Note: this Column ran on April 12. right after Jordan Spieth ran away with the Masters.
How in he world is Jordan Spieth going to stay on top of the golf world like Tiger did?
He probably won't, but that's a good thing.
The marketing opportunity that Tiger Woods was and remains isn't the same if his dad doesn't give Eldred the nickname of a carnivorous predator. The color of Woods' skin helped that cause. Captain Obvious would tell us Woods has lived up to the hype.
The competition Spieth has is much stronger than Tiger had during the 90's. Tiger changed the game by implementing his fitness routine, and consistently hitting shots not just for distance, but shots onto greens from previously unimaginable places. Woods has made shots I couldn’t make in a video game.
Nowadays, there's a squadron of players following Tiger's example. The golf world has caught up with Tiger Woods, and that's not a bad thing. It should make for some thrilling major tournament finishes in the future. Spieth, Rory McIlroy and company will make things interesting for years to come.
The biggest drawback? If Tiger doesn’t get the record for career majors, the mark will stand for decades.
Some other things that make me wonder "how in the world?"...
A week into the baseball season there are dozens of stories telling us scoring is down, and the Kansas City Royals are averaging EIGHT runs a game. Their starting pitching has been solid, the bullpen remains ridiculous, and there's some pop in the bats.
When Kansas City started 9-0 in 2003, even the most diehard among we Royals fans knew deep down it was a fluke. This spring, so many prognosticators said this year's Royals were not going to successfully defend the American League title. Yes, it's far too early to say those predictions were wrong. But it does feel like the Royals were built to consistently contend.
The Cubs are off to a decent start, and if they can hang around the first eight weeks of the season, they’ll be contenders. Yes, the world awakened this morning to the Cubs in first place. I’m a firm believer you can’t win a pennant in April, (with the exception of the 1984 Tigers) but you sure can lose one.
When is a technical foul not a technical foul? Russell Westbrook is critical to the Oklahoma City Thunder’s playoff chances, and advancing if they make it into the tournament. Westbrook was teed up Sunday, his 16th such infraction this season.
By rule, Westbrook would have had to sit out Monday’s game, but the NBA saw fit to slap the officials in the face and rescind the technical.
I’ve got a feeling next season Westbrook will have 16 technicals before Christmas.
How in he world is Jordan Spieth going to stay on top of the golf world like Tiger did?
He probably won't, but that's a good thing.
The marketing opportunity that Tiger Woods was and remains isn't the same if his dad doesn't give Eldred the nickname of a carnivorous predator. The color of Woods' skin helped that cause. Captain Obvious would tell us Woods has lived up to the hype.
The competition Spieth has is much stronger than Tiger had during the 90's. Tiger changed the game by implementing his fitness routine, and consistently hitting shots not just for distance, but shots onto greens from previously unimaginable places. Woods has made shots I couldn’t make in a video game.
Nowadays, there's a squadron of players following Tiger's example. The golf world has caught up with Tiger Woods, and that's not a bad thing. It should make for some thrilling major tournament finishes in the future. Spieth, Rory McIlroy and company will make things interesting for years to come.
The biggest drawback? If Tiger doesn’t get the record for career majors, the mark will stand for decades.
Some other things that make me wonder "how in the world?"...
A week into the baseball season there are dozens of stories telling us scoring is down, and the Kansas City Royals are averaging EIGHT runs a game. Their starting pitching has been solid, the bullpen remains ridiculous, and there's some pop in the bats.
When Kansas City started 9-0 in 2003, even the most diehard among we Royals fans knew deep down it was a fluke. This spring, so many prognosticators said this year's Royals were not going to successfully defend the American League title. Yes, it's far too early to say those predictions were wrong. But it does feel like the Royals were built to consistently contend.
The Cubs are off to a decent start, and if they can hang around the first eight weeks of the season, they’ll be contenders. Yes, the world awakened this morning to the Cubs in first place. I’m a firm believer you can’t win a pennant in April, (with the exception of the 1984 Tigers) but you sure can lose one.
When is a technical foul not a technical foul? Russell Westbrook is critical to the Oklahoma City Thunder’s playoff chances, and advancing if they make it into the tournament. Westbrook was teed up Sunday, his 16th such infraction this season.
By rule, Westbrook would have had to sit out Monday’s game, but the NBA saw fit to slap the officials in the face and rescind the technical.
I’ve got a feeling next season Westbrook will have 16 technicals before Christmas.