This Week in Golf

PGA Tour – Tiger Woods’ event takes place this week in Philadelphia at Aronimink Golf Club. The AT&T National moves for one year from its traditional site at Congressional, which is under renovations for the 2011 US Open. The tournament that honors military servicemen and veterans fittingly concludes on Independence Day. Tiger is the defending champion following last year’s incredible performance. However, his play has not been as stellar this season. Woods and Furyk are the only players in the field ranking in the top ten in the world, but both of them are favorites to win this week. Woods is my pick to win. Even though he has disappointing results in 2010 by his standards, by most pros’ standards he is playing fairly well. He had a top ten at the US Open two weeks ago, and he is the host of the AT&T National this week. Ricky Barnes is the player to watch that many won’t be talking about. He won Brad Faxon and Billy Andrade’s annual charity event on Tuesday while paired with J.B. Holmes. But Barnes has played exceptionally well the last month turning in three top seven finishes in his last four tournaments including a tie for fifth last week. I look for Barnes hot play to continue in Philadelphia. CBS will be covering the festivities at Aronimink.


PGA of America – The Club Pros Championship is being played early this week in French Lick, Indiana. As I write this article, University of Illinois Mens Golf Coach and the defending champion Mike Small holds a two stroke lead with a little more than one round left to play. Small has a strong history in this event, where a victory earns the winner a pass into the PGA Championship in August. I am pulling for Mike as I am sure his high school golf coach from Danville is and more than likely Larry Bird. Bird is from French Lick, and we know he plays golf from his performance in Space Jam.

It’s All Here in “The Only Game”

You can't beat the ageless sports writing of The New Yorker. Read the Slammin' Sam on Sports Media take courtesy of Seamheads.com. Thanks for reading, and we'll see you Thursday for Links!

“An afternoon in mid-May, and we are waiting for the game to begin. We are in the shadow, and the sunlit field before us is a thick, springy green—an old diamond, beautifully kept up,” Roger Angell pens in the opening to his essay “The Web of the Game.” (3, Only)

Angell’s piece sets the tone for “The Only Game in Town,” a nostalgic collection of The New Yorker writings, which includes several baseball reflections. But before you settle into your easy chair, be warned that the book is not a pitch out around the game’s improprieties. Oh no, writes Ring Lardner in “Br’er Rabbit Ball.”

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This Week in Golf

PGA Tour – The Tour travels to Connecticut this week for the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands. Most every PGA Tour event deserves a good spot on the schedule, and the Travelers is one of them. Unfortunately, they have been stuck with the week following a U.S. Open on the other coast. Therefore, the field is not particularly stellar despite a golf course with a fabulous finishing stretch of holes. The Travelers Championship has provided exciting drama on Sunday from Kenny Perry’s final 63 to win last year to Hunter Mahan and Jay Williamson’s dual three years ago. The big names that showed up in Hartford this week include Padraig Harrington, Retief Goosen, Adam Scott, Perry, Hunter Mahan, Rickie Fowler, John Daly, Justin Rose, and Vijay Singh. Stewart Cink is my pick to win this week. As a two-time champion (1997, 2008) in Connecticut, I don’t think I can go wrong with Cink, who also got into a playoff here in ‘98. He obviously likes the course, and he had a recent top ten finish at the Memorial. Hunter Mahan is another horse for this course, and he will serve as my sleeper pick. He has not played extremely well since his victory at the Phoenix Open in February, but he finished in first or second at River Highlands each year from 2006-2008. So watch for him too. The boys at CBS will deliver the coverage from Hartford over the weekend.

Slammin' Sam on Sports Media Links

Hello Free Keon and Slammin’ Sam on Sports Media Readers!

You can tell my leanings when I have today marked with a big red circle on my calendar. OK, not really, but I do love the fact that the NBA Draft has arrived. I’ll try to make sure that does not dominate today’s links.

With disclosure out of the way, I have to start with the point guard at least one expert says could be the best ever, John Wall. Wall is expected to be the No. 1 pick by the Washington Wizards tonight.

Moving on to a story about arguably the best point guard right now, Chris Paul. Is it true he’s headed out of New Orleans?

One last basketball story to get out of the way. If John Wall and Evan Turner are already gone, Derrick Favors might be the next best choice.

For those of you who can’t get enough of the World Cup, don’t miss this story.

Before we reach the end, some baseball fans might say I missed the big story of the day. With a tiff between Hanley Ramirez and manager Fredi Gonzalez still hanging over the Marlins, Gonzalez was fired Wednesday.

As always, thanks for spending part of your day at Free Keon!

Sam Miller/Free Keon

All in the Cards

Thanks to Steve for keeping you company while I was gone. Here's my latest post. Thanks for reading!

Ozzie Smith, Lou Brock, Bob Gibson. Three names Cardinals fans and baseball enthusiasts know well. But those are just three of the Redbirds 42 Hall of Famers. What about Rabbit Maranville, Chick Hafey or Pud Galvin? Authors Greg Marecek and Myron Holtzman engage readers with story after story in “The Cardinals of Cooperstown.”

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