I can't think of another ESPN woman who I'd want to hear on the radio.) Why not give each of these guys the full three hour slot one day a week? That would keep Tirico from becoming over-exposed, which is a real danger at this point. And the variety of opinion would make for interesting radio.

The only problem is sports radio's tendency to beat a dead horse about a million times past the point where it is, well, dead. When Mike and Mike talk about Barry Bonds for an hour, then Cowherd talks about him for an hour, then Patrick talks about him for an hour...etc... you can understand the problem. On the other hand, you're more likely to actually hear something new an interesting about Barry Bonds if more people are talking about him, especially with the batch of really smart people ESPN could throw out there.

That would have been interesting. And at the very least, maybe one of the people ESPN threw out there would separate himself so much that it'd be a no-brain decision a year or two down the road to give him the show by himself. Still, I'm hopeful about Mike Tirico. It could have been much worse. Fred Coleman could have been given a solo spot.

Tiger Woods Dominance Watch

Fans of The Sports Sauna will be familiar with my belief that Tiger's golden age came back at the turn of the millennium, when he was winning tournaments by massive margins. Today's Tour Championship may be foreshadowing a return to dominance next year. Tiger shot -23 and beat the field by 8. That's the Tiger Woods of 2000-01. That's the most amazing athlete I've ever seen. Tour Championship is a step below a major. I'll be watching to see if that carries over to next year.

Mets Pitching Predictions Revisiting

I've been thinking about this post I wrote at the beginning of the season. My predictions for the W-L records of the Mets' top four starters have been shockingly accurate. If anything, I underestimated how good their pitching was going to be. And yet all the experts claimed that the Mets rotation was going to be their weakness. Now you know who to listen to about the Mets.

My only regret is that Ambiorix the Gaul couldn't put things together for the bullpen.