Peter Eastgate, Denmark, wins 2008 World Series of Poker main event..
November 11, 2008
A 22-year-old Danish poker professional won the World Series of Poker early Tuesday, turning a wheel straight on the last hand to become the youngest champion in the history of the no-limit Texas Hold ‘em main event.
Peter Eastgate hit an ace-to-five straight on the turn and instantly called an all-in bet from Ivan Demidov on the river to win the title and $9,152,416. Demidov held two pairs — twos and fours.
The previous youngest champion was 11-time gold bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, who was 24 when he won the tournament in 1989.
“It feels good to beat Phil’s record,” Eastgate said after taking pictures with stacks of $100 bills and his new gold bracelet. “I was not focused on the record that I could break, I was just focused on the game.”
Eastgate said he got a call from Hellmuth wishing him luck before the more than three-hour session.
Eastgate built a 7-to-1 chip advantage before the decisive hand by sniffing out two bluffs by Demidov for big pots.
Eastgate, of Odense, Denmark, put Demidov on his heels by stopping the 27-year-old from bluffing a pot worth roughly 44 million chips with an ace high. Eastgate called with a diamond flush.
He won a significant pot four hands later with a full house and immediately began putting pressure on the final opponent standing between him and the title.
“My motivation was $9 million and a bracelet,” Eastgate said. “That’s what kept me focused.”
Demidov, a 27-year-old semiprofessional poker player from Moscow, took home $5,809,595 for second place.
“I’m someone who’s not going to cry,” Demidov said. “I’m disappointed, but I’m going to be happy. That’s the way it turned out.”
Demidov erased Eastgate’s initial 24 million chip advantage in their quest for the gold bracelet in less than 30 minutes to start the night.
But Eastgate regained his chips and then some by the first break — taking a 35.8 million chip lead after hitting two pairs — aces and queens.
Eastgate took a nearly 2-to-1 chip advantage after calling a 7 million chip river bet with a pair of jacks. A queen was on the board, but Demidov turned over an ace high. The call indicated that Eastgate sensed his hand was good despite the large bet and plenty of cards that could have beaten him.
“He was playing me very aggressively so I was kind of looking to kind of trap him,” Eastgate said. “It worked out in different spots.”
One player had to collect all the chips in play — some 137 million — to win the tournament. Chips have no monetary value and each player started the no-limit Texas Hold ‘em tournament in July with 20,000 chips.
The players were deliberate in their decisions, not rushing to shove their chips in the middle early on. As Eastgate distanced himself from Demidov, it became apparent that Demidov would need to double his stack to keep his options unhindered.
“I learned that I need to improve my hands-on game,” Demidov said.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
O.J. Simpson’s lawyer seek new robbery trial in Las Vegas.
October 10, 2008
O.J. Simpson’s lawyers cited judicial errors and insufficient evidence Friday in seeking a new trial for the former football star, who was convicted of kidnapping and robbing two sports memorabilia dealers at gunpoint in a casino hotel room.
“Simpson should be granted a new trial,” attorney Gabriel Grasso wrote in a motion faulting Clark County District Judge Jackie Glass’ decisions during jury selection, her limitations on cross-examination of witnesses during trial and her instructions to jurors before deliberations.
In a separate filing, a lawyer for co-defendant Clarence “C.J.” Stewart said Stewart suffered from being tried with Simpson, who was acquitted more than a decade ago of killing his ex-wife and her friend. Attorney Brent Bryson also alleged misconduct by the jury foreman, whom he quoted as saying he thought Simpson should have been given a life sentence for murder.
If the foreman “believes that Mr. Simpson is a murderer, and that Mr. Stewart is associated with Mr. Simpson, that bias would spill over” and affect the juror’s ability to be impartial, Bryson wrote.
Jury foreman Paul Connelly has made remarks disputing such an interpretation of his post-verdict comments.
In documents filed with Glass, Grasso and Simpson lawyer Yale Galanter also protested that the judge refused to grant enough time to fully review transcripts and videotapes of the trial, which led to guilty verdicts against Simpson and Stewart on Oct. 3.
“She didn’t give us the time we need to do a full-fledged motion,” said Galanter, who lost a bid to extend the seven-day deadline.
Galanter said he would file a more detailed appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court, the state’s only appellate court, if Glass denies a new trial.
Prosecutors were expected to submit written opposition this month, according to court documents.
Simpson, 61, and Stewart, 54, are due for sentencing Dec. 5. The jury convicted them of all 12 charges, including kidnapping, armed robbery and assault with a deadly weapon, in the hotel room confrontation more than a year ago.
Both men are jailed in Las Vegas. They face five years to life in prison on each of their two kidnapping convictions, and a mandatory sentence of at least two years or up to 30 years on each of the two armed robbery convictions.
Simpson’s motion for a new trial alleges Glass improperly allowed prosecutors to use pre-emptory challenges to remove two prospective black jurors before the final jury was seated.
Both Simpson and Stewart are black. The final jury of nine women and three men included one woman who identified herself as Hispanic, but no blacks.
Simpson’s lawyers asserted there was not enough evidence to support first-degree kidnapping convictions and faulted questions used to cull the jury from a pool of 500 prospects.
Grasso alleged that Glass blocked them from telling jurors that they could consider lesser charges of larceny or second-degree kidnapping against Simpson, or that the former NFL star believed when he confronted memorabilia dealers Bruce Fromong and Alfred Beardsley that he was retrieving items that belonged to him.
Grasso also claimed the judge allowed biased jurors to be seated after they were questioned about Simpson’s acquittal in the 1994 slayings in Los Angeles of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. Five of the 12 eventual jurors said they disagreed with the murder acquittal, Grasso wrote, complaining that defense attorneys weren’t allowed to ask them how they reached their opinion.
Glass sought during the trial to limit references to Simpson’s 1995 acquittal. But there were references to that case and to a 1997 civil judgment holding Simpson liable for the slayings and ordering him to pay $33.5 million.
Stewart lawyers lost several requests to sever Stewart’s trial from Simpson’s. Bryson’s documents referred to those decisions but focused on accusations of misconduct by Connelly, the jury foreman.
Bryson pointed to answers on Connelly’s jury questionnaire and to comments he said the foreman made during a post-verdict news conference.
“We all have opinions; some people think he should have been given life 13 years ago,” Bryson quoted Connelly as saying. “That was my opinion, but I think that’s reserved for the court to decide.”
Connelly has said he was asked two different questions at the news conference and his answers were consistent with his responses on his jury questionnaire - that the courts had acquitted Simpson of murder and he agreed with that verdict.
Connelly has said that he was asked two different questions at the news conference and that his answers were consistent with his responses on his jury questionnaire — that the courts had acquitted Simpson of murder and that he agreed with the verdict.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Formula One drops Canadian Grand Prix race for 2009 schedule.
October 7, 2008
The Canadian Grand Prix was dropped from the 2009 calendar on Tuesday, leaving North America without a Formula One race for the first time in 43 years.
Governing body FIA ratified its calendar for the coming season and omitted the Canadian GP, which was first held in 1967. It’s the first time since 1987 that the Canadian GP won’t be on the F1 schedule.
Contractual problems between Circuit Gilles Villeneuve officials and commercial rights holder F1 management are believed to have contributed to the decision.
The Canadian race was left off the calendar 21 years ago due to a dispute between local organizers and the F1 over sponsorship.
The U.S. GP was dropped from the F1 schedule last year.
The 2009 season will be the first since 1966 without any North American race.
The inaugural Abu Dhabi GP replaces the Canadian race for 2009, which will feature 18 races, the same as 2008.
The Turkish GP, originally scheduled to be raced in August, takes Montreal’s June 7 spot to leave teams with a four-week break between the Hungarian GP on July 26 and the European GP at Valencia, Spain, on Aug. 23.
At the World Council meeting held at FIA’s Paris headquarters, FIA also gave president Max Mosley the power to negotiate directly with the Formula One Teams Association over proposed measures to cut F1 team costs in half by 2010.
Should negotiations with the 10 teams fail, then the FIA can “enforce the necessary measures to achieve this goal.”
Also, Marco Piccinini will leave his post as deputy president for the sporting side of the body a year early “to focus on other professional commitments.” Piccinini, whose successor will be elected at the Nov. 7 general assembly, was serving out his second term.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Detroit sweeps San Antonio for 3rd WNBA title in six years.
October 5, 2008
Katie Smith missed almost the entire second quarter because of foul trouble. Cheryl Ford has been out since the summer with a knee injury. And the Detroit Shock had to play in a college gym half the size of their regular home court.
In the end, none of it mattered.
The Shock overcame all of that in winning their third WNBA title in six seasons on Sunday, beating the San Antonio Silver Stars 76-60 in Game 3.
Detroit swept the league’s best regular-season team, winning the clincher at Eastern Michigan University’s Convocation Center, a venue forced upon them because of a scheduling conflict.
For Smith, the finals MVP, the win meant a league championship less than two months after she and her U.S. teammates took gold in Beijing.
“Everybody battles on this team,” she said.
Smith was lifted from the game with time running out as coach Bill Laimbeer emptied his bench to the ear-splitting delight of the crowd.
A few minutes later, she was sprinting back on to the court with her teammates to celebrate yet another championship as confetti rained down.
Detroit became the second team in league history to win a third championship. Only the Houston Comets, who won the first four (1997-2000), have more. Los Angeles (2001, 2002) is the only other team with more than one.
It was an especially sweet win for the Shock, who let the 2007 title slip away, losing it at The Palace to the Phoenix Mercury. They also lost Ford — a stalwart on the previous title runs — in July.
Sunday’s game was tight for three quarters with San Antonio leading by six on several occasions. But the veteran Shock were too much to take in the fourth with the title on the line.
The Shock enjoyed a 49-45 lead after three periods, and they quickly extended it to 55-47 on Taj McWilliams-Franklin’s one-hander off the glass 3 minutes into the fourth.
A pair of free throws by McWilliams-Franklin less than a minute later gave the Shock their first double-digit lead of the game.
Then Smith sealed it.
She hit a long jumper and then drained a high-arching 3 that made it 62-47 and sent the crowd into a frenzy.
It might not have been The Palace and its seating capacity of more than 22,000, but the cozy Convocation Center and its 9,000-plus seats served as a fine home-court advantage for Detroit — which won all three postseason games here.
One sign in the stands said simply: “Not in our rental unit.”
The Silver Stars had the league’s best regular-season record thanks in part to going 14-0 against the East. They powered their way through the conference playoffs, but were no match for the Shock, losing by eight points twice on their home court before the series shifted to Michigan.
Top scorer Becky Hammon was held in check for much of the series and was a non-factor in Game 3, managing only five points on 1-for-10 shooting. Center Ann Wauters led San Antonio with 19 points, and forward Sophia Young added 15.
Smith had a team-high 18 points for Detroit, which also got 13 from McWilliams-Franklin — who was a key late-season acquisition — and 12 from Deanna Nolan, the 2006 finals MVP.
San Antonio led 34-30 at the half and was never up by more than six.
The Silver Stars didn’t trail in the first quarter, despite Hammon being held scoreless. They scored the game’s first six points and led 10-7 midway through the period, but McWilliams-Franklin’s jumper knotted the score at 16 with 35 seconds remaining.
After a night of celebrating, the Shock have a date with the new mayor of Detroit, Ken Cockrel Jr., who will honor the team at a downtown celebration at midday Monday.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
O.J. Simpson found guilty on all 12 counts in Las Vegas debacle.
October 4, 2008
Thirteen years to the day after being acquitted of killing his wife and her friend in Los Angeles, O.J. Simpson was found guilty of robbing two sports-memorabilia dealers at gunpoint in a Las Vegas hotel room.
The 61-year-old former football star was convicted of all 12 counts late Friday after jurors deliberated for more than 13 hours. He released a heavy sigh as the charges were read and was immediately taken into custody.
Simpson, who went from American sports idol to celebrity-in-exile after his murder acquittal, could spend the rest of his life in prison.
His attorney said he would appeal.
Many people considered the four-week trial justice delayed. Simpson was cleared in 1995 of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman, in one of the most sensational trials of the 20th century, but was later found liable for the deaths in a civil case.
“I don’t like to use the word payback,” defense attorney Yale Galanter said. “I can tell you from the beginning my biggest concern … was whether or not the jury would be able to separate their very strong feelings about Mr. Simpson and judge him fairly and honestly.”
The Hall of Fame football star was convicted of kidnapping, armed robbery and 10 other charges for gathering up five men a year ago and storming into a room at a hotel-casino, where the group seized several game balls, plaques and photos. Prosecutors said two of the men with him were armed; one of them said Simpson asked him to bring a gun.
Simpson’s co-defendant, Clarence “C.J.” Stewart, 54, also was found guilty on all charges and taken into custody.
Simpson showed little emotion as officers handcuffed him and walked him out of the courtroom. His sister, Carmelita Durio, sobbed behind him in the arms of Simpson’s friend, Tom Scotto, who said “I love you” as Simpson passed by. As spectators left the courtroom, Durio collapsed.
Jurors made no eye contact with the defendants as they entered the courtroom. They declined to answer questions after the verdict was read.
Galanter said his client had expected the outcome, and in a courthouse conversation with an Associated Press reporter on Thursday, Simpson had implied as much.
Simpson said he was “afraid that I won’t get to go to my kids’ college graduations after I managed to get them through college.”
Galanter said it was not a happy day for anybody. “His only hope is the appellate process,” he said.
Clark County spokesman Dan Kulin said prosecutors would not comment until the case was “completely resolved.”
Judge Jackie Glass made no comment other than to thank the jury for its service and to deny motions for the defendants to be released on bail.
She refused to give the lawyers extended time to file a motion for new trial, which under Nevada law must be filed within seven days. The attorneys said they needed time to submit a voluminous record.
“I’ve sat through the trial,” Glass said. “If you want a motion for new trial, send me something.”
Stewart’s attorney, Brent Bryson, also promised to appeal.
“If there was ever a case that should have been severed in the history of jurisprudence, it’s this case,” he said of unsuccessful attempts to separate Stewart’s case from Simpson’s because of the “spillover” effect.
From the beginning, Simpson and his lawyers argued the incident was not a robbery, but an attempt to reclaim mementos that had been stolen from him. He said he did not ask anyone to bring a weapon and did not see any guns.
The defense portrayed Simpson as a victim of shady characters who wanted to make a buck off his famous name, and police officers who saw his arrest as an opportunity to “get” him and avenge his acquittal.
Prosecutors said Simpson’s ownership of the memorabilia was irrelevant; it was still a crime to try to take things by force.
“When they went into that room and forced the victims to the far side of the room, pulling out guns and yelling, ‘Don’t let anybody out of here!’ — six very large people detaining these two victims in the room with the intent to take property through force or violence from them — that’s kidnapping,” prosecutor David Roger said.
Kidnapping is punishable by five years to life in prison. Armed robbery carries a mandatory sentence of at least two years behind bars, and could bring as much as 30. Sentencing was set for Dec. 5.
Simpson, who now lives in Miami, did not testify but was heard on a recording of the confrontation screaming that the dealers had stolen his property. “Don’t let nobody out of this room,” he declared and told the other men to scoop up his items, which included a photo of Simpson with former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover.
Four other men charged in the case struck plea bargains that saved them from potential prison sentences in return for their testimony. Some of them had criminal records or were otherwise compromised in some way. One, for example, was an alleged pimp who testified he had a revelation from God telling him to take a plea bargain.
Memorabilia dealer Thomas Riccio, who arranged and secretly recorded the hotel-room confrontation, said he netted $210,000 from the media for the tapes.
Similarly, minutes after the Sept. 13, 2007, incident, one of the alleged victims, sports-memorabilia dealer Alfred Beardsley, was calling news outlets, and the other, Bruce Fromong, spoke of getting “big money” from the case.
Simpson’s past haunted the case. Las Vegas police officers were heard in the recordings chuckling over Simpson’s misfortune and crowing that if Los Angeles couldn’t “get” him, they would.
During jury selection, Simpson’s lawyers expressed fears that people who believed he got away with murder might see this case as a chance to right a wrong.
As a result, an usually large pool of 500 potential jurors was called, and they were given a 26-page questionnaire. Half were almost instantly eliminated after expressing strong feelings that Simpson should have been convicted of murder.
The judge instructed the jurors to put aside Simpson’s earlier case.
In closing arguments, Galanter acknowledged that what Simpson did to recover his memorabilia was not right. “But being stupid, and being frustrated is not being a criminal,” he said.
He added: “This case has taken on a life of its own because of Mr. Simpson’s involvement. You know that. I know that. Every cooperator, every person who had a gun, every person who had an ulterior motive, every person who signed a book deal, every person who got paid money, the police, the district attorney’s office, is only interested in one thing: Mr. Simpson.”
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Actor, champ car owner, Paul Newman dies at the age of 83.
September 27, 2008
Paul Newman wanted to be a great athlete — he just never found a sport in which he could excel. Then, while filming the movie Winning in 1969 at age 43, he discovered auto racing.
“I was never a very graceful person. The only time I ever really feel coordinated is when I dance with Joanne,” he once told the Associated Press, referring to his wife, Joanne Woodward. “And that’s not my doing. But when I’m behind the wheel of race car, I feel competent and in charge. It’s something I really enjoy.”
Newman, an Oscar-winning actor, entrepreneur, philanthropist, activist and race car driver, died of cancer Friday at his farmhouse near Westport, Conn., publicist Jeff Sanderson said.
“Paul Newman, a real American hero,” NASCAR team owner Jack Roush said.
Newman spoke of his passion for racing during a 1995 interview with the AP shortly after he was part of the winning team in the Daytona 24-Hours sports car endurance race. He was 70 years old at the time. No one remotely close to that age had ever won in that event.
Newman could be terse and distant in his rare interviews, but he would light up when he talked about his favorite sport.
“I don’t like talking about acting because that’s business and pretty boring,” Newman told the AP another time. “And politics can get you in trouble. But I’ll always talk about racing because the people are interesting and fun, the sport is a lot more exciting than anything else I do, and nobody cares that I’m an actor. I wish I could spend all my time at the racetrack.”
When Newman decided to get into racing, it was more than just being in the cockpit that interested him. He became a car owner in the Can-Am Series, campaigning cars for a number of top drivers, including Indianapolis 500 winners Al Unser, Danny Sullivan and Bobby Rahal, as well as Formula One champion Keke Rosberg.
After competing against team owner Carl Haas in Can-Am, Newman formed a partnership with the Chicago businessman, starting Newman/Haas Racing in 1983 and joining the CART series.
With Mario Andretti hired as its first driver, the team was an instant success. Throughout the last 26 years, the team — now known as Newman/Haas/Lanigan and part of the IndyCar Series — has won 107 races and eight series championships with drivers like Michael Andretti, Nigel Mansell, Cristiano da Matta, Paul Tracy and Sebastien Bourdais.
“He was just a great guy and truly loved everything about racing,” Michael Andretti said.
Despite a heavy schedule, Newman came to the track as often as possible. He tried without much success to keep a low profile as he roamed pit lane on his motor scooter or sat at the team’s pit box, his baseball cap pulled low over those famous blue eyes, a pair of reading glasses — used for reading the timing and scoring monitor — dangling from a string around his neck.
“Paul and I have been partners for 26 years and I have come to know his passion, humor and, above all, his generosity,” Haas said. “Not just economic generosity, but generosity of spirit. His support of the team’s drivers, crew and the racing industry is legendary. His pure joy at winning a pole position or winning a race exemplified the spirit he brought to his life and to all those that knew him.”
Newman’s many charitable works extended to racing. Kyle Petty and his wife founded a camp for chronically ill children in North Carolina, modeled on Newman’s Hole in the Wall Gang camps.
“He was dedicated to giving back to those less fortunate and with each child we see, we honor his spirit and vision,” Petty said.
Two-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart competed against Newman in several sports car races.
“He set the bar, not only with his giving, but in how he gave. … Paul did it right, and he did it with class,” Stewart said.
After playing the role of an Indy 500 driver in “Winning,” Newman found he couldn’t get the driving bug out of his system. And he found he had a real talent for the sport.
Newman began racing sports cars in amateur divisions and won his first race in 1972 at Thompson, Conn., in a Lotus Elan. He earned the first of four SCCA National title in 1976 in the D-Production class and also won championships in the 1979 C-Production category, as well as taking the GT-1 championship in 1985 and 1986.
His first professional victory came in the rain at an SCCA trans-Am race at Brainerd, Minn., in 1982.
When Newman arrived in the media center at Brainerd for the winner’s interview, a bottle of champagne in hand and a huge smile on his face, he found just two writers waiting for him.
“Where is everybody? I guess I’ll have to win something a little bigger than this to get any attention,” he said.
Newman added another Trans-Am win at his home track in Lime Rock, Conn., in 1986.
He often said one of the things that attracted him most to racing was the camaraderie in the pits and paddock. And Newman loved a good practical joke, even when it was played on him.
During a race in Elkhart Lake, Wis., several drivers conspired to pull a fast one on him. They hired a bus and sent it to a home for the aged, telling the residents that actor Paul Newman had invited them for lunch and a day at the track. About 40 women jumped at the offer.
Newman was at the track when a crewman came in and said, “Paul, there’s a bunch of people out here who say they’re supposed to have lunch with you.” Newman came out of his motor coach smiling and played the role of gracious host at a hastily arranged lunch for the adoring ladies.
When the Indy Racing League was formed, Newman/Haas stuck with CART and Newman tried numerous times during the 12-year split to broker a deal to get the rival organizations back under one banner.
Once, when a deal appeared close in the late 1990s, Newman summoned a writer to his motor coach at Portland, Ore., and demanded: “Write about this now and we’ll put some pressure on these people to get this done,” he said, with a profanity tossed in to underline his point.
It finally did get done, but not until this past February.
Newman was thrilled by the unification, even though it was the IRL’s IndyCar Series that wound up the winner of the internecine warfare.
“It’s about time,” Newman said. “Now, we can tell potential sponsors we have a future and mean it, and we can develop great, young drivers that will attract new fans to the sport. The future looks much brighter now.”
As he passed his 80th birthday, he remained in demand. He managed to combine acting with racing by providing the voice of a crusty 1951 car in the 2006 Disney-Pixar hit, “Cars.”
Newman drove his last race as a professional in the 2005 Daytona 24-Hours and even ran some hot laps around his beloved Lime Rock Park in August.
As the years went on, people kept asking him when he was going to quit racing. His reply was standard.
“That’s what Joanne keeps asking me,” he said.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
United States recaptures Ryder Cup for first time since 1999.
September 21, 2008
They bungled the lyrics and were decidedly off-key, but their motivation and intentions were surely pure.
As homegrown hero Kenny Perry stood in the first tee box Sunday, a group of his Commonwealth brethren in the bleachers began blurting out the words to Old Kentucky Home, an effort that fizzled when the lava-lunged fans couldn’t remember the words.
After years of the hearing the U.S. team repeat the same sour chorus, Perry and his new Ryder Cup mates had no such trouble, giving the heavily favored Europeans a symphony of red, white and bluegrass.
After plenty of tears and jeers, the Yanks reclaimed the elusive Cup for the first time since 1999 with a stirring 16½-11½ victory over the Euros at Valhalla Golf Club, riding the efforts of two native Kentuckians and their adopted country cousin to an American antebellum reconstruction.
The lopsided score represents the largest American victory since 1981, when the Americans won 18½-9½ in old Surrey, England. That’s a long way, both geographically and philosophically, from where country Kenny lives.
The determined Perry won his match with ease, fellow Kentucky native J.B. Holmes made two brilliant birdies down the stretch to nail down a victory and homespun Boo Weekley had six birdies and an eagle to win in a rout to lead the American charge, which has been a very long time coming.
“I couldn’t hold back the tears,” said Perry, 48, who piled the pressure on himself this week. “It’s the greatest day of my life.”
Including U.S. captain Paul Azinger, there were at least a dozen others wearing the same uniform who wouldn’t have argued the point. But for Perry and Holmes, it was doubly delicious. The pair of native sons finished the week a combined 4-1-2, collecting five points. Weekley, who was embraced as a homeboy himself with his corny country quotes and crazy cheerleading antics, was unbeaten at 2-0-1.
“They took it to us the last couple of years,” the colorful Weekley said, low-balling the length of the drought by a few miles. “And now it’s time for us to take it back.”
As the champagne sprayed, the animated Weekley did a few victory laps around the clubhouse, pretending he was riding a galloping horse while whipping himself on the backside. Which beats the mood of three days earlier, when nitpicking at the underdog and overmatched U.S. team felt like whipping a dead horse.
What’s experience worth? Even in a pressure cauldron like the Ryder, it’s not always a difference-maker. Astoundingly, the veteran trio of Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and three-time major winner Padraig Harrington, who all lost on Sunday, finished the week without a victory between them.
Garcia, sent off first in an attempt to get some mojo working as the Europeans began the day trailing 9-7, was crushed by 23-year-old Anthony Kim, who was so swept up in the moment that after ending it on the 14th green, 5 and 4, he began rushing off to the next tee, oblivious that the match had just ended and he’d scored a potentially major point.
“I’m coming out of my skin right now I’m so excited,” Kim said as the Cup was clinched. “We’re obviously very proud of ourselves. Hopefully we got a lot more coming.”
The Europeans mustered a minor move through the middle of the day, but with Harrington and Westwood fading in the last two positions on the lineup card, the day quickly became a runaway for the Americans.
There’s a sentence nobody expected to read this week.
Somewhat fittingly, American veteran Jim Furyk won the clinching point with his 2-and-1 win over Miguel Angel Jimenez. Furyk had been on the receiving end of the clinching point in the American loss in 2002, so he personified the team’s utter turnaround.
“It’s an awful feeling,” recalled Furyk, who entered the week with a Ryder record of 6-12-2.
More than anyone, though, it was the two Kentuckians, Weekley and the other rookies who were at the fore. Holmes made two huge birdies on Nos. 16 and 17 to all but secure the cup that Furyk nailed down a moment later.
“Best moment of my life right now,” said Holmes, who grew up 80 miles up the road and attended University of Kentucky. “I’m just so excited. This was just an unbelievable day. I don’t know what else to say.”
Perry was likewise overwhelmed, and for good reason. The veteran won three times this year during an all-out press to make the roster, then tailored his schedule to maximize his chances, drawing stern criticism for sitting out two major championships. A moment before he teed off, as the locals tried to serenade him behind the first tee, he cast an eye into the bleachers and seemed to soak in the scene. He looked almost serene, which for a twitchy guy like Perry, was very unusual.
“This is what he’s been waiting for,” said Azinger, standing nearby.
With his family in tow all week, including his 84-year-old father riding along in an electric cart — dressed in denim overalls — Perry drilled Henrik Stenson 3 and 2 to secure the team’s second point of the day. It also ended a brief three-match European winning streak.
Only a few days before the matches, he freely admitted that, given the emphasis he had placed on the matches, he was going to be “a hero or a goat to the whole state of Kentucky.” Hey, no pressure there, right?
The Old Kentucky Homeboy delivered.
“It’s the greatest day of my life,” he said. “My dad, my wife my three kids ran up on the green — a magical day. I had such a calm and coolness about me, and the fans are just unbelievable.
“I kept telling everybody this is kind of my swan song, and what a way to go out.”
There is plenty of reason for optimism on the horizon, too. American rookie Hunter Mahan, who had famously criticized the Ryder in a magazine interview over the summer, even though he had only received second-hand reports on the event, was fully willing to eat crow after his experiences this week, which included scoring a team-high 3½ points.
Mahan, who was undefeated, had characterized the role of American players as akin to slaves for the week, but he played more like Spartacus.
“I knew what to expect, but it blows that out of the water,” Mahan said. “The people, the fans, the moments we had, I just felt a lifetime of memories right there.”
Hookscenter.com wire report.
United States leads 2008 Ryder Cup, 9-7, after Day 2.
September 20, 2008
Birdie putts kept falling, one on top of the other, until the Americans finally secured a Saturday lead in the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1995 to set up a final day that finally matters.
The last hour defined the pressure and passion of the Ryder Cup, so intense that players on both teams were emotionally exhausted.
All that remains are 12 singles matches Sunday to determine the winner.
Robert Karlsson concluded a gripping afternoon at Valhalla with his seventh birdie in 10 holes as he and fellow Swede Henrik Stenson scratched out a halve against Phil Mickelson and Hunter Mahan.
The Americans hung on for two key halves to split the afternoon fourballs session, taking a 9-7 lead into the final round of 12 singles, finally giving them a fighting chance to wrest the 17-inch gold chalice away from Europe.
“The golf has been incredible,” U.S. captain Paul Azinger said. “My stomach is just churning.”
Ian Poulter’s eyes nearly popped out of his sockets after making a 30-inch birdie putt that looked like 30 feet. Poulter arrived as a controversial captain’s pick, but he was the only European to play all four matches and he delivered three vital points.
Steve Stricker showed why his selection for his first Ryder Cup was a no-brainer. His match looked like a lost cause until Stricker escaped from the weeds and sank a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a halve.
One minute the Americans looked as if they might build its largest lead in nearly 30 years. The next minute, it looked as though they might not have the lead at all.
“It’s a bumpy road at times, isn’t it, to get to a victory,” European captain Nick Faldo said. “So you come off the road a bit, and we’re back on the road again now.”
Europe has built overwhelming leads the last two times, practically icing the champagne on Saturday night.
Hold on to your tops.
“It was amazing golf,” Azinger said. “It’s amazing because there’s so much pressure here and so much tension and you see in pressure situations the best performance in sports. A two-point lead is great. To have a two-point lead going into singles, we’re happy.”
The Americans need 5½ points from the 12 matches Sunday to win the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1999. The intensity should return quickly, with Anthony Kim and Sergio Garcia leading off, two explosive players in their 20s.
Faldo put two of his strongest players at the end — Lee Westwood in the 11th match against Ben Curtis, and double major winner Padraig Harrington as the anchor against Chad Campbell.
The entire American and European teams huddled on the grassy slopes surrounding the 18th green at Valhalla as the final match trudged up the fairway, the ninth time in two days that a match came down to the final hole.
Hunter Mahan, unbeaten in all four matches in his Ryder Cup debut, hit his approach to the collar of the green for an eagle attempt from 20 feet. Karlsson followed with a second shot in the par 5 that settled 12 feet behind the hole.
Both narrowly missed. Both teams exhaled.
“That’s an unbelieveable two days,” Poulter said. “I think we got a huge piece of momentum today, and the guys are pumped — proper, proper pumped. This is what the Ryder Cup is all about.”
Some of the American rookies found that out.
Boo Weekley toned down his celebration until after his great shots, and there were plenty. Kentucky native J.B. Holmes delivered a putt that put the U.S. team up over Westwood and Soren Hansen, but Weekley stole the show.
He holed a 25-foot putt off the back of the 14th green green for a 2-up lead, then hit a bunker shot to 2 feet on the next hole. Asked where he would rank that shot among the top 10 of his career, Weekley replied, “I reckon No. 9. I done had eight holes-in-one.”
They won on the 17th hole when Westwood failed to extend the match with a 15-foot birdie.
It was the first time in six years the Englishman lost a Ryder Cup match, an unbeaten streak of 12 matches that left him tied with Arnold Palmer and more disappointed for the team than himself.
“The Ryder Cup is not about individuals,” Westwood said. “It’s about the team.”
The rest of the afternoon was a highlight show.
• With the match all square, Karlsson poured in a 12-foot birdie putt at No. 14, and Mickelson followed him in from 10 feet.
• Jim Furyk hit his approach on the 15th within inches of the cup and it looked as if he and Kenny Perry would square their match against Poulter and Graeme McDowell. But McDowell knocked in a nervy 5-footer for birdie.
• Garcia knocked in a 35-foot birdie putt up the ridge on No. 8, screaming, “Come on! Come on!” when it fell. The quiet Stricker then topped him with an 18-foot birdie, and in a rare display of emotion, lunged forward and pumped his fist.
• Karlsson was 4 feet away for birdie on the 16th when Mahan dropped a 10-footer.
It was like that all afternoon, while Michael Jordan was busy text messaging with Tiger Woods, who surely missed out on the action.
Azinger ripped off his cap in celebration and crossed his fingers before every putt, showing nerves that he swore he wouldn’t have.
Faldo, meanwhile, must have felt vindicated.
The BBC roasted him throughout the morning for leaving out Westwood and Garcia, the European tandem that hardly every loses, and sending out what appeared to be a sacrificial lamb in English rookie Oliver Wilson and Stenson.
They faced Mickelson and Kim, fell four holes behind after six holes, but rallied to tie the match six holes later. With a 1-up lead on the 17th, Wilson holed a 30-foot birdie putt to win the match.
Trailing by three points after the first day, Europe won two foursomes matches and halved another in the morning to pull within two points, winning its first session of the morning. After a split in the afternoon, it comes down to Sunday.
Singles traditionally has been the Americans’ strength, but no longer.
Europe has the stronger team based on the world ranking. Europe has the won the last three Ryder Cups, and five of the last six. And Europe has trounced the Americans in singles the last two times.
But that was when it held a comfortable lead. For the first time since 1995, they have some catching up to do.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Funny Car driver Kalitta’s fatal crash due to engine failure.
September 17, 2008
Engine failure at 300 mph triggered a crash that killed top Funny Car driver Scott Kalitta in June.
The New Jersey State Police said investigators determined that “catastrophic mechanical failure” caused a fuel-fired explosion in Kalitta’s Toyota Solaria during a qualifying race at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.
State police said the rear portion of the car’s body separated, deploying the damaged parachute system. The car crashed into a pole and a boom truck.
Kalitta, 46, died from multiple injuries during the final round of qualifying for the Lucas Oil NHRA SuperNationals.
Kalitta, a Palmetto, Fla., resident, started his career at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in 1982.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Hookscenter’s free NFL picks for week 2 against the spread.
September 13, 2008
The NFL season heads to Week 2 and Hookscenter is all ready in mid-season form. HC swept his 4 and 5 Star picks opening weekend, going a perfect 4-0.
HC is scrambling after my 5 Star pick or the week was postponed due to Hurricane Ike slamming the state of Texas, especially the Houston area.
Ike pretty much destroyed the retractable roof on Reliant Stadium and with it caused major street level flooding inside the stadium.
The game between the Ravens and Texans has been rescheduled for November 9th in Houston.
HC turns his attention now to the Arizona Cardinals hosting the Miami Dolphins on Sunday afternoon. The Cardinals have one of the most explosive offenses in the National Football League when Kurt Warner is on.
Warner had modest numbers last week in a 23-13 road victory in San Francisco. He finished the game, 19-30 for 197 yards and one TD. The Edge led the Cardinals ground attack gaining 100 yards on 26 carries.
The Cardinals can make a major statement Sunday against the Dolphins, as the Cardinals were the only team to win opening weekend in the NFC West.
The Dolphins looked ok in week 1 in a 20-14 home loss to the Jets, but there are to many part still remaining from a team that went 1-15 last season. Add in the long flight from the East Coast and this game has rout written all over it. The Cards win in a laugher, 34-13.
5 Star Pick of the Week (1-0):
- Arizona (-6.5) vs Miami (W)
4 Star Picks of the Week (3-0):
- Tampa Bay (-7) vs Atlanta (W)
- Dallas (-6.5) vs Philadelphia (L)
- San Diego (+1.5) @ Denver (W)
Rest of the Week Picks (6-6):
- Kansas City (-3.5) vs Oakland (L)
- Tennessee (+1) @ Cincinnati (W)
- Indianapolis (-2) @ Minnesota (W)
- Washington (+1) vs New Orleans (W)
- Green Bay (-3) @ Detroit (W)
- Chicago (+3) @ Carolina (P)
- St. Louis (+8.5) vs New York Giants (L)
- Seattle (-6.5) vs San Francisco (L)
- Pittsburgh (-6.5) @ Cleveland (L)
- New England (-1) @ New York Jets (W)
- Buffalo (+5) @ Jacksonville (W)
Hook’s Center Predictions Results 2008
ATS: 10-6
5 Star Pick of the Week: 1-0
4 Star pick of the Week: 3-0
Rest of Picks: 6-6