14 months

14 months:



That's how long Tripp Isenhour will spend in jail thinking about his over-reaction.



14 months:



For completing a "one-in-a-million-shot" to the chest of an endangered Red Hawk, sentencing it to death.



14 months:



Nearly 1 month in jail per swing he took trying to stop the bird from squawking during his precious golf tips show.



14 months:



To locate new a resort that will allow him to film his instructional videos, since Grand Cypress (where he was filming) revoked his practice passes after the incident.



14 months:



To figure out how to recover from this PR disaster, so brutal, that even his 3 adopted cats are distancing themselves from him.



14 months:



For Tripp, an accomplished cook, to figure-up new recipes to serve to his fellow players when he returns from his penalty box...



...word has it that endangered fowl will not be on the menu.



14 months:



An accomplished YellowJacket and top 10 money winner in '06, that has been clawing (pun intended) his way back into the PGA ranks via taking his lumps on the Nationwide Tour... Tripp will have some time now to figure how to get his slumping birdie and eagle stats up from golf's murky depths...no word yet on his hawk stats...



...but we know his driving accuracy is spot-on.





Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,



JFB

Sport's Illustrated takes a divot

I got my copy of the annual SI 'Sportsman of the Year' last week, and I feel Brett Farve was the popular...but (and is usually the case) not the correct choice. Farve has had a great year, but he has had a better career...and I think that's where SI misses the mark. I would vote for Farve hand-down as a sportsman of the decade...but for this year?

Me thinks not.

My vote would have been for Lorena Ochoa, the number one woman golfer...in any language.

Winner of 8 Tournaments last year, she has become both Ayn Rand and Savior for her genders' golf, by successfully taking the hand-off from previous top cat Annika Sorenstam.
For women's golf, this was an important transition, because the golfer that was Annika's heir apparent...Michelle Wie, was too busy destroying her golf career...and was poised to do the same to the future of women's golf, had not this University of Arizona wunderkind stepped in with a wonderful rendition of the Mexican Hat Dance (Jarabe Tapatío) to save the future world of women's golf.

Because of Lorena Ochoa I dare say that women's golf has a better product going forward than men's golf.

Golf's version of the Mexican Revolution has just begun.


Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Playing baseball or basketball is much more strenuous than playing golf. But people continue going at the golf galaxy only because it is a relaxing sport. And unlike hockey or lacrosse, there is not a lot of running around.

He's the daring young man in the....

...helicopter.

That's right, for my Fathers' day gift, my wife (being of sound mind and body), gave me a certificate for a 1/2 hour helicopter ride with Air Atlanta Helicopters at the local PDK airport.

Now, I've never been in a helicopter before, so I had trepidation at first...

...but then I thought of all the MyDailySlice readers who would love to see an aerial view of a famous golf course here in Atlanta! So I donned my headphones and strapped into the copter provided by Air Atlanta Helicopters , and I was off to...

East Lake Country Club

Yep, home of The Tour Championship. This year being of extra importance for the golf tournament as it is the culmination of the FedExCup. It will be held here Sept 10-16th.

Some interesting notes about this course. In 1925 Bobby Jones beat Watts Gunn at the US Amateur Championship at Oakmont. Both Jones and Gunn were members of East Lake during their historic meeting. Marking the only time in history that 2 members from the same club played in the finals of The Amateur.

Okay...I know what you're saying..."that's cool, but...a fly-over video would put this post over the top!"

How's this:

If you're coming to Atlanta and want to do something very cool, rent a helicopter...buzz over the course as well as downtown, and then schedule a tour of East Lake...they have tours on the 3rd Sunday of every month at 3pm.

Tell 'em MyDailySlice sent ya.

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

It's a southern thing

I must admit, after the birth of our daughter Wed night, I haven't been able to do much more than walk around in a daze from sleepless nights filled with determining the correct way to dispose of stinky diapers without having to fumigate the house come morning. So when I got to sit down and read today's Sports section in the AJC it was really a treat.

More treats occurred when I read the headlines that were colored in yellow-and-blue, and red-and-black. Yep, looks like the folks up at Sugarloaf Country Club are going to "hunker down for a good old-fashioned Southern brawl." As Larry Munson might have put it.

We have YellowJackets and Bulldogs atop the leaderboard at the South's other golf tournament in Buford GA...the one sandwiched between a season of The Masters in Augusta, and The Players Championship in Atlanta.

Hailing from Georgia Tech: Troy Matteson, and not far behind, just in from his yo-yo-like travails from The Nationwide Tour, and my favorite player: Matty Kuchar.
Then we have, coming from The University of Georgia with the shot of the day: Ryuji Imada.

This will be a fun one to watch as Sugarloaf will be super firm and fast, as we've had no rain in a month. Also, Sugarloaf has one of the best finishing holes in all non-major events.

As for me coming from the great state of Ohio (and a big Buckeye fan), I've learned...

...that Gators will also eat bees and bulldogs...

...so I'd watch out for spidey-man himself Camilo Villegas, who hails from The University of Florida. The greatest sports program in the nation.

Yep, I'm going to sit back and enjoy this Sunday's final round...it's a gorgeous day in The South. The bees are buzzing...the dogs are leashed...and the alligators are sunning themselves in the southern paradise known as Buford Georgia...

And my daughter is asleep. Now Hush Y'all.

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Rookie cards

Growing up, I loved collecting sports cards. In the beginning it was any card that came out of a 25 cent cellophane pack that excited me. Later on, it was the thrill of finding rookie cards (those cards that were the first of a particular player), that kept me enthralled in my hobby.
I'm sure the money I've spent collecting these cardboard treasures haven't come close to a monetarily good return on my investment...but some things in life...especially in the hobby world...just can't be counted in terms of dollars and sense.

If I were collecting now, I would want to get my hands on this golfer's rookie card that will be rolling off the printing presses any day now.

His name is Roberto Castro, and he is the real deal.

Hailing from Alpharetta, GA, Castro graduated this year from Georgia Tech, where he was a gifted three-time All-American.
Recently, he was named as one of five finalists named by the Golf Coaches Association of America for the Byron Nelson Award.
Given to the nation's top graduating senior golfer, the Byron Nelson Award selection committee will consider his entire collegiate academic career, collegiate golf career and his character and integrity while in college. Particular consideration is given to a nominee's good citizenship, as portrayed by Mr. Byron Nelson over the course of his life and golf career.

From his stats page: "He will finish his career with more than 20 top-10 finishes and more than 30 top-20 efforts and one of Tech's three best career stroke averages."
Oh yeah...he did that and graduated with a degree in Industrial Engineering.

Wow.

The four other worthy finalists for the 2007 Nelson include: Louie Bishop of UC Davis, Northwestern's Chris Wilson, Sam Korbe of Tulsa and Georgia's Brendon Todd.

My money to win is on Roberto, and I hope I'm lucky enough to procure his rookie card for a few dollars...

...to me, it makes a lot of sense.

The recipient will be named prior to the NCAA Championships May 30 - June 2 at Golden Horseshoe Golf Club in Williamsburg, Va.

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

SEC college golf at your fingertips

College athletes have it made. Take the U of Kentucky golf team (pictured here). Not only do they get to go to school in a great environment, but they get to play golf in not-so-shabby places either. Places like Japan, SC, FL, NV and GA...and that's just this year.
Uh guys...can you donate your frequent flyer miles to me? I'm trying to just get to OH.

Now the whole world can see what it's like to be a SouthEast conference athlete through the athlete's eyes via SECSports.com.

AT&T has just launched the SEC Snapshot, a student-driven journalistic initiative designed to report attention-grabbing stories that often go untold. Student journalists from each of the 12 SEC schools are writing about the unsung heroes and little known storylines of their schools' spring sports teams.
Click on the UK team picture to get the top ten golf tips from the them.
New stories are posted every Wednesday.

I've put the direct link to the SEC golf page (the site covers all SEC sports) at the bottom of my blog so you can follow your favorite SEC team(s) this year.

My favorite tip from the golf team is: 9) "Always have a good understanding of where you can and can't hit the ball on the golf course. "-- Andy Winings, sophomore

Andy, I'm proud to say that I've got a firm grasp on the can't: I know every variety of tree native to the South.

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB