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

The cannabalism of the PGA, or: Coke gets rewarded

No doubt, last week's Deutsche Bank event was a thriller, anytime you have the two most popular players on tour duking it out Mano-a-Mano, it's gonna bring drama.

That's the problem.

Thanks in part to the Fed Ex Cup, the PGA is creating a situation where they are conditioning the golf fan to be interested only when there is a lot riding on the line (vis-a-vis Majors), or when Phil or Tiger play each other.

Take this week's BMW event...it was reported that less than 200 fans lined up to see Tiger tee it up Thursday, and with the combination of rain impacting the event...and Phil not playing...the BMW is looking more like The Ramblin' Wreck of Georgia Tech, instead of the show-stopper it was intended to be.

It's not that golf fans don't love golf, it's that the PGA is undermining their own popularity by giving the fans a reason that they have the power to prioritize what they watch (can you say hello football).

It's the reason baseball and football Unions have leverage. Unions know that if the players go on strike, fans will figure out new ways to occupy their time, and lose focus of the implied importance of every game. It makes it that much harder for team owners to recapture the audience.

So the PGA is left with this huge problem, and really no way out of it. It will mean a lot less money to fringe events (50% of next years' tournaments), and a lot more money to whatever event is on Tiger's schedule (with the implied guessing-game that Phil will be there too). The imminent danger is that the PGA is losing it's brand image, and it is becoming a bunch of individual brands (think NFL, and how they go to unbelievable lengths to protect its brand so the name is larger than the players). The PGA needs to look at all the problems the NFL players have had this year, and it won't even touch the NFL brand. It's masterful.

One tournament that is going to reap absolutely gargantuan rewards from this PGA gaffe, is next weeks Tour Championship in Atlanta. That event will be the most watched, most talked about, most exciting tournament this year. Thanks to last week's taste the fans were given of that Tiger/Phil duel, The Tour Championship will be pulling out all the stops to showcase its premier match-up.

The events big sponsor Coca Cola, will get a muche deserved redemption from last years' abrupt pullout of Tiger.

Coke's new ad campaign is all about the consumer getting rewarded from buying coke products.

But next week Coke will get rewarded...and, as the vintage ad goes: in perfect harmony.


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

Bobby Jones' locker

I recently visited Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta GA. It is here where you can find the grave site of the venerable Bobby Jones, the greatest of all Georgia philanthropists, that left us a few great golf courses (Augusta, East Lake), as well as his collection of golf memorabilia from his playing days that can be found at The Atlanta History Center and The Atlanta Athletic Club.

But it's here at beautiful Oakland Cemetery that you can pay your respects, and it won't cost you a thing.

Many of you know each hole at Augusta is named after a tree specimen. A dozen or so years ago, Oakland Cemetery dedicated these 18 specimens in a configuration around the property. The dead of winter isn't the best showing for the grounds, but there is a metal bench beside the grave...which lends to great reflection...and peacefulness, as there are very few visitors.

Come springtime that will change, as visitors arrive like buds on a flowering Cherry tree. Many come to pay respect to the true gentleman of the game, while others leave mementos that garnish the site.

Each year, right before die hard golf fans make the journey to pay their respects, the SAE fraternity at Georgia Tech cleans the grounds. Why do they ritually do that? Because Jones was a member their when he attended Tech. And this is a way for the incoming class to get grounded, as the are joining the very historic house.

Golfer's like to start off their golf season by visiting this grave for good luck. Here's hoping that good luck will follow you this golf season!

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

JFB

College fantasy foursomes

Everyone loves to play fantasy sports games...my fave is pro football. Let me field a team and the little micromanager in me takes over. I love it! Actually my neighbor/golf bud won our fantasy football season this year. He says it's all in the coaching :-). Maybe it is, but your team is nothing if you don't have a good draft
Golf is different because it's an individual sport, so I think it'd be cool to have a fantasy golf game based on what college you draft.

Saturday, The Atlanta Journal had an excellent piece by Stan Awtry about which colleges have the hottest golfers based on the venerable World Golf Rankings.

Let's say you have a draft with 9 other guys, and you take UNLV. At the end of the season...based on the World Golf Rankings...the guy with the most players (max 4) from that college wins. As of last week, The Runnin' Reb's are number one in representation with 4 guys that are in the top 100: Adam Scott, Chad Campbell, Ryan Moore and Charley Hoffman.

Second place was Arizona St. with Phil Mickelson, Jeff Quinney, Billy Mayfair and Pat Perez.

Rounding out the top 3 is Florida with DiMarco, Calc, Villegas and Couch.

Granted, you'd want to have at most 10 guys in the league because of the concentration of high-talent at only a few colleges, but I think it would be a spirited format because it allows you to really focus on your alma-mater, or just your favorite college.

Take my favorite college Georgia Tech: I would be in 8th place based on the top 4 Techsters' scoring positions. My current foursome would be Stewart Cink, Troy Matteson, Matt Kuchar and Tripp Isenhour. The great thing about the college team format is that I would be fielding the entire GT alum, so David Duval (my favorite golfer) could crack the top 300 before the season is over and displace one of the current guys.

He's been playing well of late...how cool would that be?! Go David!!!!

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

JFB

A couple good guys dust-off the rust

This past weekend, 2 golfers in different stages of their careers, won events that will define 2006 for them.

For Tim "Lumpy" Herron, winning the PGA Colonial in a playoff was (I'm guessing) a relief from the culmination of frustration that has been building since his last Tour win in 1999.
For Matt "Matty" Kuchar, winning the Nationwide Henrico County Open, is a necessary step to re-acquiring his PGA Tour card, and a shot-in-the-arm since his last win in 2002 (PGA Honda Classic).

Both players will meet this week in the St Jude Classic in Memphis.
This is a regular stop for Lumpy, and (by virtue of a sponsors' exemption) an invitation extended for Matty.

Look for both players to ride their enthusiasm into the weekend. I'll predict top 10 finishes for both.
Lumpy is a streaky player, and if he can keep his nerves in-in check, should do very well here, as this is one of his favorite Tour stops.
Matty ('98 player of the year at Georgia Tech), one of the purest putters not on the PGA Tour, will try to make the most of his sponsors exemption. His win yesterday looked nothing short of the old-Kuchar when he was totally in control of his game. Longtime readers know I'll be pulling for this YellowJacket!

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

JFB

ACC awards summary

I like watching future golf pros' travails. I guess it harkens back to the day when I went crazy for rookie baseball cards in the hopes that the players would do well, and their "stock" would rise.
That said, here is the recently-named list of the mid-atlantic golfers of the year:

The 2006 All-ACC Men's Golf Team
Brian Duncan, Clemson, Sr., Greenville, S.C.
Stephen Poole, Clemson, Sr., Spartanburg, S.C.
Ryan Blaum, Duke, Sr., Coral Gables, Fla.
Jake Grodzinsky, Duke, Jr., Cornville, Ariz.
Roberto Castro, Georgia Tech, Jr., Alpharetta, Ga.
Kevin Larsen, Georgia Tech, Jr., Santa Barbara, Calif.
Cameron Tringale, Georgia Tech, Fr., Laguna Niguel, Calif.
Martin Ureta, North Carolina, Jr., Santiago, Chile
Robert Riesen, North Carolina, Fr., Pinehurst, N.C.
Stephen Lewton, NC State, Sr., Milton Keyes, England
Kyle Reifers, Wake Forest, Sr., Columbus, Ohio
Webb Simpson, Wake Forest, So., Raleigh, N.C.

Player of the Year - Ryan Blaum, Duke
Freshman of the Year - Cameron Tringale, Georgia Tech
Coach of the Year - Bruce Heppler, Georgia Tech

BTW: this is Hepplers' 4th trip for the COY award. He continues the YellowJacket legacy as the successor to the venerable Tech coach Puggy Blackmon.

The FOY award was started in '92, and since that time, a Jacket has won the award 5 times. No other ACC school has more than three. Cameron Tringale was featured in a recent post by me: And a freshman will lead them.

Thank for reading, keep it in the short-grass.

JFB

And a freshman will lead them

This past weekend, the ACC Men's Golf Championship was held at the prestigious Old North State Club golf course in New London NC.

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets held off an 11 shot charge in the final round by the N. Carolina Tar Heels to share their 9th overall title (3rd on this course), first since 2002.

Cameron Tringale (Tech coach Bruce Hepplers' freshman charge) won medalist honors with an overall 10 under-par. Cameron, who hails from Laguna Niguel CA, attended OC's Mission Viejo High, and was county player-of-the-year in his senior year.
He is Tech's first ACC individual champion since uber-record-breaker Bryce Molder in 2000, and sits atop a list of top pedigree of golfers that have graduated from Georgia Tech: David Duval, Stewart Cink, Tripp Isenhauer and Matt Kuchar...to name a few.

Georgia Tech is a top-ranked engineering school located in the heart of Atlanta. Recruiting the best golfers from around the country, needless to say has been easy, as Tech is annually seeded as a top 10 golf program in the country.

All the students at Tech share a common bond: confidence;

On the second playoff hole, Trindale missed a 6-footer that, had he made it, would have given Tech the outright title. When asked how many times he would have made that same putt out of 10....he answered"eleven."

Cameron will major in management...no doubt to manage all the money he'll earn in the PGA.

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

JFB