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"Sports Quote of the Day"
Practice means to perform, over and over again in the face of all obstacles, some act of vision, of faith, of desire. Practice is a means of inviting the perfection desired. ~ Martha Graham, Modern Dancer & Choreographer
Practice means to perform, over and over again in the face of all obstacles, some act of vision, of faith, of desire. Practice is a means of inviting the perfection desired. ~ Martha Graham, Modern Dancer & Choreographer
Trending: 1. U.S. Women's gymnastics qualification shows what's to come: Olympic domination, 2. Katie Ledecky shatters 400 freestyle world record, nabs first U.S. swimming gold and 3. Michael Phelps gets 19th gold medal as U.S. wins 4x100 freestyle relay. (See the Olympic section (last section of this blog) for 2016 games updates).
Trending: Bears' injury concerns deepen with Hroniss Grasu's torn ACL. (See the football section for Bears and NFL updates).
Trending: Furyk goes from feeling 'lost' to shooting 58. (See the golf section for tournament and PGA updates).
Trending: Chicago Cubs sweep Oakland Athletics for the best record in baseball. It's hard to believe that this team can't win it all with the abundance of talent that they have. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
Trending: Chicago Blackhawks Top Five Current Rivalries. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks and NHL updates).
Trending: Cubs and White Sox road to the "World Series".
Cubs 2016 Record: 69-41
Cubs 2016 Record: 69-41
White Sox 2016 Record: 53-58
(See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Bears' injury concerns deepen with Hroniss Grasu's torn ACL.
By John Mullin
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Bears training camp has been beset by injuries that had as many as 16 players with some sort of injury. None, however, had reached the level as a torn right ACL reportedly suffered by center Hroniss Grasu during Saturday’s Bears practice at Soldier Field, sources said.
Grasu had made significant progress through the offseason and early going of camp, moving to secure the center position after rookie season that saw him start eight games but miss three games with a neck injury and then game 16 with a knee injury.
A torn ACL typically marks the end for the season, and whether Grasu is done for 2016 or could return, the Bears will be making roster tweaking. Veteran Ted Larsen has started 10 games at center while a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but has not started at the position since 2013. Rookie Cody Whitehair has taken practice snaps at center and Cornelius Edison, the FCS Rimington Award given to the top center in center and a member of the Bears’ practice squad late last season.
Grasu was the Bears’ third-round pick in the 2015 draft and was pressed into service when veteran Will Montgomery was lost for the year with a broken arm. The Bears had brought in retired NFL center Kevin Mawae to work with Grasu during training camp and indications were growing that Grasu was taking the next step toward become a fixture in a youthful Bears offensive line that projects to be together for some time.
The situation confronts the still-forming offense of coordinator Dowell Loggains with yet another continuity concern. Quarterback Jay Cutler was forced to work with three different centers (Grasu, Montgomery, Matt Slauson) last year alone and now, with the first preseason game on for Thursday against the Denver Broncos, the offense has another personnel switch to handle.
Grasu had made significant progress through the offseason and early going of camp, moving to secure the center position after rookie season that saw him start eight games but miss three games with a neck injury and then game 16 with a knee injury.
A torn ACL typically marks the end for the season, and whether Grasu is done for 2016 or could return, the Bears will be making roster tweaking. Veteran Ted Larsen has started 10 games at center while a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but has not started at the position since 2013. Rookie Cody Whitehair has taken practice snaps at center and Cornelius Edison, the FCS Rimington Award given to the top center in center and a member of the Bears’ practice squad late last season.
Grasu was the Bears’ third-round pick in the 2015 draft and was pressed into service when veteran Will Montgomery was lost for the year with a broken arm. The Bears had brought in retired NFL center Kevin Mawae to work with Grasu during training camp and indications were growing that Grasu was taking the next step toward become a fixture in a youthful Bears offensive line that projects to be together for some time.
The situation confronts the still-forming offense of coordinator Dowell Loggains with yet another continuity concern. Quarterback Jay Cutler was forced to work with three different centers (Grasu, Montgomery, Matt Slauson) last year alone and now, with the first preseason game on for Thursday against the Denver Broncos, the offense has another personnel switch to handle.
Follow-up: Bears GM Ryan Pace has several options for replacing center Hroniss Grasu.
By Phil Ottochian
(Photo/bearswire.com)
The loss of center Hroniss Grasu is a big one for the Bears on the eve of this year’s preseason.
The center position is arguably the most important along the offensive line and for a team that wants to run the ball down people’s throats — as John Fox said — this is a giant loss.
The only positive thing to take away from Grasu’s injury is that it happened early in camp. The Bears now have the rest of training camp to adjust their roster and make some moves if needed.
Heading into year two of the John Fox era, the Bears have had a continuous rotation of talent — or lack thereof — along the offensive line that long predates his arrival. Chicago needs to settle on one option to replace Grasu and commit to him for the season.
When Ted Larsen originally signed this offseason, he stated that he was joining the Bears with the intention of starting. His statements are likely to come to fruition as he appears to be the club’s best option at center now that Grasu is on the shelf.
The idea of moving rookie guard Cody Whitehair inside at center when he’s had very little experience playing there would be the wrong way to go. This is not to suggest Whitehair can’t do it; instead, it’s more about the future of the offensive line and the development of the continuity that the group has been lacking.
Larsen has experience playing center in the NFL, and as evidenced by the fights he’s started at training camp, he plays with an edge. He is a technician who can bring his starting experience to the lineup.
The good thing for the Bears is that they have a replacement option for Grasu already on the roster. That said, general manager Ryan Pace cannot assume upgrades aren't available on the street.
The first call he should make is to Manny Ramirez in an effort to see if he would be willing to come out of retirement and return to the Bears. This would require a little financial persuasion but would be worth the effort as he spent the entire offseason with the team and has experience with coach Fox.
Another option for Pace is former Arizona Cardinals center Lyle Sendlein. He would give the Bears a veteran who played in the league last season and who has some familiarity with current Bears on the offensive line. Sendlein is not going to blow you over with athletic talent but the man can play the position and his experience allows him to communicate fronts as he did for the Cardinals last year. He would be a bridge or security blanket to next season and he’s sitting out there waiting for a job.
Of course, the Bears could just stay pat and see what they have in Cornelius Edison, who Bears Wire analyst Lorin Cox had a firsthand view of at camp and came away impressed with the work and effort of the young first-year center.
At 6-foot-3 295 pounds, the rookie from Portland State has some traits required of a center. He gives plays with good technique and effort on every snap and is athletic for his size. He’ll need to add some weight and prove capable of handling all of the responsibilities of playing center in the NFL. It’s a tall order for the undrafted-free agent, but he’s on the roster for a reason.
If all else fails, one other street-free agent that could appeal to the Bears is veteran Ryan Wendell. The former New England Patriot is 30-years-old and has lost some tread on the tires, but he has played 8 seasons in the NFL starting 49 games for the Patriots. It’s still early enough in camp to give him a test run and would be a low-risk high reward move.
The way Pace handles this situation is going to be interesting to watch because it’s one of the first true hurdles he’s had to face as the team’s general manager. These next few days will tell the story of how the Bears and coaches feel about the talent along the line as the first round of roster cuts quickly approaches.
5 Reasons other teams should fear the 2016 Chicago Bears.
By Sam Householder
(Photo by Kena Krutsinger/Getty Images)
The Bears under John Fox last year managed to become a respectable team, one that was able to play close with each of their opponents, rarely letting a game get out of hand.
Now, in year two of their rebuilding process, here are five reasons why every Bears opponent should be scared when the Chicago Bears are hosting them or coming to their town:
1. The Run Defense has been shored up
Last season the Bears had the 22nd ranked rushing defense, getting gouged on the ground by opponents. But this offseason the invested serious resources into shoring up the front seven of the defense adding Danny Trevathan, Jerrell Freeman, Akiem Hicks and drafting Jonathan Bullard. Opponents should have a much tougher time running on them than last season.
2. The wide receiver corps has variety
As long as they’re healthy, which might be asking a lot, the Bears will have a very diverse skill set at receiver this season. Kevin White is a player that Jay Cutler claims he can’t overthrow. Alshon Jeffery has size and physicality that is imposing and an incredible catch radius. Eddie Royal offers some speed and agility in the slot and behind him Daniel Braverman is impressing in training camp. There is enough talent there for the group to be dangerous.
3. Cutler is working the same system for a change
This really can’t be overstated. It will mark only the third time in Cutler’s eight seasons in Chicago that he has not changed systems. While the player caller will change, there is still the basic system, the actual plays and concepts will be unchanged, meaning he will have a greater mastery of them. All the players that were here last season will all know the system just that much better. Cutler will have plays he likes and more go-to plays. The offense may have some shortcomings but they will not be unfamiliar with their scheme.
4. The Bears pack a pass rush
While no one is sure how much Leonard Floyd will contribute as a rookie, returning OLBs Willie Young, Lamarr Houston and Pernell McPhee combined for 20.5 of the team’s 35 sacks last season. If Floyd can add another five to that (conservative estimate call it) to go with what a second-year Eddie Goldman can add (4.5 last year) plus what Hicks can bring as well and that’s already near the teams total last season. With scheme familiarity and a good rotation to keep the players fresh, there is no reason to think the Bears D couldn’t reach 40 sacks as a team.
5. The team still has a solid coaching staff
A season ago the Bears’ biggest asset was their head coach. Fox took over an aging roster that was devoid of a lot of high-caliber talent and then they were ravaged by injuries. Despite that six of their 11 losses were by less than six points. Seven were eight or less points and four were losses by a field goal. If Fox could have that team in that many close games, then with a little more talent the team should be on the other side a few more times this season. Vic Fangio is one of the best defensive coordinators in the league. Dowell Loggains may not have the resume of Adam Gase but he has experience and familiarity with the rest of the staff. Last season the staff was probably the single strongest unit the team had and there is no reason to think they can’t get even more out of this team this year.
Brett Favre highlights Hall of Fame Class of 2016.
By Greg Rosenthal
2016 NFL Hall of Fame Class. Front Row - Marvin Harrison (88), Kevin Greene (91), Tony Dungy (Coach) and Brett Favre (4). 2nd Row - Edward DeBartolo Jr. (Owner), Orlando Pace (76) and Ken Stabler (12). Top Row - Dick Stanfel (63). (Photo/nfl.com)
Brett Favre stood apart throughout his NFL career. It only makes sense that he didn't have to wait long to join other legends in Canton, Ohio.
Tony Dungy, Kevin Greene, Marvin Harrison, Orlando Pace, Eddie DeBartolo Jr., Ken Stabler and Dick Stanfel will join Favre in the 2016 Pro Football Hall of Fame class, announced Saturday night at NFL Honors. Stabler and Stanfel were nominated by the Senior Committee. DeBartolo, the former 49ers owner, was enshrined as a nominee of the new Contributor Committee.
Noticeably absent from the list: first-ballot options Terrell Owens and Alan Faneca. Kurt Warner and Terrell Davis were also forced to wait another year for potential enshrinement. But Saturday's news was all about the eight men who will be immortalized in August with other football immortals.
Favre won the MVP award in three consecutive seasons from 1995 to 1997 and had a peak in his career that rivals any quarterback to ever play the game. His day in Canton was delayed a few seasons by coming out of retirement and finishing out his career with the Minnesota Vikings, a team he nearly took to the Super Bowl in the 2009 season. His arm strength, willingness to make difficult throws, and ability to play through any injury at a high level helped define a singular career. He finished his 20 seasons as the league's all-time leading passer in completions, yards, passing touchdowns and wins at quarterback.
The Hall of Fame committee righted a wrong by electing Harrison on his third year of eligibility. We've seen inferior players get in ahead of Harrison the last two years, but it was only a matter of time before he earned his due. Harrison was the silky-smooth deep threat who matched Peyton Manning's maniacal attention to detail with the Indianapolis Colts. Harrison was a rare route runner. He and Manning perfected the act of timing between a quarterback and a wide receiver. Defenses often knew what the Colts would do, but they were powerless to stop perfect execution.
The Colts drafted Harrison with a first-round pick acquired in a trade where Indy gave up Jeff George, a deal which worked out rather well. A six-time All-Pro, Harrison retired fourth all-time in receiving yards.
It will be special for Harrison to join the Hall of Fame with his former Colts coach. Tony Dungy packed a lot of winning into his 13 seasons as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Colts. Dungy immediately turned around a moribund Bucs franchise with his Tampa 2 defense and calm leadership. He became the first African-American head coach to win a Super Bowl with Indy after the 2006 season, and retired with a 148-79 record.
Longtime St. Louis Rams tackle Orlando Pace, like Harrison, should have been a first-ballot pick. But it's great to see one of the most dominant players of his era get rewarded by the Hall of Fame committee. Pace, the first selection of the 1997 draft, made five All-Pro teams and seven Pro Bowls. He was still often the most overlooked superstar on one of the greatest offenses in NFL history. Pace moved with the agility of a wide receiver, his nimble feet helping to keep St. Louis quarterbacks clean year after year.
Pace waited for his second year of eligibility to be chosen as a modern-era candidate for the Hall of Fame.
Saturday marked the end of a 13-year wait for linebacker Kevin Greene. Best known for his days with the Rams and Steelers, Greene had double-digit sacks in 10 seasons. Greene's consistency, energy and aggression stand out. It's extremely rare for any player to be a first-team All-Pro three different times for three different teams, including the Carolina Panthers. He could get after the passer in any uniform.
It doesn't get any better for Eddie DeBartolo Jr. than learning about his enshrinement in San Francisco, the city he helped win five Super Bowls in. Beloved by his former players, DeBartolo hired Bill Walsh as head coach in 1979, turning the franchise around. He presided over a team that averaged 13 wins per season from 1981 to 1998. The 49ers were the first franchise to ever win five Super Bowls, and posted the best winning percentages in both the 1980s and 1990s.
Hearing about Ken Stabler's enshrinement is bittersweet. "The Snake" passed away last July at the age of 69. The winner of Super Bowl XI, Stabler was known for his love of life and fearless play at the end of games.
"I've often said, 'If I had one drive to win a game to this day, and I had a quarterback to pick, I would pick Kenny,'" former Raiders coach John Madden said last year. "Snake was a lot cooler than I was. He was a perfect quarterback and a perfect Raider. When you think about the Raiders, you think about Ken Stabler."
Guard Dick Stanfel was the anchor of a dominant Lions team, earning team MVP in their 1953 championship season. While he only played seven seasons in the NFL, he was a first-team All-Pro five times. He was named to the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1950s. Stanfel passed away in June last year.
Favre figures to get the most attention in the time leading up to enshrinement, but all eight men deserve praise for climbing this final NFL mountain. Years after their playing career finished, they have achieved the greatest individual honor in the sport.
Hall of Fame Game cancelled because of unsafe field conditions.
By Eric Edholm
Well, that’s one way to shorten the preseason.
Well, that’s one way to shorten the preseason.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame game between the Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts was cancelled on Sunday evening because of unsafe field conditions.
The teams arrived at the stadium in Canton, Ohio, to find that the field was in terrible shape after Saturday night’s induction ceremony. Field workers worked furiously to try to get the field into playable condition, but both teams’ coaches feared that it was a major injury risk.
The NFL and NFLPA issued a joint statement after the decision to cancel the game was made official:
“Due to safety concerns with the condition of the playing surface in Canton, tonight’s game between the Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers has been cancelled. We are very disappointed for our fans, but player safety is our primary concern, and as a result, we could not play an NFL game on this field tonight.”
The surface of Tom Benson Field, named after the New Orleans Saints owner, was extremely hard (“like concrete,” per an ESPN report) because the paint applied to the ground had gummed up into a tar-like surface. ESPN’s Lisa Salters reported that that wrong paint was used on the surface before the game.
Still, the cancellation came as a surprise to many. It’s not often that any NFL game, even one that doesn’t count, is called off.
Realizing the bad look of the whole situation, the NFL and the Pro Football Hall of Fame had both teams stay at the stadium and turned the event into a fan experience. Fans will be refunded their ticket costs. Still, it’s a major embarrassment for the game that annually kicks off the exhibition season.
The Hall of Fame Game was canceled in 2011 because of the ongoing lockout. The game also twice was cut short because of lightning concerns.
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was not expected to play anyway, and both teams’ starters likely wouldn’t have had much more than a series in the 2016 preseason debut. Packers head coach Mike McCarthy and Colts head coach Chuck Pagano both expressed concerns about the state of the field, brought it up to game officials and monitored as the field crew tried to work on the surface before the game ultimately was canceled.
This was also scheduled to be the debut of “Monday Night Football play-by-play announcer Sean McDonough, who replaced Mike Tirico in the offseason, for ESPN. Now the game goes down as a major waste of money for the network, plus that for the travel expenses of thousands of fans who came to Canton — including scores from Wisconsin — yes, mostly to watch the induction speeches of Brett Favre and Tony Dungy and others, but also catch a little NFL football for the first time in seven months.
People might not love the preseason in general, but this still is a bad look for the NFL.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Chicago BlackhawksTop Five Current Rivalries.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Chicago BlackhawksTop Five Current Rivalries.
By Mario Tirabassi
Mar 30, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Los Angeles Kings center Jordan Nolan (71) and Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Michal Rozsival (32) fight during the second period at the United Center. (Photo/David Banks-USA TODAY Sports)
The Chicago Blackhawks’ success is creating new enemies.
Over the past decade, the Chicago Blackhawks have climbed to the top of the NHL mountain and have sustained a great amount of success. Since 2005, the new era of the NHL, the Blackhawks have had nine winning seasons, eight trips to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, six seasons of 100-plus points in the standings, five trips to the Western Conference finals and three Stanley Cup championships.
Problem is, you don’t get to have that kind of success without ruffling some feathers along the way. There are many ways in which a rivalry can be born or that can cause your blood to boil whenever you see your opposition.
Proximity of cities, long-standing history, playoff battles, etc. It all creates for amazing action whenever two teams that despise each other step onto the ice.
So here are the top five current rivals of the Chicago Blackhawks.
5. Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks’ rivalry with the Chicago Blackhawks has been born out of mutual success and their recent 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs battle, which was one for the ages.
Since 2005-06, the Ducks have been one of the top teams in the NHL’s Western Conference, having won the 2006-07 Stanley Cup, making five Stanley Cup Playoffs appearances under head coach Randy Carlyle from 2005-2012 and winning four straight Pacific Division titles under head coach Bruce Boudreau from 2013-2016.
Unfortunately for the Ducks, Stanley Cup Playoffs success hasn’t been in the cards, as Anaheim has been bounced out of the playoffs in the first round twice in the last four years and had its longest run in the playoffs cut short by none other than the Blackhawks.
In what has been one of the best Stanley Cup Playoffs matchups to watch in recent years, the Western Conference finals have sometimes surpassed the actual Stanley Cup Final in terms of on-ice action, storylines and general fan excitement and viewership.
The 2015 Western Conference finals between the Blackhawks and Ducks set the bar so high for the Stanley Cup Final that year, that the Blackhawks eventually defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning almost became an afterthought. That’s how intense the Ducks-Blackhawks series was, and that animosity spilled over into last season. No doubt that these two teams are not finished with each other yet.
4 . Minnesota Wild/North Stars
Chicago and Minnesota have a long-standing rivalry dating back to the time of the Minnesota North Stars. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, the Blackhawks and North Stars battled in the Norris Division and would routinely cross each others’ paths in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Chicago would win five Norris Division titles in that timeframe while Minnesota would win two, and the Blackhawks would win six division playoff titles while the North Stars would win just one. Also, the Blackhawks would go 4-2 in head-to-head Stanley Cup Playoffs matchups with the North Stars before the team relocated to Dallas in 1993.
In 2000, NHL hockey would return to Minnesota as the Wild were born. While the early 2000s weren’t too kind to the Blackhawks or the Wild, both teams were able to have marginal success and make the playoffs a handful of times leading up to the Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup victory in 2010.
Then, starting in the lockout-shortened 2013 season, the rivalry started to pick up again as the Blackhawks and Wild would meet in the Stanley Cup Playoffs three years in a row. Unfortunately for Minnesota, the Blackhawks would win all three matchups in the playoffs — 4-1 in the first round in 2013, 4-2 in the second round in 2014 and a 4-0 sweep in the second round of 2015.
Add in the fact that the Blackhawks and Wild were featured one of last season’s NHL Outdoor Stadium Series, in a 6-1 win for Minnesota at TCF Stadium, and this rivalry is alive and well yet again. Which is great for the NHL and Midwestern hockey fans alike.
3. Los Angeles Kings
The Blackhawks-Kings rivalry is one that was born out of mutual success. In 2010, the Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup. In 2012, the Kings won the Stanley Cup. In 2013, the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup and had to go through the Kings to do so.
Then, like something out of a Hollywood script, the Kings won the Stanley Cup in 2014, defeating the Blackhawks in the Western Conference finals that year.
Both teams have enjoyed an upswing in success over the past decade, and their battles in the Stanley Cup Playoffs have given the NHL some of the highest-rated playoff games in history. Not to mention their styles of play have been very different, as the Kings play a largely physically skilled style and the Blackhawks rely more on a speed-and-skill style of play.
The old saying of “styles make fights” is true in this rivalry and helps keep it exciting every year.
2 . Detroit Red Wings
What more is there to say that hasn’t already been said about one of the longest-running rivalries in the NHL? Two Original Six teams from hard-working, blue collar cities that have been cornerstones to the success of the NHL for over 90 years. Blackhawks-Red Wings is as storied a rivalry as it gets.
Just think of some of the great players who have lived through the rivalry in such huge ways like Gordie Howe, Bobby Hull, Steve Yzerman, Stan Mikita, Terry Sawchuk and even guys who have played on both sides like Bob Probert, Dominik Hasek, Chris Chelios, Stu Grimson and even Marian Hossa. It’s one of the best rivalries in all of North American sports.
Problem is, it’s hard to keep that history and animosity alive when the teams now only play each other twice a year, and the only way to see each other in the Stanley Cup Playoffs would be to reach the Final. Which would be incredibly epic if that does happen.
But the lasting image of the rivalry does sit on the side of the Blackhawks. In 2013, the Red Wings and Blackhawks met in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in their final Western Conference matchup.
After six hard-fought games, and the Blackhawks coming back from being down 3-1 in the series, it would be a Game 7 in Chicago that would determine the winner of the final battle of the rivalry as it was.
Other than Patrick Kane‘s goal in Game 6 of the 2015 Stanley Cup Final, that may be the loudest the United Center has ever been. While the Blackhawks-Red Wings rivalry still has some air of bad blood between it, it doesn’t feel the same now as it did in the past.
On the other hand, DE-TROIT SUCKS!
1. St. Louis Blues
While not an Original Six rivalry, the Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues hate each other as such. Since the NHL expansion in 1967, the Blues and Blackhawks have both been linked to major levels of success and having it come at the other’s expense. It also doesn’t hurt that the Cardinals and Cubs have a huge rivalry in baseball as well, essentially pitting the two cities against each other forever.
While the Blackhawks got the better of St. Louis early on in the rivalry, the Blues were able to start putting more and more pressure on the Blackhawks in the 1980s and really turned up the heat in the rivalry from there.
Since 1972, the Blackhawks and Blues have met 12 times in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with the Blackhawks winning eight of those matchups and the Blues winning four. Three of those Stanley Cup Playoffs series wins for the Blues have come in the last four meetings between the two teams, with St. Louis coming out on top in the 1993 first round, 2002 first round and last season’s first round.
It took a few years for the rivalry to reach the height that it’s at now, but just like with the Blackhawks and the Kings and Ducks, mutual success and Stanley Cup Playoffs battles make for great heat and great hockey. The best thing going for the Blues-Blackhawks rivalry is that they still play in the same division, unlike the Red Wings.
World Cup of Hockey 2016: Start times, TV schedule and live stream for the tournament.
By Satchel Price
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(Photo/Quinn Rooney/ Getty Images)
The NHL has released the full schedule for the upcoming World Cup of Hockey set for Sept. 17-Oct. 1 in Toronto. Eight teams will play in the tournament, and many of them include members of the Chicago Blackhawks. ESPN got the deal to broadcast the action, and every single game except for one will be on ESPN or ESPN2.
The schedule starts on Sept. 17 with a matchup between Team USA and Team Europe, which includes players from a number of European nations. That game will see Patrick Kane take on Marian Hossa, so there's one no-brainer reason to watch if you're a Chicago fan.
The tournament concludes the round robin stage on Sept. 22, then begins the semifinals on Sept. 24. The winners of the semifinals will then meet for a three-game championship series running from Sept. 27-Oct. 1.
Here's a quick look at the Hawks on each team:
The schedule starts on Sept. 17 with a matchup between Team USA and Team Europe, which includes players from a number of European nations. That game will see Patrick Kane take on Marian Hossa, so there's one no-brainer reason to watch if you're a Chicago fan.
The tournament concludes the round robin stage on Sept. 22, then begins the semifinals on Sept. 24. The winners of the semifinals will then meet for a three-game championship series running from Sept. 27-Oct. 1.
Here's a quick look at the Hawks on each team:
| Team | Players |
|---|---|
| United States | Patrick Kane |
| Canada | Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith, Corey Crawford |
| Russia | Artemi Panarin, Artem Anisimov |
| Finland | Ville Pokka |
| Sweden | Niklas Hjalmarsson, Marcus Kruger |
| Czech Republic | Michal Kempny |
| Europe | Marian Hossa |
And here's the complete schedule for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey on ESPN:
| Date | Time (ET) | Telecast | Network |
| Sat, Sep 17 | 3:30 p.m. | Group Play: USA vs. Europe | ESPN2 |
| 8 p.m. | Group Play: Czech Republic vs. Canada | ESPNEWS | |
| Sun, Sep 18 | 3 p.m. | Group Play: Sweden vs. Russia | ESPN |
| 8 p.m. | Group Play: North America vs. Finland | ESPN2 | |
| Mon, Sep 19 | 3 p.m. | Group Play: Europe vs. Czech Republic | ESPN2 |
| 8 p.m. | Group Play: Russia vs. North America | ESPN2 | |
| Tue, Sep 20 | 3 p.m. | Group Play: Finland vs. Sweden | ESPN |
| 8 p.m. | Group Play: Canada vs. USA | ESPN | |
| Wed, Sep 21 | 3 p.m. | Group Play: North America vs. Sweden | ESPN |
| 8 p.m. | Group Play: Europe vs Canada | ESPN2 | |
| Thu, Sep 22 | 3 p.m. | Group Play: Finland vs. Russia | ESPN |
| 8 p.m. | Group Play: USA vs. Czech Republic | ESPN2 | |
| Sat, Sep 24 | 7 p.m. | Semifinal one | ESPN2 |
| Sun, Sep 25 | 1 p.m. | Semifinal two | ESPN |
| Tue, Sep 27 | 8 p.m. | Final: Game one | ESPN |
| Thu, Sep 29 | 8 p.m. | Final: Game two | ESPN2 |
| Sat, Oct 1 | 7 p.m. | Final: Game three (if necessary) | ESPN2 |
CUBS: Kyle Hendricks' latest gem helps Cubs complete sweep of A's.
Associated Press
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Kyle Hendricks pitched into the eighth inning for his fifth win since June and the Chicago Cubs beat the Oakland Athletics 3-1 Sunday to complete a three-game sweep.
Kris Bryant and Jorge Soler both homered off A's starter Sean Manaea (3-7). Bryant's home run was his 27th this season, one more than the two-time All-Star had in 2015 when he was the NL's rookie of the year.
The Cubs' seventh straight win improved them to a major league-best 69-41 and marked their 10th series sweep this season. That topped their mark from a year ago, and increased their lead in the NL Central to 11 1/2 games over St. Louis.
Hendricks (11-7) was dominant against an A's team that had dropped seven of eight going into the day. Chicago's right-hander allowed three hits over 7 1/3 innings, struck out four and retired 17 straight before Marcus Semien's one-out home run in the eighth.
Hendrick lowered his ERA to 2.17, second-lowest in the majors among qualifiers behind the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw.
Pedro Strop retired two batters and Aroldis Chapman pitched the ninth for his third save since arriving in a trade from the New York Yankees on July 25.
Bryant and Soler finished with two hits apiece for the Cubs. Bryant homered leading off the sixth while Soler — who homered in the series-opener Friday after being activated from the disabled list earlier in the day — hit his seventh home run this season leading off the seventh.
Anthony Rizzo added an RBI double in the eighth.
The A's had not scored in 19 consecutive innings before Semien hit his 23rd home of the year, a towering solo shot that ended Hendricks' day.
Menaea bounced back from a rough outing against the Angels but remained winless since June 29. The rookie left-hander allowed two runs over six-plus innings, struck out four and walked two.
Jake Arrieta dominates, leads Cubs to sixth straight win. (Saturday's game, 08/06/2016).
Associated Press
Kris Bryant and Jorge Soler both homered off A's starter Sean Manaea (3-7). Bryant's home run was his 27th this season, one more than the two-time All-Star had in 2015 when he was the NL's rookie of the year.
The Cubs' seventh straight win improved them to a major league-best 69-41 and marked their 10th series sweep this season. That topped their mark from a year ago, and increased their lead in the NL Central to 11 1/2 games over St. Louis.
Hendricks (11-7) was dominant against an A's team that had dropped seven of eight going into the day. Chicago's right-hander allowed three hits over 7 1/3 innings, struck out four and retired 17 straight before Marcus Semien's one-out home run in the eighth.
Hendrick lowered his ERA to 2.17, second-lowest in the majors among qualifiers behind the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw.
Pedro Strop retired two batters and Aroldis Chapman pitched the ninth for his third save since arriving in a trade from the New York Yankees on July 25.
Bryant and Soler finished with two hits apiece for the Cubs. Bryant homered leading off the sixth while Soler — who homered in the series-opener Friday after being activated from the disabled list earlier in the day — hit his seventh home run this season leading off the seventh.
Anthony Rizzo added an RBI double in the eighth.
The A's had not scored in 19 consecutive innings before Semien hit his 23rd home of the year, a towering solo shot that ended Hendricks' day.
Menaea bounced back from a rough outing against the Angels but remained winless since June 29. The rookie left-hander allowed two runs over six-plus innings, struck out four and walked two.
Jake Arrieta dominates, leads Cubs to sixth straight win. (Saturday's game, 08/06/2016).
Associated Press
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
NL Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta isn't quite satisfied he's recovered his dominant stuff after a pedestrian July.
"Really close," Arrieta said when asked if he's back to full strength.
Arrieta (13-5) was 0-3 in his previous five starts and 1-4 since ending a 20-decision winning streak on June 22. He struck out four and walked one on 108 pitches.
"Emphasis (is) on sinking the ball down, middle down in the strike zone and forcing action early on," Arrieta said. "Not worrying about strikeouts. Those will come in big situations. Maybe guy on third, a guy on second base, no outs, less than two, punchouts are more important. I'm trying to get through the middle innings."
The NL Central-leading Cubs have won six straight and 16 of 22, and they moved a season-best 27 games over .500 for a second time this season. They gave the A's their seventh loss in eight games.
Ben Zobrist's two-out two-run single off former A's teammate Sonny Gray broke a scoreless tie in the top of the third.
"I'm watching them out there from the very first pitch ... they're engaged, they're present-tense, ready to go," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "The guys are very confident right now, and the pitching permits this all to happen. You can't get hot without good pitching and our starters have been fantastic."
"We're firing on all cylinders right now," Arrieta said. "Does that mean we won't lose three in a row? Who knows? It doesn't matter to us. We want to come out tomorrow and keep the momentum on our side."
Gray (5-11) left after five innings with soreness in the extensor muscle in his right forearm. He allowed two runs on five hits.
He first felt the injury after striking out Dexter Fowler with a curveball in the top of the fourth.
"I was trying to go back out there for the sixth," Gray said. "I told them after the fourth I had a little bit of an issue come up and when I went back out for the fifth it kind of felt the same.
"They kind of decided to shut it down there. I lobbied to go back out there. It obviously wasn't going to happen."
The injury is the latest setback in a disastrous season for the 26-year-old right-hander, who's already been on the disabled list with a right shoulder injury. Gray, a 2015 All-Star who last season finished third in AL Cy Young balloting, had the highest ERA in the majors (5.84) going into Saturday.
Zobrist and Addison Russell had two hits each for the Cubs.
Jorge Soler homers in return to help Lester, Cubs beat A's.
Associated Press
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Cubs manager Joe Maddon thought Jorge Soler might get a jolt out of returning to the majors after spending two months recovering from a nagging hamstring injury, including a two-week stint in the minors.
Boy, was Maddon right.
Soler hit a three-run home run in his first at-bat after being activated off the disabled list, Jon Lester pitched seven strong innings, and Chicago beat the Oakland Athletics 7-2 on Friday night.
"Sometimes a guy just needs to show up and then he gets the adrenaline going on, and that was a big hit," Maddon said. "I didn't think it was high enough to go out. It was out so quickly."
Dexter Fowler also homered while Javier Baez added a two-run double to help Chicago win its fifth straight. The Cubs also improved to a major league-best 67-41.
Lester (12-4) pitched for the A's over the final two months of the 2014 season after getting traded from Boston. He returned to the Coliseum for the first time since then and faced a distinctly different Oakland team than the one he left.
"Any time you've been on the home side and come back as a visitor it's different," said Lester, who had eight strikeouts, and allowed two runs on nine hits.
"I enjoyed pitching here. I wish it turned out a little different but I was with a good team and great fans. It's unbelievable to come here as a home player as opposed to a visitor."
Soler, out since June 6 with a hamstring injury, celebrated his return to the majors with his home run in the first inning off A's starter Dillon Overton (1-3).
That capped a four-run burst by the Cubs that included Fowler's fifth game-opening home run this season.
Soler also reached on a fielder's choice and scored on Baez's double in the third. Jason Heyward added an RBI single in the inning to help extend Chicago's lead to 7-0.
"I wasn't feeling any pressure, I just wanted to put a good swing on the ball," Soler said through an interpreter. "I was a little bit frustrated being out at least two months but I just wanted to keep the positive attitude and come here and try to do my best."
Brett Eibner, called up from the minors earlier in the day, homered against Lester leading off the sixth for Oakland. Marcus Semien added an RBI single.
ROOKIE ROUGHED UP
Overton allowed seven runs in three innings but suffered his third consecutive loss. The rookie left-hander is winless since beating the Los Angeles Angels in his major league debut June 25. "Believe it or not I was actually hitting my spots better tonight," Overton said. "They were just hitting everything I threw. You're going to have days like that You just have to work with it and keep grounded."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cubs: Maddon said the plan is to ease Soler back in and get him some defensive work in the outfield before the team faces another NL team on Aug. 11. ... RHP Joe Nathan was designated for assignment. The 41-year-old was 1-0 in three appearances with the Chicago.
Athletics: Jed Lowrie was placed on the 15-day disabled list because of a bunion on his left foot. ... RHP Jesse Hahn also went on the DL with a strained right shoulder. ... RHP Andrew Triggs was called back up from Triple-A Nashville along with Eibner.
Manny Machado homers three times as O's rout Shields, White Sox.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
James Shields ran into Manny Machado at the wrong time.
Shields had his worst outing of the season on Sunday afternoon and Machado homered three times as the Baltimore Orioles routed the White Sox 10-2 in front of 31,040 at U.S. Cellular Field. The right-hander allowed eight earned runs and six hits, including four home runs, in 1 1/3 innings and the White Sox dropped back to a season-worst five games under .500.
Jose Abreu doubled, singled and homered in the loss. J.J. Hardy and Chris Davis also homered for Baltimore.
“I was pretty much bad all-around,” Shields said. “I wasn’t in my spots, I was leaving the ball out over the plate and they were capitalizing. You can’t do that to this team — they’re too good of a team and I’ve got to do a better job today overall. There’s no excuse — no excuse whatsoever for that today.”
Shields, who allowed 32 runs (31 earned) in a four-game stretch earlier this season, finished with a Game Score of minus-15. His previous worst this season was minus-1 when he allowed 10 earned runs in 2 2/3 innings on May 31 for the San Diego Padres, his final start before he was traded to the White Sox.
Much like those efforts, it didn’t take long to determine Shields didn’t have it.
After a one-out single by Hyun Soo Kim, Machado blasted a 90-mph fastball out to center from Shields to put the Orioles ahead by two runs. Shields hit the next batter (Chris Davis) and walked another but escaped without further damage.
“If it's not there it's not like he's throwing 98 and that makes up for it,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “He's got to locate. I know he was upset with the first one Manny hit that came back over the plate. You've got a guy that was extremely hot today and is one of the best players in the game. You can't make mistakes like that. (Machado) just single-handedly put us in a hole.”
Shields wasn’t as lucky in the second inning as J.J. Hardy’s solo homer with one out made it 3-0. Shields then hit a batter and walked another before Machado deposited a cut-fastball into the left-field bullpen for a three-run homer.
Davis followed with a homer and a Steve Pearce double knocked Shields out of the contest. He walked two and hit two as he dropped to 5-14.
“It’s been a crazy season for me,” Shields said. “But like I said, today – there’s no excuse for that. I’ve got to do a better job of focusing and making my pitches and we’ve just got to move on from there.”
Machado also blasted a two-run homer off reliever Matt Albers in the third inning as Baltimore took a 10-0 lead. He became only the second player in major league history to homer in the first, second and third innings, matching Carl Reynolds, who previously accomplished the feat on July 2, 1930.
Prior to Machado, Paul Konerko was the last player to homer three times in a game at U.S. Cellular Field when he did it July 7, 2009. Justin Morneau was the last visitor to hit three homers at U.S. Cellular Field when he did it in the second game of a doubleheader on July 6, 2007.
Machado grounded into a double play against Tommy Kahnle in the fifth and flew out against Carson Fulmer in the seventh inning. He also grounded out in the ninth inning against Michael Ynoa in his bid to become the 17th player in baseball history with four homers in the same game.
“I’ve been trying to find my swing,” Machado said. “This whole series I’ve been kind of squaring up some balls, which is fun. Today they finally went out the ballpark. The ball was going out a little bit, so that helped. It was an overall great day.”
Shields had his worst outing of the season on Sunday afternoon and Machado homered three times as the Baltimore Orioles routed the White Sox 10-2 in front of 31,040 at U.S. Cellular Field. The right-hander allowed eight earned runs and six hits, including four home runs, in 1 1/3 innings and the White Sox dropped back to a season-worst five games under .500.
Jose Abreu doubled, singled and homered in the loss. J.J. Hardy and Chris Davis also homered for Baltimore.
“I was pretty much bad all-around,” Shields said. “I wasn’t in my spots, I was leaving the ball out over the plate and they were capitalizing. You can’t do that to this team — they’re too good of a team and I’ve got to do a better job today overall. There’s no excuse — no excuse whatsoever for that today.”
Shields, who allowed 32 runs (31 earned) in a four-game stretch earlier this season, finished with a Game Score of minus-15. His previous worst this season was minus-1 when he allowed 10 earned runs in 2 2/3 innings on May 31 for the San Diego Padres, his final start before he was traded to the White Sox.
Much like those efforts, it didn’t take long to determine Shields didn’t have it.
After a one-out single by Hyun Soo Kim, Machado blasted a 90-mph fastball out to center from Shields to put the Orioles ahead by two runs. Shields hit the next batter (Chris Davis) and walked another but escaped without further damage.
“If it's not there it's not like he's throwing 98 and that makes up for it,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “He's got to locate. I know he was upset with the first one Manny hit that came back over the plate. You've got a guy that was extremely hot today and is one of the best players in the game. You can't make mistakes like that. (Machado) just single-handedly put us in a hole.”
Shields wasn’t as lucky in the second inning as J.J. Hardy’s solo homer with one out made it 3-0. Shields then hit a batter and walked another before Machado deposited a cut-fastball into the left-field bullpen for a three-run homer.
Davis followed with a homer and a Steve Pearce double knocked Shields out of the contest. He walked two and hit two as he dropped to 5-14.
“It’s been a crazy season for me,” Shields said. “But like I said, today – there’s no excuse for that. I’ve got to do a better job of focusing and making my pitches and we’ve just got to move on from there.”
Machado also blasted a two-run homer off reliever Matt Albers in the third inning as Baltimore took a 10-0 lead. He became only the second player in major league history to homer in the first, second and third innings, matching Carl Reynolds, who previously accomplished the feat on July 2, 1930.
Prior to Machado, Paul Konerko was the last player to homer three times in a game at U.S. Cellular Field when he did it July 7, 2009. Justin Morneau was the last visitor to hit three homers at U.S. Cellular Field when he did it in the second game of a doubleheader on July 6, 2007.
Machado grounded into a double play against Tommy Kahnle in the fifth and flew out against Carson Fulmer in the seventh inning. He also grounded out in the ninth inning against Michael Ynoa in his bid to become the 17th player in baseball history with four homers in the same game.
“I’ve been trying to find my swing,” Machado said. “This whole series I’ve been kind of squaring up some balls, which is fun. Today they finally went out the ballpark. The ball was going out a little bit, so that helped. It was an overall great day.”
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session..... Jimmy Butler scores eight in USA's rout of China.
By CSN Staff
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Jimmy Butler's first Olympics game went exactly as planned.
Butler, who is the first Bulls player to compete for Team USA in the Olympics since Scottie Pippen in 1996, tallied eight points, six rebounds and four assists in USA Basketball's 119-62 win over China.
The 26-year-old wing outworked China on the glass for most of the night, but his biggest play came when he powered through contact for a three-point play in the first quarter.
Butler also added a buzzer-beating layup to cap the opening period.
Kevin Durant led USA Basketball with 25 points, while Demarcus Cousins added 17 of his own.
USA will continue the group stage Monday against Venezuela.
Butler, who is the first Bulls player to compete for Team USA in the Olympics since Scottie Pippen in 1996, tallied eight points, six rebounds and four assists in USA Basketball's 119-62 win over China.
The 26-year-old wing outworked China on the glass for most of the night, but his biggest play came when he powered through contact for a three-point play in the first quarter.
Butler also added a buzzer-beating layup to cap the opening period.
Kevin Durant led USA Basketball with 25 points, while Demarcus Cousins added 17 of his own.
USA will continue the group stage Monday against Venezuela.
Golf: I got a club for that..... Knox edges Kelly to win Travelers Championship.
By Will Gray
After history was made early in the day, Russell Knox rallied to add another trophy to his collection at the Travelers Championship. Here's how things ended up at TPC River Highlands, where Knox won for the second time this season:
Leaderboard: Russell Knox (-14), Jerry Kelly (-13), Patrick Rodgers (-12), Justin Thomas (-12), Jim Furyk (-11), Daniel Berger (-11)
What it means: Furyk stole the show with an unprecedented 58 to race up the standings before the leaders even teed off, and once they did it seemed like this could be a coronation for Berger who led by three shots. Instead, the American stumbled and left an opening for Knox, who promptly took advantage with a 68 that included a dramatic par to close. After a win earlier this season at the WGC-HSBC Champions, the Scot is again in the winner's circle and has firmly stamped his name as a contender for one of Darren Clarke's captain's picks to round out the European Ryder Cup team. He also joins Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, Jason Day and Dustin Johnson as players with multiple wins this season.
Round of the day: Forget "day," this was the round of all time on the PGA Tour. Furyk was already one of six players to shoot a 59 in competition, but he went one better with a 12-under 58 that broke the circuit's all-time scoring record. His round included a hole-out eagle on No. 3, seven straight birdies on Nos. 6-12 and only 24 putts after the veteran found each of the 18 greens in regulation.
Best of the rest: A final-round 62 would stand out under most circumstances, but Sunday all it earned Thomas was second-billing. Still, it helped the young American out of a mini-drought and gave Thomas his first top-10 finish since a T-3 result at The Players Championship back in May. Thomas made nine birdies on the day, including five in a row on Nos. 5-9.
Biggest disappointment: Berger appeared to have things well in hand after a third-round 62 that gave him a three-shot lead, but the American fell back with a 4-over 74. It was a valuable opportunity to rack up Ryder Cup points that went unrealized, and Berger actually ended up tied with Furyk despite starting the day 16 shots ahead.
Shot of the day: Knox found a greenside bunker on the 72nd hole and blasted out to 12 feet. But the Scot calmly rolled that putt in to secure the victory and avoid a playoff with Kelly.
Quote of the day: "That putt, I'll remember that one forever." - Knox
Furyk goes from feeling 'lost' to shooting 58.
By Ryan Lavner
(Photo/Golf Channel)
It was Sept. 13, 2013, and Jim Furyk was busy retelling every detail of how he’d joined golf’s most exclusive club. Earlier that day, he had shot 59 in the second round of the BMW Championship, an effortless round on a difficult day at Conway Farms.
“I’m not a smell-the-roses type of guy,” he said, “but I mean, how many times am I going to shoot 59 in my life?”
At least once more, apparently.
Less than three years later, Furyk outdid himself and posted the lowest score in PGA Tour history: a 12-under 58 Sunday at the Travelers Championship.
“I’m still a little stunned and a little flabbergasted,” he said.
Hey, so are we.
Back in 2013, Furyk was coming off a pedestrian 72 in the opening round of the BMW. The next day, he shot golf’s magic number, a score more than 12 shots better than the field average.
His 58 Sunday at TPC River Highlands, a par 70, came similarly out of the blue.
Furyk birdied three of the last four holes Friday just to make the cut. After a third-round 72, he retreated to the range to hit a big bag of balls. He became so frustrated with his ball-striking that he instructed caddie Mike “Fluff” Cowan to take pictures of his swing to send back home to his father/swing coach, Mike. The fix was a tighter, shorter backswing.
Furyk has a funky swing that no instructor today would teach, but his results are undeniable – it’s repeatable and produces consistent contact, leading to 17 victories and more than $65 million in earnings.
And now, yes, a spot in the record books.
In 70th place and in the third group off Sunday, Furyk birdied the second hole, jarred a wedge on the third for eagle and added another birdie on 4. Starting at the sixth, he ripped off seven birdies in a row.
Furyk’s momentum slowed on the par-5 13th, where he made par after laying up with his second shot, and then missed 10-footers on the next two holes. He moved one step closer to history with a 23-footer for birdie on 16, then made a pair of stress-free pars to finish. As Furyk climbed the hill behind the green, the crowd chanted “58! 58! 58!”
How was it possible?
How could he trim 14 shots in 24 hours?
How could he fire the best round in Tour history a day after texting his dad, searching for answers?
“It’s kind of a reminder,” he said, “that no matter how bad you feel with your swing, you’re never that far away.”
And so continued an incredible month of scoring in golf.
Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson put on a show at Royal Troon, with each making a run at 62 and the Swede posting the best 72-hole total in major history.
On July 28, just 10 days ago, Stephan Jaeger shot 58 on the Web.com Tour, the lowest score in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event.
Jaeger went on to win that week, while Furyk finished in a tie for fifth. (Go figure: Furyk has shot two of the best rounds in Tour history, and he has no wins to show for it.)
Inevitably, the next few weeks will be devoted to Ryder Cup prognosticating: Who’s in, who’s out, who’s on the bubble?
Furyk, who missed nine months because of a wrist injury, would require a captain’s pick to make his 10th team. He already had caught Davis Love III’s eye before his record performance Sunday – his name was mentioned seven times during Love’s presser at the PGA. Love seemed to be searching for any reason to pick him. Veteran leadership, a runner-up at the U.S. Open, a record 58 – it seems Furyk now has a compelling case.
And it all started, he said, because he didn’t want to mail it in Sunday. Because he didn’t want to post another mediocre round heading into an off-week. Because he didn’t want to play 11 of 14 weeks and enter the regular-season finale on both the FedEx and Ryder Cup bubble.
“Mentally, more than anything else,” he said, “I’m a little fried.”
But physically, he just put together a flawless round of golf.
There have been approximately one and a half million rounds played on the PGA Tour, and Jim Furyk – the aging warrior with a weird swing and a grinder mentality in a power-player era – is the first to shoot a pair of sub-60 scores.
No, he might not be a smell-the-roses type, but Furyk appreciates golf history and his new place in it.
“No one else can say they’ve done that out here on the PGA Tour,” he said. “It’s really special, and it’s probably going to take a little while for it to sink in and really put it into perspective.”
Why golf has gone the way of the three-martini lunch.
By Kathleen Burke
(Photo/Getty Images)
The golf industry is pushing 9-hole rounds and more family-friendly country clubs.
Lately, Steven Herz has noticed something different on the golf course: No one is there.
“The courses are much less crowded,” he says. “It’s fascinating to me how open they are.” Herz, 50, who lives in Manhattan and is the president of talent agency IF Management, is a member of the golfing service Eligo, which allows him to access 80 private golf clubs in the U.S. and Europe without having to join one.
Lately, Steven Herz has noticed something different on the golf course: No one is there.
“The courses are much less crowded,” he says. “It’s fascinating to me how open they are.” Herz, 50, who lives in Manhattan and is the president of talent agency IF Management, is a member of the golfing service Eligo, which allows him to access 80 private golf clubs in the U.S. and Europe without having to join one.
The meager attendance Herz has noticed isn’t limited to courses in the New York metro area. The entire U.S. golf industry has been experiencing slow growth in participation and club memberships for the past five years, according to data from industry research firm IBISWorld: From 2011 to 2016, golf course and country club revenue grew by little more than 1% annually.
And on Wednesday, Nike NKE, +1.93% announced that it was ceasing production of golf equipment, focusing instead on golf shoes and apparel. The reason for the transition is to pursue “sustainable profitable growth for Nike Golf,” said Nike brand president Trevor Edwards, in a statement.
“With two-income families that share responsibilities, golf clubs are now a place where the entire family needs to have some kind of benefit,” says Steve Mona, chief executive of the World Golf Foundation (WGF), an organization that promotes the growth of the sport internationally.
In nearly half of U.S. families, both parents are fully employed, and of those families, nearly 40% of couples equally share the managing of their children’s schedules and about 60% share household chores equally, according to a Pew Research survey released in November 2015. In 1970, just 31% of families consisted of both parents working full time, while in 46% of families, the mother stayed at home, according to Pew.
Additionally, the proliferation of mobile devices in the workplace has blurred the line between work and leisure time — with the latter suffering, studies show. About two-thirds of U.S. workers owned smartphones in 2013, according to Pew, and the same amount reported working during their leisure and vacation times, according to Accenture. “There’s a lot of competition for people’s available leisure time,” says Nick Petrillo, an analyst at IBISWorld.
“We live in a 24/7 world,” says Gerald Celente, publisher of Kingston, N.Y.-based Trends Journal. “People are working longer and harder just to stay even. It’s a virtual world, and golf has no place in that world.”
In addition to its appeal as a leisure activity, playing golf used to be an integral part of climbing the corporate ladder, Celente says, but the practice has gone the way of the “three-martini lunch.” Younger workers have begun to move away from doing business on the golf course or at the steakhouse, instead bringing clients to faster-paced activities like CrossFit.
Recognizing these changing preferences, the golf industry is making changes to retain players and attract new ones. In 2014, the U.S. Golf Association introduced its Play9 campaign to encourage people to play shorter and more cost-effective games. The organization recorded a 13% year-over-year increase in nine-hole games played from 2014 to 2015 and an 11% year-over-year increase from 2015 to 2016, according to Dave Aznavorian, senior director of marketing at the USGA.
“There’s something almost magical about a two-hour block of time,” Aznavorian says. “The more time an activity takes, the more challenging it is to attract participants.”
The R&A, which was formed out of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, is the Scotland-based governing body for golf in every country except the U.S. and Mexico. The organization held its first nine-hole championship on July 9 at the Royal Troon Golf Club in Scotland. The organization decided on the event after 60% of golfers reported that they would enjoy playing more if it took less time, according to an R&A survey of 56,000 players in 122 countries.
Courses are even changing their rules to make playing more appealing, relaxing dress codes and allowing music on the course, says WGF’s Mona. “If golf is going to compete against other forms of recreation, courses have to allow what people are used to doing,” Mona says.
Country clubs are also adding or revamping amenities to appeal to family members of all ages and the new joining member demographic of older millennials, says Frank Vain, president of McMahon Group, which provides consulting services to clubs. “Joining a club is a personal choice now,” Vain says, citing the cutbacks in corporate-sponsored memberships. “People tend to be asking for a bit more to get that value.”
In the early 2010s, golf participation among Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 was 9%, down from 14% in the early 1990s, according to data from the National Golf Foundation. Generation X — people born between 1965 and 1980 — makes up the largest proportion of golfers today, accounting for nearly 7 million of the 24.7 million golfers nationwide. However, millennials are more likely to take up golf after an increase in income, as the generation’s older cohort had higher participation rates than those between the ages of 24 and 29 who had mounting student loan and credit card debt, according to the NGF.
And choosing to take up golf is no small expense — the average annual cost of membership to a private golf club in the U.S. is about $6,245, not including initiation fees, according to Golf Digest. The cost of an 18-hole round at a daily-fee course can range from $15 to $150.
Retailers have taken note in the declining popularity of the sport as well. In August 2014, Dick’s Sporting Goods chief executive Ed Stack said in an earnings call that golf was the company’s “most challenging business,” adding that the company would cut down on hiring and store space devoted to the sport.
As more players defect from traditional golf courses, driving ranges and other non-membership venues have seen higher growth rates. Driving ranges and “family fun” centers such as miniature golf courses and batting cages saw a revenue growth of more than 3% annually between 2011 and 2016, according to IBISWorld. The growth was attributed to “time-strapped individuals” looking for more convenient ways to play golf and other leisure activities, according to the report.
Topgolf, an indoor driving range chain that includes event spaces, food and drinks, had 8 million visitors in 2015 playing 23.3 million games, up from 2.3 million visitors and 7.8 million games in 2013. Topgolf has done well appealing to millennials and families, the WGF’s Mona says. “We’re encouraged by it because it’s getting people to try the game who normally wouldn’t have,” he says. Topgolf didn't respond to a request for comment.
With the initiatives to play shorter games and the growing popularity of alternative golfing venues, industry organizations hope to change the popular opinion of golf as a time-consuming and expensive activity. “We want people to see it as something you can do in a finite period of time, cost effectively,” Aznavorian says.
Other golfers aren’t as optimistic for the sport’s makeover. “Unless we see another transcendent figure come on the scene, golf is going to stay the same,” Herz says, referring to Tiger Woods, who was incredibly popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s. “People aren’t having three-martini lunches anymore and they’re not doing business on the golf course.”
NASCAR: Denny Hamlin claims first road course win in Cheez-It 355 at Watkins Glen.
By Daniel McFadin
Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Freight Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Cheez-It 355 at Watkins Glen International on August 7, 2016 in Watkins Glen, New York. (Photo/Matt Sullivan Getty Images)
Like Joey Logano in 2015, Denny Hamlin claimed his first win since the Daytona 500 with a victory in the Cheez-It 355 at Watkins Glen International.
Hamlin led the final 10 laps and outran Martin Truex Jr. and Brad Keselowski in a shootout after a restart with four laps to go.
It appeared a replay of the Daytona 500 finish between Hamlin and Truex might unfold. But excitement happened behind. As they exited the final turn, Keselowski got into Truex and spun him into the inside wall as Hamlin went on unscathed for the win.
“I overshot the corner (at Sonoma) and I didn’t want to do it this time and so I probably under drove and allowed those guys to get closer than I should have,” Hamlin told NBC Sports.
It’s Hamlin’s first road course win of his Sprint Cup career after coming within one turn of winning at Sonoma Raceway in June. Hamlin overshot the final turn after passing Tony Stewart for the lead. Stewart slammed Hamlin and claimed the win.
Hamlin’s enthusiastic burnout destroyed the tires on his No. 11 Toyota, forcing Hamlin, who woke up with back spasms Sunday morning, to gingerly exit the car and walk to victory lane.
“I really doubted being in the race car today, I’ll be honest with you,” Hamlin said, as he waited for his car to be pushed to victory lane. Hamlin stuck through the pain for his 28th Sprint Cup win.
“Should have won both road course races, which we never would have predicted at the beginning of the year,” Hamlin said. “This is a good sign, I’ve finally won at all the (different style) race tracks. It’s a great accomplishment for us.”
The top five was Hamlin, Joey Logano, Keselowski, AJ Allmendinger and Tony Stewart.
HOW DENNY HAMLIN WON: Hamlin led the final 10 laps and held off the threat of Martin Truex Jr., who spun in the final turn from contact with Brad Keselowski.
WHO HAD A GOOD DAY: Joey Logano led seven laps before being called for speeding on pit road. Despite suffering front end damage, Logano used multiple late-race cautions to get back to second place … Tony Stewart fell back in the pack early after missing the bus stop, but also used late race cautions to earn a top five in his last start at the road course where he had five wins … Trevor Bayne finished ninth for his best-career finish in two WGI starts and his fifth top 10 of the season …
WHO HAD A BAD DAY: A crash on a Lap 53 restart included Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Austin Dillon and Greg Biffle. … The race went green with 34 to go. The lap wasn’t over before a crash unfolded with pole-sitter Carl Edwards, Clint Bowyer, David Ragan and Alex Kennedy. Edwards finished 15th … Kennedy brought out the caution again with 14 laps to go after breaking down on the frontstretch … On a restart with seven laps to go, David Ragan, Kevin Harvick, Chris Buescher and Matt DiBenedetto wrecked at the exit of the bus stop and brought out the second red flag, which lasted 16 minutes and 44 seconds … Half a straightaway from the finish, AJ Allmendinger made contact with and wrecked Kyle Larson near the pit road entrance. Instead of a top five, Larson finished 29th.
NOTABLE: Jimmie Johnson earned his fourth DNF in the last nine races … Kevin Harvick’s DNF was his second of the year (Daytona II) … Danica Patrick led 11 laps just prior to the halfway point. She had led 10 laps in the previous 21 races.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Of course it’s going to be crazy, it’s Watkins Glen. This is an awesome track and feelings are going to get hurt.” – Joey Logano, who finished second in the Cheez-It 355.
NEXT: Bass Pro Shops / NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 20 at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN
Tony Stewart smiling again after fifth, but his thoughts are with Bryan Clauson and family.
By Nate Ryan
(Photo/nbcsports.com)
In the bright sunshine of a late Sunday afternoon at Watkins Glen International, it was all smiles for Tony Stewart after exiting the No. 14 Chevrolet.
The three-time series champion joked about benefiting from the overly aggressive tactics of his peers, beamed about his team grinding out its fourth top five in five races and bantered about a NASCAR.com reporter’s forearm-length postage stamp tattoo.
“That’s awesome,” Stewart said. “I might borrow that idea if it’s all right and do Columbus, Indiana, on it. That way they know where to send me back if something happens.”
But his mood turned serious when asked about how difficult it was to climb into the No. 14 Chevrolet a few hours earlier while burdened with the knowledge of good friend Bryan Clauson clinging to life after a wicked crash in a Midget race Saturday night.
“It was hard to start the day today in the car,” he said. “It sucks when it’s anybody in racing. It’s hard when you lose them, but it’s even worse when they’re somebody as close to you as Bryan was.
“I feel for Lauren (Clauson’s fiancée) today and Bryan’s parents and his sister, and I hope to be able to see them soon, but just thinking about them more than anything right now.”
Clauson ran for the 2010 USAC Silver Crown championship with Tony Stewart Racing, one of several teams he won with during a storied open-wheel career. He also is a three-time Indianapolis 500 starter and ran in the NASCAR Xfinity Series from 2007-08 with Chip Ganassi Racing (several in the NASCAR industry, including Stewart, expressed their support of Clauson before Sunday’s race).
“Terrible thoughts,” Stewart said when asked about Clauson’s crash in Belleville, Kansas. “ It’s a tragedy. That kid drove for us for a long time and did a great job. I don’t care what happened, no matter how bad his day was, he always found a way to smile with it. Him and Lauren being engaged; kid had such a bright future.”
Stewart would be seeing many in the sprint car community soon, heading Sunday night from Watkins Glen to the Knoxville Nationals in Iowa to begin the last off-week of his final season in Sprint Cup.
His fifth top five in 14 starts this season came in a race when he avoided trouble that found many other veterans, particularly in the closing laps.
“The spotter was telling me pairs of guys that were mad at each other,” he said. “I was like, ‘For once I’m not mad at anybody with six laps to go.’ So that was a nice position to be. When you get 10 to go like that, you get restarts, it’s going to be pretty hectic and guys are going to be running into each other and pushing each other out of the way. I’m pretty happy to come out of it with a top five.”
He gave much of the credit to rookie crew chief Mike Bugarweicz, who crafted a solid strategy after Stewart fell all the way to 32nd at the midpoint after serving a stop-and-go penalty for missing the inner loop of the track.
“It wasn’t pretty,” Stewart said. “I faded a little at the beginning and had some problems with our brakes getting hot at the first run there. We kind of just stuck to our strategy, and I’m so impressed with Buga. He’s so good at figuring out the strategy.
“He’s real good at being able to … analyze where we’re at and what we need to do to get where we need to be. I’m pretty excited about how good he is at calling a race like that.”
After missing the first eight races with a fractured back, Stewart has climbed from 40th to 26th in the points and is solidly in the playoffs (thanks to his Sonoma victory) with four races remaining in the regular season. He is ahead of nine drivers who have started every race.
“We just keep being consistent, even on days we don’t have a top 10 or top five car,” he said. “We’re finding ways to make top fives out of it. That’s what you’ve got to do in the Chase. You’ve got to be able to make something out of nothing, and these guys are doing a great job out of that.”
SOCCER: Fire fall behind early and lose at Real Salt Lake.
By Dan Santaromita
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Looking to keep key players fresh ahead of Tuesday's U.S. Open Cup semifinal in New England, Fire coach Veljko Paunovic made a number of changes to his lineup Saturday at Real Salt Lake.
Considering the Fire's lineup, the team's league-record road winless streak and that RSL is undefeated at home this season, the result went as expected. The hosts won 3-1.
Olmes Garcia and Javier Morales scored inside the first half hour and RSL (10-7-7, 37 points) cruised to an easy home win. Garcia scored in the 14th minute on what appeared to be a saveable low shot, but Fire goalkeeper Matt Lampson got wrong-footed. Morales had the assist on the goal and later scored via a penalty kick in the 29th minute. Juan Martinez controlled a ball in the box and Eric Gehrig charged into him without being near the ball for the penalty.
The Fire (4-11-6, 18 points) got one back when Arturo Alvarez volleyed in a Nick LaBrocca cross in the 58th minute. It was Alvarez's third goal of the season.
However, the two-goal lead was quickly restored. Morales scored his second of the match by pinging one in off the post just six minutes after Alvarez got the Fire back in the match.
With an eye on Tuesday's big game, the Fire made seven changes from the starting lineup that played to a 2-2 draw against the New York Red Bulls last Sunday. Two of those changes were forced due to Joao Meira's injury and Khaly Thiam's suspension. Johan Kappelhof, Rodrigo Ramos, Sean Johnson and John Goossens moved to the bench. Matt Polster was not even on the bench.
Gehrig, who made his second start of the season, was one of the replacements. Lampson, Brandon Vincent, Michael Stephens, Nick LaBrocca and Jonathan Campbell also returned to the lineup.
Luis Solignac, the Argentine forward the Fire traded for on Wednesday, started despite not meeting his teammates until they landed in Salt Lake on Friday. Solignac had a couple notable plays in the early minutes, including a nice one-two with Michael de Leeuw, but the Fire attack didn't pressure RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando until late in the match.
Rimando set a new MLS record for the most wins by a goalkeeper. This was Rimando's 181st win in goal, breaking Kevin Hartman's record.
Michael de Leeuw and David Accam both subbed off at halftime with the Fire trailing by two goals. Alvarez subbed off in the 68th minute.
Jose Mourinho hails incoming Paul Pogba; dedicates win to Van Gaal.
By Joe Prince-Wright
(Photo/Getty Images)
Jose Mourinho had just won his first trophy as Manchester United’s manager but deep in the bowels of Wembley Stadium all of the talk wasn’t about their 2-1 victory against Leicester City.
It was about the imminent arrival of Paul Pogba.
News broke before United’s Community Shield victory that Juventus has allowed Pogba, 23, to travel to Manchester for his medical ahead of an expected world-record transfer fee.
In his post-game press conference Mourinho revealed that he expects Pogba to arrive on Tuesday but didn’t confirm whether or not it was a world-record transfer fee of over $130 million for the French international midfielder. On the fee, all Mourinho said is that “football is crazy” when asked about the ever-increasing transfer fees.
One thing Mourinho is fairly sure on: Pogba will pass the medical.
“If everything goes well in the medical. I think it does because I’ve seen his Instagram. He does kung-fu, karate, running, basketball, football. He does everything so he must be fit,” Mourinho laughed. “Tuesday I will be there waiting for him. If that’s the situation then a good market for us. Bailly. Mkhitaryan. Ibra. One defender, one midfielder, one creative, one striker. I think the market was good for us. We need to work a lot. We need more weeks of work. I am happy for the next three weeks we have just a match at weekend. During the week we can work and we need to work.”Asked specifically what Pogba will bring to United and what they could give him, Mourinho believes the former United midfielder — he left in 2012 for a $1.2 million compensation fee and will return for over ten times that amount — can achieve everything he wants to at Old Trafford.
“I think United is the perfect club to bring him to the level he wants to be. The Premier League is the perfect habitat for that,” Mourinho said. “If you want to be the best player in the world, I think if you go to Barcelona or Real Madrid you are in trouble because I don’t see the other two big guys let you develop into that level. Here he has the conditions to develop. In the most seen worldwide championship which is absolutely incredible. With a team that wants to build Man United to the top again. We have everything to give him. We know the reason why he wants to come to us. Money, he will get in any big club. That’s not a point. He comes becomes he knows the club, knows the city, knows many of the players. He wants to be an important part of the Man United project. So, hopefully everything goes well and he comes to our team.”Mourinho started the press conference by dedicating the win to former Manchester United manager, and his former mentor, Louis Van Gaal.
Due to LVG’s side winning the FA Cup last season the Red Devils were able to take art in the Community Shield and subsequently win it.
“I want to dedicate the victory to Louis van Gaal because without him we would not be here today celebrating. He won the FA Cup to allow us to win this,” Mourinho said. “I have left many trophies to win after me. I won trophies and I left the club and no-one realized they were there because of me. I remember that this trophy I win because somebody won before me and allowed me to win. I dedicate to him and my seven players who weren’t involved. They have worked very hard but I have to make choices.”
Analyzing where United are at following this somewhat disjointed win, Mourinho revealed that they still have plenty of work to do, saying “in this moment we are not a super team but we are a team with the desire to work.” Zlatan Ibrahimovich scored the game-winner but looked a little off the pace and in midfield Marouane Fellaini and Michael Carrick were over run by an energetic Leicester side, especially in the second half.
Mourinho then stated a simple ambition for the season ahead: to win.
“My ambition is a stupid ambition. I have to confess. Because it is an impossible ambition. My ambition is to win every game. My ambition now is to win against Bournemouth. Very difficult. Can we win? We have to think about that. After Bournemouth, it doesn’t matter the result we play against Southampton. We want to win. We want to win every game. It is a very stupid motivation but if you look at it in a different perspective it is what we have to do. Improve, improve, improve in every match. That’s what we have to do to try to win.”
Premier League preseason roundup: Wins for Liverpool, Palace, Swansea.
By Joe Prince-Wright
(Photo/Getty Images)
10 Premier League teams were in action on Saturday as many completed their preseason schedules ahead of the new season kicking off on Aug. 12.
There were marquee wins for Liverpool and Crystal Palace, while plenty of other PL sides tasted narrow defeats as they get their house in order ahead of the long, hard season ahead.
Below is a brief recap on every game which took place on Saturday involving PL teams.
Barcelona 0-4 Liverpool
Sadio Mane tore Barca apart as Liverpool’s high-pressing game stunned the Spanish giants. Mane scored in the first half after good link-up play between Adam Lallana and Roberto Firmino, and his cross at the start of the second half led to Javier Mascherano knocking into his own net. Divock Origi added a third after another Barca giveaway and Marko Grujic headed home a sublime fourth in front of early 90,000 fans at Wembley Stadium. Liverpool has one more preseason game, playing Mainz 05 on Sunday in Germany.
Crystal Palace 3-1 Valencia
Connor Wickham scored twice and Mile Jedinak added a penalty kick as Palace made it seven wins from eight preseason games. Wickham struck twice in the first half, while Jedinak made it 3-0 before La Liga outfit Valencia pulled a goal back through Jaume Domenech late on.
Swansea City 1-0 Stade Rennais
Francesco Guidolin‘s side completed their preseason schedule with five wins from six as they beat Ligue 1 side Stade Rennais at the Liberty Stadium. Sub Jay Fulton scored the only goal of the game as new signing Fernando Llorente made his debut for the Swans.
Everton 0-1 Espanyol
The Toffees lost 1-0 to La Liga outfit Espanyol in their final preseason friendly. New signing Idrissa Gueye gave away a PK just four minutes into his debut and Leonardo Baptistao slammed home the PK. Everton had a PK of their own in the first half but Ross Barkley‘s effort was saved. A plus point for Everton was skipper Phil Jagielka returning from injury a week before the new season.
Hamburg 1-0 Stoke City
Mark Hughes fielded a strong Stoke side in his final preseason game before the new season, with only Marko Arnautovic not featuring as he recovers from a slight knock. The only goal of the game in Germany arrived early in the second half as Michael Gregoritsch reacted quickest for Hamburger SV. New Egyptian signing Ramadan Sobhi started wih Xherdan Shaqiri and Bojan Krkic in the three attacking midfield positions behind Mame Diouf. USMNT star Geoff Cameron started at right back for Stoke and got a solid 70 minutes of action under his belt, while Bobby Wood also appeared for Hamburg after his transfer to the Bundesliga side this summer.
Hull City 1-2 Torino
Managerless Hull City lost to Serie A outfit Torino in Austria in their final preseason fixture. Caretaker boss Mike Phelan could be in charge for their opening game back in the PL next weekend against Leicester but there’s certainly plenty of work to do for the newly-promoted Tigers. Belotti opened the scoring for Torino but Abel Hernandez equalized for Hull who are short on players with no new signings this summer. Bovo supplied a stunning winner late on to hand Torino the victory.
Real Mallorca 1-0 West Brom
The Baggies lost their final preseason game away to Spanish second division side Real Mallorca. The only goal of the game came from Brandon as Tony Pulis‘ men went through their paces ahead of their opener against Crystal Palace next weekend.
Watford 2-2 Lorient
Walter Mazzarri‘s side completed their preseason with a draw against Ligue 1 side Lorient. Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo but scored for the Hornets but they were cancelled out by Toure and Philippoteaux for the French side. Watford gets its new PL campaign underway against Southampton next Saturday.
Angers 0-1 Bournemouth
Marc Pugh‘s fine strike after two minutes saw Bourenmouth beat Ligue 1 side Angers in France to round off their seven-game preseason unbeaten. The Cherries face Manchester United next Sunday in their opening PL game of the season.
Middlesbourgh 0-0 Real Sociedad
PL new boys drew against the La Liga outfit as Aitor Karanka‘s side gave home debuts to five new players at the Riverside Stadium. USMNT’s Brad Guzan did not feature.
NCAAFB: What you need to know about college football's major rules changes for 2016.
By Ben Kercheval
Here's how some of college football's new rules could affect your favorite team this season
The 2016 college football season will look slightly different than in years past. No, the sport isn't abandoning its "amateurism" label or anything dramatic like that. Rather, college football, as it does every year, is getting a handful of new rules.
The National Football Foundation did everyone a solid by summarizing all of the new rules in layman's terms, but we've taken it a step further by explaining what some of the major rule changes would mean for your team, as well as citing examples in applicable situations.
As you'll notice, some of the new rules are extensions of previous ones that were already in place, with the goal of closing up loopholes or tightening definitions. Others introduce broader interpretations of a pre-existing rule.
Here are 10 major rule changes for the 2016 college football season, and what you should know about each.
1. Blocking below the waist. Offensive players who are outside the tackle box at the snap, and those who leave the tackle box after the snap, may only block an opponent below the waist if the force of the initial contact is directly at the opponent's front. However, they may not block an opponent below the waist in a direction toward the original position of the ball unless the ball carrier has clearly crossed the line of scrimmage.
What you need to know: Players aren't allowed to cut someone off from the side or from behind when they're outside the tackle box. It's an extra safety measure.
2. Input from a medical examiner. In 2015, the committee approved an experimental rule that allows the Instant Replay official to interrupt a game at the request of a medical observer. This was to take care of the situation where the medical observer saw that a player had been injured on the field, but neither the officials nor the sideline personnel noticed this and therefore had not stopped the game. The committee received indications from a number of institutions that showed that this was a very successful experiment in 2015. So, for 2016 the committee has approved this as a permanent rule change.
What you need to know: It's just another safety precaution for players that should be a permanent rule.
3. Low Hits on the Passer. This rule that protects the passer is clarified that the tackler may not legally make forcible contact against the passer at the knee or below, even if he is making a wrap-up tackle.
What you need to know: Call it the Tom Brady rule. Defenders can't even form tackle if it's at or below the knee. Hit a quarterback low and you're going to get flagged. Defensive folks won't like it, but that's the direction football is going.
4. Outcome of a suspended game. If the teams are in the same conference, conference policy dictates the outcome. However, if the teams are in different conferences, the current rule requires that the athletics directors of the teams agree on an outcome. Until this year, the rules were silent on what happens if the two ADs can't agree. The 2016 change says that in this event, the policy of the home team's conference is used to determine the outcome.
What you need to know: This is tightening up a loophole to ensure there's a resolution for any suspended or cancelled games.
Example: Florida's season-opening game against Idaho in 2014 was initially delayed due to weather. Ultimately, it was cancelled. If, however, Florida and Idaho were unable to reach a conclusion on this, the SEC's policy on suspended games would have been used.
5. Sliding ball carrier: defenseless player. There are several situations where a player is considered "defenseless" for purposes of the targeting rule. Examples include a pass receiver who is concentrating on catching the ball and a kick-return man awaiting a punt. This year, the committee added the ball carrier who has "obviously given himself up and is sliding feet-first."
What you need to know: This isn't exclusive to quarterbacks, but they're the first player you think of in these situations. Basically, if a quarterback is sliding, he's "giving himself up" and a hit on him will be considered targeting.
6. Game clock in the last two minutes. Under most circumstances, if the game clock is stopped because of a penalty, it starts when the referee gives the "ready-for-play" signal after completing the penalty. This year, the committee passed a rule that takes effect inside two minutes in the half. This new rule requires that the clock be started on the snap if the team ahead in the score commits a foul. Under the current rule, the clock would be started on the ready-for-play signal, allowing the fouling team the chance to gain a time advantage by running perhaps 20 or more seconds off the game clock. The new rule prevents this.
What you need to know: This gives a referee broader authority to ensure a winning team isn't gaming the clock and wasting time in the final two minutes. The exception will be the 10-second runoff.
7. Targeting: an expanded role for instant replay. Up to this point, the replay official's role has been to verify whether the forcible contact was with the crown of the helmet or was struck at the head or neck area of a defenseless player. Now as part of the review, the replay official is directed to examine all elements of the ruling made by the official on the field, not only the location of the forcible contact. In addition, the replay official is empowered to "create" a foul if he sees an obvious and egregious targeting action that the officials on the field miss.
What you need to know: If you didn't like the targeting rule before, you're going to hate it now. In addition to broader interpretations of targeting by the officials -- experimental collaborative replay (see below) will be a part of this -- it's now possible for a replay official to call a foul even if none was called on the field. Be prepared for that.
8. Tripping the ball carrier. For a number of years, it has been illegal for a player to stick out his foot or leg to trip an opponent, but it was legal to do this to the ball carrier. Because of leg injuries to runners over the past couple years, the committee now has made it illegal to trip any opponent, including the ball carrier.
What you need to know: This is self-explanatory. If Duke basketball player Grayson Allen played college football, he'd be a repeat offender.
9. Unsportsmanlike conduct by a coach. The rules committee believes that as teachers and adult leaders of young athletes playing football, coaches should be held to a high standard of behavior appropriate to such a responsible position. Thus, starting in 2016, the rule will be that a coach who commits two fouls for unsportsmanlike conduct will be disqualified from the game. He must leave the playing field before the ball is next put into play, and he must remain out of view of the playing field for the remainder of the game.
What you need to know: Whereas coaches would be ejected after two technical fouls in college basketball, no such rule existed for football. That's officially been changed. In other words, hot-head coaches need to cool it.
10. Experimental rule: collaboration in instant replay. This means that the replay official will be in communication with observers who are watching the game on television at a site other than the instant replay booth. The replay official will be in consultation with the remote observers while reviewing a play. The purpose is to allow for a second observer in addition to this replay official to assist in making the decisions about a review.
What you need to know: Our own Jon Solomon about how this will work back in June, but the primary goal is to minimize the inconsistencies in subjective calls, such as targeting. The challenge, of course, is to take this extra step without further stalling the flow of a game or achieving paralysis by analysis (i.e. having too many cooks in the kitchen). Since it is an experimental rule, it is not required by all conferences. However, the ACC and SEC have adopted it for 2016.
Brian Kelly says Notre Dame quarterback race is wide open.
By Zach Bennett
(Photo/Getty Images)
They say if you have two quarterbacks you don’t have one, but they haven’t met Notre Dame’s 2016 quarterbacks roster.
As you’ll recall, Malik Zaire played like a Heisman candidate through a game and a half, hitting 26-of-40 throws for 428 yards with four touchdowns and no picks whilst rushing 19 times for 103 yards before being lost for the season to a broken ankle against Virginia.
DeShone Kizer played the rest of the season, connecting on 63 percent of his passes for 2,880 yards with 21 scores and 10 picks while adding 508 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground as a freshman.
Now both are healthy entering fall camp, and head coach Brian Kelly is enjoying his options.
“I have not taken anything off the table, honestly,” Kelly told the Associated Press. “If you go down the roster … and look at the playmakers on offense, two of them are on the quarterback side. So I have to look at all of those, and factor every one of those in.”
Kelly said there is no timetable for choosing a starter ahead of the Sept. 4 opener at Texas, and added that the pair’s similarities make them largely interchangeable in the offense.
“They have some strengths and weaknesses within the offense that we’ll tweak just a little bit, but there’s no overhaul of the offense if one is in vs. the other. There’s just some play selections that would be different,” he said. “So we can still lay down our entire installation seamlessly.”
For his part, Kizer closed last season as the starter and feels he can hold on to the job again this year.
“This is what I came here to do, to compete and try to be the Notre Dame quarterback,” Kizer said. “I’m pretty happy with where I stand. Now it’s time to go out there and prove it.”
As you’ll recall, Malik Zaire played like a Heisman candidate through a game and a half, hitting 26-of-40 throws for 428 yards with four touchdowns and no picks whilst rushing 19 times for 103 yards before being lost for the season to a broken ankle against Virginia.
DeShone Kizer played the rest of the season, connecting on 63 percent of his passes for 2,880 yards with 21 scores and 10 picks while adding 508 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground as a freshman.
Now both are healthy entering fall camp, and head coach Brian Kelly is enjoying his options.
“I have not taken anything off the table, honestly,” Kelly told the Associated Press. “If you go down the roster … and look at the playmakers on offense, two of them are on the quarterback side. So I have to look at all of those, and factor every one of those in.”
Kelly said there is no timetable for choosing a starter ahead of the Sept. 4 opener at Texas, and added that the pair’s similarities make them largely interchangeable in the offense.
“They have some strengths and weaknesses within the offense that we’ll tweak just a little bit, but there’s no overhaul of the offense if one is in vs. the other. There’s just some play selections that would be different,” he said. “So we can still lay down our entire installation seamlessly.”
For his part, Kizer closed last season as the starter and feels he can hold on to the job again this year.
“This is what I came here to do, to compete and try to be the Notre Dame quarterback,” Kizer said. “I’m pretty happy with where I stand. Now it’s time to go out there and prove it.”
NCAABKB: Adam Silver does not expect one-and-done rule to change.
By Rob Dauster
(Photo/AP)
Adam Silver wants the NBA Draft to increase their age limit to 20 years old, meaning that high school basketball players will be looking at being two-and-through athletes instead of one-and-done players.
It’s two-fold: Not only would NBA teams be able to get an extra year of college basketball to study the prospects but the owners would miss out on paying a year’s worth of salary on players that are still developing. One and done players aren’t finished products as rookies. They aren’t in their second season in the NBA either, but they’re A) closer to it and B) will be closer to their prime by the time their rookie deals come to an end.
It makes perfect sense for the owners, who Silver represents.
Just like it makes perfect sense that Michelle Roberts, the director of the Player’s Union, wants to get rid of the one-and-done rule and implement an 18-year old age limit. Those players have value at that age. NBA teams would gladly roster them, it would means the athletes could start earning NBA salaries a year earlier, get off their rookie deals a year earlier, be eligible for 10-year veteran max deals a year earlier, extend the life of their professional careers by a year. Need I go on?
Anyway, the result is the impasse that we’re currently at, the one where college basketball takes the biggest hit, because it’s a middle ground. And it doesn’t seem like it’s a rule that is going to be changing anytime soon. From an interview Silver did with Bloomberg News:
It’s two-fold: Not only would NBA teams be able to get an extra year of college basketball to study the prospects but the owners would miss out on paying a year’s worth of salary on players that are still developing. One and done players aren’t finished products as rookies. They aren’t in their second season in the NBA either, but they’re A) closer to it and B) will be closer to their prime by the time their rookie deals come to an end.
It makes perfect sense for the owners, who Silver represents.
Just like it makes perfect sense that Michelle Roberts, the director of the Player’s Union, wants to get rid of the one-and-done rule and implement an 18-year old age limit. Those players have value at that age. NBA teams would gladly roster them, it would means the athletes could start earning NBA salaries a year earlier, get off their rookie deals a year earlier, be eligible for 10-year veteran max deals a year earlier, extend the life of their professional careers by a year. Need I go on?
Anyway, the result is the impasse that we’re currently at, the one where college basketball takes the biggest hit, because it’s a middle ground. And it doesn’t seem like it’s a rule that is going to be changing anytime soon. From an interview Silver did with Bloomberg News:
It’s still something I care a lot about. I’m also a realist. Given that Michele has said her preference would be for an 18-year-old minimum age, my sense is that it’s not something that’s going to change in the short term. And by the way, I’ve always said I understand the other side of the issue, about a young man’s opportunity to make a living. But my view has always been that we’d be a better league if players came into the draft at 20 instead of 19.In other words, those one-and-done players that we have to get to know every November and shuttle off to the NBA every April?
They’re not going anywhere.
OLYMPICS: Medals Count (08/07/2016)
| Rank | NOC | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  United States (USA) | 3 | 5 | 4 | 12 |
| 2 |  China (CHN) | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| 3 |  Australia (AUS) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| 4 |  Italy (ITA) | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| 5 |  South Korea (KOR) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| 6 |  Hungary (HUN) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 |  Russia (RUS) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 8 |  Great Britain (GBR) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
 Sweden (SWE) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
| 10 |  Japan (JPN) | 1 | 0 | 6 | 7 |
| 11 |  Chinese Taipei (TPE) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
 Thailand (THA) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 13 |  Argentina (ARG) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
 Belgium (BEL) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
 Kosovo (KOS) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
 Netherlands (NED) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
 Vietnam (VIE) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 18 |  Canada (CAN) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
 Kazakhstan (KAZ) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 20 |  Brazil (BRA)* | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Denmark (DEN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 Indonesia (INA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 New Zealand (NZL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 North Korea (PRK) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 Philippines (PHI) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 South Africa (RSA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 France (FRA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 27 |  Uzbekistan (UZB) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 28 |  Greece (GRE) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Poland (POL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Spain (ESP) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total (30 NOCs) | 26 | 26 | 30 |
82
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U.S. women's gymnastics qualification shows what's to come: Olympic domination.
By Dan Wetzel
Laurie Hernandez (left), Gabby Douglas and Simone Biles were all smiles on Sunday. (Photo/AP)
As Simone Biles delivered a full-twisting double back dismount that ended a performance that ascended through previously unknown standards of gymnastics excellence, her United States teammates watching behind her began to bounce around and hug. This was the realization of what they had just done and the excitement of what is to come.
The Americans showed up at the Olympic qualification here on Sunday and delivered a level of dominance unknown to the history of the sport, qualifying first for Tuesday’s team final with a gap of 9.959 over China.
It was simply an unprecedented score at this level – USA’s gold-medal-winning team in 2012 qualified with a 1.434 advantage and beat Russia by 5.066. That was considered an epic blowout. The previous five gymnastics team finals were decided by an average of 0.937. What happened Sunday is the equivalent of a 222-0 football game. Yes, these scores get thrown out for the team final, but the possibilities after qualifying with a nearly 10-point lead are unprecedented.
“Incredible,” Biles said.
Individually Biles, Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas finished 1-2-3 overall. So the Americans have the three best in the world (and with Laurie Hernandez, maybe the top four). The only thing preventing the U.S. from owning the all-around podium is the sport’s unfortunate rule that caps a country with two participants in each individual competition.
So only Biles and Raisman are allowed to compete for all-around gold, although the competition may not last long. Biles qualified a massive 1.759 ahead of Raisman, who in turn was an even more massive 1.875 ahead of the best non-American, Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade. For comparison, the average gap between the top two all-around qualifiers over the last eight Olympics is 0.146. Biles’ qualifying lead over Raisman was more than 12 times that number.
Again, unheard-of, impossible stats.
Douglas, who won Olympic all-around gold in 2012, could be comforted by missing out on the all-around by qualifying for the bars final, coming in third behind American specialist Madison Kocian, who finished first.
In both vault and floor, Biles and Raisman qualified 1-2. On beam, it was Biles and Hernandez who went 1-2.
“Every one of us qualified for an event final so I don’t think you could ask for anything more,” Biles said.
If it weren’t for Russia’s Aliya Mustafina qualifying second on bars, the Americans would have delivered the literal perfect meet, 1-2 on every apparatus and 1-2-3 overall. It was that ridiculous, which even Mustafina acknowledged.
“They are unbeatable at the moment,” Mustafina said.
Even the frustration of the rules prohibiting more than two gymnasts per country in all-around was seen as part of the reason for the success. Douglas was third and Hernandez very well could have been top five, too.
Yet the battle to get into that top two helps push everyone upward – Douglas in particular rebounded considerably from struggles at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
“It helps,” said team coordinator Marta Karolyi. “A healthy competition is always very good so that obviously brings the level higher and higher.”
It’s just the Americans are mostly left competing against themselves. Higher and higher this goes and goes, more and more talent, more and more pressure.
It wasn’t too long ago that the U.S. could only produce one or two internationally competitive gymnasts at a time, hoping for one medal contender. The Russians and Romanians and Chinese had greater depth. But each year of Olympic glory produces another generation of inspired little girls hitting gymnastics halls around the county.
Mary Lou Retton beget the magical 1996 Atlanta Games team, which helped produce Carly Patterson in 2004, then Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson in 2008 and then the Fierce Five gold medal winners (Douglas and Raisman among them) four years ago. Now here comes this.
What was once a national program of hope and then confidence is now a full-on juggernaut, everyone else in the world competing for second.
Karolyi, who at 73 is set to retire after these Olympics, isn’t even sure how to judge this group. She tries to avoid looking back because the bar keeps getting raised and raised.
“I think they are extremely strong and they are not just extremely strong with their gymnastics, they are extremely strong-minded,” Karolyi said. “And I feel the combination between the physical and mental is extremely important.
“I never think about [the scores, such as a nearly 10-point qualifying lead],” she continued. “[I tell them,] ‘Don’t talk about scores or places, all we talk about is keep your routine, your job is that. Keep your routine and if you do that you contribute to the team success.’ ”
Biles said after proving what they can do, Tuesday’s team final and the ensuing various individual days of competition are just about “consistency.” If the 19-year-old can manage that, she’ll walk out of here with five gold medals – team, all-around, floor, beam and vault. No one has ever done more than four, and the last time that occurred was 1968.
“Simone is Simone,” Karolyi said. “She is a big talent, but she proved how she is also controlling herself and how she is able to perform under pressure. There is a reason she is three-time world champion, and what I told them before the competition is, ‘Even though it is Olympics, it is no different gymnastically. It is the same thing. Around us is different, but our expectation is the same.'”
They’ll have to deliver Tuesday and beyond, although the way gymnastics works, with degree of difficulty a factor, they needn’t be perfect. They just need to be. All around the gymnastics competition Sunday people marveled at what the American system has produced, what they’ve done to control the sport.
“We train awesome, we have great coaches and we have a great national staff that helps the coaches bring up the next generation of talent,” said Aimee Boorman, Biles’ personal coach.
Boorman shrugged. She said she isn’t surprised and never will be.
“The team after this will be even better,” Boorman said.
She’s probably right. For now, crank up the steamroller. America is coming.
Katie Ledecky shatters 400 freestyle world record, nabs first U.S. swimming gold.
By Pat Forde
America got its first swimming gold medal of these Olympics from a predictable source Sunday night.
To the surprise of no one, Katie Ledecky dominated the 400-meter freestyle, getting her personal assault on history underway with a world-record time of 3:56:46.
Of course, the record she broke was her own.
The only suspense in the race was whether she would set a new benchmark, and the Brazilian fans loudly urged her on. Ledecky’s time gave her a whopping margin of almost five seconds over silver medalist Jazz Carlin of Great Britain (4:01:23). American Leah Smith, a senior-to-be at Virginia, took the bronze (4:01:92). Ledecky remains the only woman in history to break 3:59.
The 19-year-old now has two medals in two days, with more on the horizon.
Ledecky anchored the Americans’ silver-medal-winning 400 freestyle relay Saturday night. She will likely battle Swedish star Sarah Sjostrom in the 200 free final Tuesday night, swim the anchor leg in the 800 free relay Wednesday night and the defending Olympic champion will be the prohibitive favorite in the 800 free Friday night.
Ledecky will be trying to take down her own world record in the 800 as well, and should have a shot at the seven-year-old 200 record currently held by Frederica Pelligrini of Italy.
If Ledecky sweeps the freestyle events from 200 through 800, she will be the first Olympian to record the feat since American Debbie Meyer in 1968.
Michael Phelps gets 19th gold medal as U.S. wins 4x100 freestyle relay.
By Jeff Passan
3.The greatest Olympian ever added another gold to his collection Sunday.
Michael Phelps’ staggering split in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay helped lead the American men to their first swimming gold of the Rio Games at Olympic Aquatics Stadium. It was Phelps’ 23rd medal, and 19th gold, in an unparalleled career.
Swimming the second leg, Phelps teamed with Caeleb Dressel, Ryan Held and anchor Nathan Adrian to finish with a time of 3:09:92. The Americans were widely considered underdogs to favorite Australia but ended up leading nearly the entire race and closed strong on the strength of Adrian. France outpaced Australia as well to win silver with a time of 3:10:53. The Aussies rounded out the top three at 3:11:37.
Phelps made his debut in the 2000 Olympics at the ripe young age of 15. He didn’t medal, but he did make the finals in the 200-meter butterfly and finished fifth. Since then, he’s been an Olympic force of nature. He captured a pair of bronze medals at the 2004 Athens Games alongside six gold medals. Phelps won a record eight gold medals in 2008, followed with four golds and two silvers at the 2012 London Games. He came out of retirement to swim once again in Rio.
While the 31-year-old Phelps has not completely ruled out competing in 2020, this is likely his final Olympics, and he has at least three more opportunities to go out in his typically gilded style. Phelps will swim the 200-meter individual medley, the 100- and 200-meter butterfly, and is expected to take the fly leg in the 4×100-meter medley on Saturday, swimming’s final night of competition.
On
1900 - In Boston, the first Davis Cup series began. The U.S. team defeated Great Britain three matches to zero.
1903 - Joe McGinnity (New York) pitched two complete games in one day. He won 6-1 and 4-3 over the Brooklyn Dodgers.
1915 - Gawy Gravath (Philadelphia) hit four doubles and brought in eight runs in a game against the Cincinnati Reds.
1920 - Howard Ehmke (Detroit Tigers) set an American League record when he defeated the New York Yankees 1-0 in 1 hour and 13 minutes.
1931 - Bob Burke (Washington Senators) pitched a 5-0 no-hitter against the Boston Red Sox.
1954 - The Brooklyn Dodgers scored 13 runs in the eighth inning to beat the Cincinnati Reds 20-7 at Ebbets Field.
1972 - The New York Yankees signed a 30-year lease with the City of New York which called for Yankee Stadium to be completely modernized in time for the 1976 season.
1973 - Boston Red Sox Orlando Cepeda hit four doubles against the Kansas City Royals.
1982 - Doug DeCinces hit three home runs against the California Angels. He had hit three home runs against Minnesota five days earlier.
1985 - Major League baseball players returned to work after a two-day walkout.
1992 - The "Dream Team" clinched the gold medal at the Barcelona Summer Olympics. The U.S. basketball team beat Croatia 117-85.
1996 - Eddie Murray (Baltimore Orioles) moved into 15th place on the career home run list when he hit his 494th.
1996 - Willie McGee (St. Louis Cardinals) hit his 2,000th major league hit.
1998 - Paul Molitor (Minnesota Twins) stole his 500th career base.
1999 - Wade Boggs got his 3,000th hit of his major league baseball career.
2002 - Major league baseball players and owners agreed to a $100,000 increase in baseball's minimum salary. The minimum was set at $300,000 starting in 2003.
2005 - It was announced that Wayne Gretzky would be the next head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes.
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