WHY do sports casters try to sell us what they’d never buy? Why embellish and decorate and add floral trim until it reaches silly, maudlin?
Friday from the U.S. Open, ESPN’s Mike Tirico, mostly a level-headed fellow, noted that Drew Weaver had the early lead at one-under.
Then he added that Weaver was a “Virginia Tech student in 2007 when they had those terrible shootings there. He won the British Amateur, inspired by that tragedy that he was only 100 yards away from.”
Come on, now.
No doubt those murders left a considerable mark on Weaver, but to make a direct connect between that tragedy and winning a big golf tournament is just too much to ask from us, no? Without that horrible event, Weaver wouldn’t have won, couldn’t have won?
So why then did he miss the cut at the British Amateur last year, because that tragedy no longer inspires him, because he’s over it? Geez. Come on.
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ESPN scored with a quickie U.S. Open feature Friday, asking Padraig Harrington, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Hale Irwin, Stewart Cink, Adam Scott, Boo Weekley, Vijay Singh and Geoff Ogilvy to say something in a New Yawk accent. Best part of it was seeing and hearing Singh, not normally seen even smiling, laughing long and loud at his poor attempt, a “Hey, Joe.”
Too bad that moments later, back on the course, Chris Berman took it too far on behalf of, who else? Chris Berman. He made a forced, unfunny reference to Jimi Hendrix‘s “Hey, Joe.” Oh, how smart, how clever!
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Watching David Duval again play superior golf Friday was, as both the ESPN and NBC folks said, “A great story.” But how much of it would we have been able to watch had Duval been on the course at the same time as Tiger Woods?
Good “other” stories are almost always lost or shorted to TV showing Woods lining up putts, taking a sip of water, walking down the fairway, clips of him winning past tournaments (emphasis on fist-pumps), breathing in and out and even waiting in the tee box for the group in front to clear. . . . Friday, NBC’s Roger Maltbie, from ESPN, was asked how he liked Sergio Garcia‘s tight leave from an awkward, one-foot-out sand shot, said, “I just wish I could get in that position.”
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New York sports fans who appreciated thoughtful, intelligent answers, will most miss Amani Toomer. . . . There no longer is anything sporting attached to the purchase of a ticket to a big league sporting event, any sport, any event. If the buyer doesn’t expect the promise of being ripped off, the buyer’s either a dope or is just new at it.
As more and more big leaguers are revealed to have used performance-enhancing drugs, we’re reminded that in November, 2003, MLB was eager to have us all believe that just five to seven percent tested dirty. Yup, and those were the hey, not-that-bad numbers thrown about as the facts, for a while, anyway. Anyone now believe such numbers?
Reader Anthony Verni of Ellicott City, Md., agrees with the widespread criticism of LeBron James for refusing to shake hands after losing to the Magic. Yet, while watching NFL games, showboating and taunting are in full view after virtually every play. And that these acts occur during games. So Verni wonders why, on those common occasions, he never hears a word of condemnation.
Sirius XM has the Pakistan-Sri Lanka World Cup cricket final from London, this morning at 10 on Sirius Ch. 113 and XM Ch. 242. . . . NBC’s Johnny Miller has become an advocate for happy, crowd-friendly PGA Tourists; he loves the way Rocco Mediate embraces galleries but wishes Woods would smile more. Cool, but we can’t recall Miller, during his Tour years, behaving like Smilin’ Jack.
One day John Sterling is going to say, “A walk here is as good as a hit, even a home run,” and Suzyn Waldman is going to say, “No it isn’t, fool. Hush your mouth. ” One day. Meanwhile, the last person in Yankee Stadium on Wednesday to realize Brett Gardner was running for Mark Teixeira was Sterling, who was too busy enjoying the sound of his own voice.