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      Tiger shoots a 71 in opening round of British Open

      July 16, 2009 /

      If you were hoping Tiger Woods would bust out of the gates at the British Open, take an early lead and dominant the competition throughout the weekend your wish has not been granted.

      Woods shot a 71 in the opening round of the British Open, which began this morning at 8:00 a.m. ET at Turnberry golf course in Scotland. That score is good for one over par and currently ranks him tied for 56th place, although more than half of the golfers have yet to take the course.

      Tom Watson, a 59-year-old five-time Open champion, currently holds the lead after shooting a 65. That score gives him a five-under-par and also gives him a one stroke advantage over John Senden, Steve Stricker, Camilo Villegas, Stewart Cink and Mathew Goggin.

      Tiger was a 9/4 favorite when play began today. Watson didn’t have odds, so he was part of The Field, which was 5/2 to win. Stricker and Villegas were 40/1, while Cink was 60/1.

      Here’s the TV schedule for the rest of the British Open:

      Thursday, July 16: 6:30AM – 7:00PM ET on TNT

      Friday, July 17: 7:00AM – 7:00PM ET on TNT

      Saturday July 18: 7:00AM – 9:00AM ET on TNT

      Saturday July 18: TBA on ESPN

      Sunday July 19: 6:00AM – 8:00AM ET on TNT

      Sunday July 19: TBA on ESPN

      Golf

      Jon Stewart mocks Lenny Dykstra and Jim Cramer

      July 15, 2009 /

      Lenny Dykstra, self-proclaimed financial guru, has filed for bankruptcy. He was once hailed by Jim Cramer as “one of the great ones,” and he wasn’t talking about Dykstra’s baseball career.

      It’s all too much for Jon Stewart, who has a field day with this one.

      The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon – Thurs 11p / 10c
      Lenny Dykstra’s Financial Career
      www.thedailyshow.com
      Daily Show
      Full Episodes      		Political HumorJoke of the Day

      Humor, MLB, Video

      Lakers pull offer to Odom off the the table

      July 15, 2009 /

      It seems that Lamar Odom and the Lakers have reached something of a stalemate.

      Sources told ESPN.com that Odom and the Lakers had reached an accord entering the weekend on a per-season wage of $9 million for the 29-year-old. But Odom balked at L.A.’s unwillingness to extend an offer spanning more than three years in length and spent the past few days weighing his options.

      Yet it’s believed that Odom has indeed received offers from the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks that — because neither Florida nor Texas imposes state taxes — are not as far away in value from the Lakers’ presentation as it would seem.

      Odom would have the ability with either the Heat or the Mavericks to sign a three-year, $19 million contract and negotiate a new deal with full Larry Bird rights in the summer of 2012 or take a five-year deal worth $34 million to bank more overall money, along with the state-tax benefits, than he could in a new three-year deal with the Lakers.

      It’s funny how certain things come to light as these deals are made, or in this case, not made. California’s tax rate for people making more than $1 million is 10.3%, while Florida and Texas do not tax personal income. That means that the Lakers’ three-year offer is worth about $8 million per season after state taxes, or just over $24 million total. Compare that to the deals that the Mavs and Heat could offer ($19 million for three years or $34 million for five years) and a mid-level deal in a state with no income tax isn’t too far off.

      Still, why would Odom reject the Lakers’ offer if everyone knows it’s the best that he has available? Portland isn’t interested, though that could change if the Jazz match the Blazers’ offer sheet to Paul Millsap. None of the other teams with cap space seem too eager to make a run at Odom, so it seems strange that he is playing hardball here. It’s not like he has a history of playing consistent basketball year in and year out. As far as his on-court performance is concerned, the guy is kind of a flake.

      My guess is that Odom’s camp waits to see what happens with Portland then come back to the Lakers and accept this three-year deal. But one wonders if Jerry Buss is sick of playing games and might decide to stick it to Odom if/when he comes crawling back.

      NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Pedro Martinez a good signing for Phils

      July 15, 2009 /

      Any time a team can add a three-time Cy Young winner who has a World Series ring and can still throw 90 mph as a fifth starter, it’s usually a good thing. And when that three-time Cy Young winner only costs the club $1 million, it’s a great thing.

      The defending World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies signed Pedro Martinez to a one-year, $1 million contract on Wednesday in hopes he can rekindle some of the magic that has made him an eight-time All-Star over his career. While they did have to immediately place him on the 15-day DL with an shoulder strain, the club thinks that Martinez might be ready to pitch on July 30 when the Phillies open a series in San Francisco.

      This was a low-risk, high-reward signing for the Phils. Given Philly’s offensive firepower, Martinez essentially just has to give the club quality outings. They don’t need him to strikeout 10 batters a game or work into the eighth inning every outing, they just need him to stay healthy and keep them in ballgames. And even if he doesn’t stay healthy, then the Phillies would be in no worse shape then they were before they signed him.

      If Pedro pitches well and the Phils can hold off the Marlins, Braves and Mets in the NL East, then the Phillies will have a starting postseason rotation of Cole Hamels, Joe Blanton, J.A. Happ and Martinez, with Jamie Moyer moving to the pen to provide some long relief. That’s not a bad rotation, especially if Happ (6-0, 2.90 ERA, 1.17 WHIP) can continue pitching as well as he has up to this point in the season.

      Again, if Martinez’s arm or shoulder craps out again, then the Phillies essentially waste $1 million this year. But if he pitches well, then he was worth the investment – especially considering he wanted $5 million for one season (or so reports claim).

      MLB

      The AL’s secret to dominance over the NL in the ASG? Ichiro’s profanity-laced pregame speeches.

      July 15, 2009 /

      With their 4-3 win over the National League in Tuesday night’s All-Star Game, the American League has now beaten their counterpart 13-straight times in the Midsummer Classic.

      While some are quick to suggest that the AL might have more overall talent than the NL and that’s why it has had so much success in the ASG over the years, apparently the real reason for the AL’s dominance can be linked to the Mariners’ Ichiro Suzuki and his profanity-laced pregame speeches.

      The tradition began in 2001, Ichiro’s first All-Star appearance, and the AL hasn’t lost a game since. Coincidence?

      Um. No.

      “I know how important it is to the game,” Ichiro said. “I’m more concentrated at that moment than I am in the game.”

      A wide grin spread across his face. Ichiro’s secret had been exposed, so, hey, why not have fun with it?

      The exact words are not available. Players are too busy laughing to remember them. Ichiro wouldn’t dare repeat them in public. So here’s the best facsimile possible.

      “Bleep … bleep bleep bleep … National League … bleep … bleep … bleeeeeeeeep … National – bleep bleep bleepbleepbleep!”

      “If you’ve never seen it, it’s definitely something pretty funny,” Morneau said. “It’s hard to explain, the effect it has on everyone. It’s such a tense environment. Everyone’s a little nervous for the game, and then he comes out. He doesn’t say a whole lot the whole time he’s in there, and all of a sudden, the manager gets done with his speech, and he pops off.”

      And onto the field they go, enemies during the regular season, friends because together they just saw a 5-foot-9, 160-pound man from Japan, a national icon who surely could win office there, create beef where there wasn’t any.

      I’ve obviously never seen Ichiro’s pregame speech, but if it’s anything like Isuro “Kamikaze” Tanka’s inspirational pregame speech to the Tribe in “Major League II,” I can see why the AL has dominated the NL for over a decade.

      MLB

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