NFL Player Saves Brother’s Life after Stabbing

What was a horrible event—a violent stabbing—became an opportunity for Scotty Anderson to act. His actions most likely saved his brother’s life, who for four hours was thought to be dead. A misunderstanding became an argument which led to the stabbings. Now Scotty is calling it “a miracle and a blessing.” Guess these Anderson boys are part of the “glass is half full” group.

Golf Is a Love-Hate Relationship

A friend of mine passed along this email called the Thirty-Two Absolute Truths of Golf. If you’re one of the cursed souls who is drawn in by golf’s allure yet still frustrated by overwhelming frustration of the game, this list is sure to make you laugh out loud.

1. If you really want to get better at golf, go back and take it up at a much earlier age.
2. The game of golf is 90% mental and 10% mental.
3. Since bad shots come in groups of three, a fourth bad shot is actually the beginning of the next group of three.
4. When you look up and cause an awful shot, you will always look down again at exactly the moment when you ought to start watching the ball if you ever want to see it again.
5. Any change works for a maximum of three holes and a minimum of not at all.
6. No matter how bad you are playing, it is always possible to play worse.
7. Never try to keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.
8. When your shot has to carry over a water hazard, you can either hit one more club or two more balls.
9. If you’re afraid a full shot might reach the green while the foursome ahead of you is still putting out, you have two options: you can immediately shank a lay-up, or you can wait until the green is clear and top a ball halfway there.
10. The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing.
11. The inevitable result of any golf lesson is the instant elimination of the one critical unconscious motion that allowed you to compensate for all your errors.
12. If it ain’t broke, try changing your grip.
13. Golfers who claim they don’t cheat, also lie.
14. Everyone replaces his divot after a perfect approach shot.
15. A golf match is a test of your skill against your opponent’s luck.
16. It’s surprisingly easy to hole a 50-foot putt when you are lying 10.
17. Counting on your opponent to inform you when he breaks a rule is like
    expecting him to make fun of his own haircut.
18. Nonchalant putts count the same as chalant putts.
19. It’s not a gimme if you’re still away.
20. The shortest distance between any two points on a golf course is a straight line that passes directly through the center of a very large tree.
21. There are two kinds of bounces: unfair bounces, and bounces just the way you meant to play it.
22. You can hit a 2-acre fairway 10% of the time, and a 2-inch branch 90% of the time.
23. Every time a golfer makes a birdie, he must subsequently make two triple bogeys to restore the fundamental equilibrium of the universe.
24. If you want to hit a 7-iron as far as Tiger Woods does, simply try to lay up just short of a water hazard.
25. To calculate the speed of a player’s downswing, multiply the speed of his back swing by his handicap. Example: back swing 30 mph, handicap 20, downswing 600 mph.
26. There are two things you can learn by stopping your back swing at the top and checking the position of your hands: how many hands you have, and which one is wearing the glove.
27. Hazards attract; fairways repel.
28. You can put “draw” on the ball, you can put “fade” on the ball, but no golfer can put “straight” on the ball.
29. A ball you can see in the rough from 50 yards away is not yours.
30. If there is a ball in the fringe and a ball in the bunker, your ball is in the bunker.
31. If both balls are in the bunker, yours is in the footprint.
32. Don’t buy a putter until you’ve had a chance to throw it.

Armstrong 1 Day Away from 5th Tour

Despite the many obstacles, the history book for one, Lance Armstrong is one day away from capturing his fifth straight Tour de France. It appears that all he has to do is stay on his bike and avoid a catastrophe, then he’ll be back next year to go for a 6th title, which would put inspirational Armstrong is a league of his own.

You Go Girl

Suzy Waley, the first woman to qualify for a PGA event since 1945, shot a 5-over in her first round of the Greater Hartford Open. Now, she had 137 men ahead of her so it doesn’t look like she’ll make the cut, but the positive news is that she beat 12 men. After drilling a 37-foot birdie on the final hole, she was all smiles saying, “…the experience was absolutely more than I could have ever imagined.”

Seabiscuit (the Movie) Wins Big

When Hollywood takes something from sports and tries to make a movie out of it, they royally botch the job. That’s not just my opinion. Check out this list for yourself.

• Ed
Matt LeBlanc, a monkey and baseball. Not off to a good start.

• Neccesary Roughness
Losers become winners… *yawn*… plus Sinbad is in it.

• Major League (and II)
Just having to look at Charlie Sheen’s haircut is bad enough, but did they have to make a second movie?!?

• Wildcats
Her dream was to coach high school football. ‘Nuff said.

• Rookie of the Year
So, I’m supposed to believe this kid has an accident that actually improves his pitching and now he throws faster than anyone in the MLB?

• Caddyshack II
There should be a law against what these people did to this franchise. Shameful.

And the worst sports movie of all time?

• Rollerball
ESPN’s Dan Simmons has this to say about it: “Dreadful? Appallling? Putrid? Atrocious? Heinous? Execrable? Odious? Abominable? Rancid? Horrific? Ghastly? None of them fit.”

That’s just scratching the surface. I didn’t even go into non-sports movies with sports stars in them, like Shaq’s embarrassing Kazaam, which was only slightly worse than Steel. Oh please, somebody make him stop!

So when a movie like Seabiscuit comes out to great reviews it’s a very good sign. Don’t bet against it. *wink*

First-Timer Curtis Wins British

Not since Francis Ouimet in 1913 has a player playing in his first major golf tournament actually won it. That’s just what Ben Curtis did today by holding off the likes of Woods, Singh and Love. Ranked a lowly 396 in the world, Curtis has won a major championship and that, he’ll remember for the rest of his life.

Is Lance a True Hero?

What makes a hero? It’s not just someone who accomplishes an amazing feat. It’s really more than that. It’s someone you want to be more like. With that definition, my hero may not necessarily be your hero. So now that Lance has overcome cancer and battled to be arguably the greatest cyclist who’s ever raced… is he your hero?

Bat That Sausage

Pirate’s first baseman, Randall Simon is now famous. Not for his abilities on the field, mind you, but for swatting a racing sausage. He was even taken off the field in handcuffs later in the evening. After reading the story, make sure you watch the video clip. His swing is not as savage as people are making it out to be, in fact, I’ve seen much more violent acts on episodes of Spongebob.

Bogans Bests King James

The world is on fire for LeBron James, but in last night’s Summer League game, Kentucky’s Keith Bogans led all scores with 24 as his Magin lost to James’ Cavs. But does anyone talk about how this 43rd pick in the draft upstaged the worlds favored child? I guess flash beats production… at least for now.

Foil Doesn’t Hide the Chronic

Damon Stoudemire is perhaps the most famous NBA pothead in the league, if not of all time. His latest escapade involved wrapping up his ganja in aluminum foil, hoping to thwart the metal detectors at the airport. I guess we can’t cancel those studies looking at the effects of marijuana on brain cells. Oh yeah, this “mishap” costs Stoudemire $250k.

Armstrong Races for Record 5th Title

In an attempt to balance the negative news with Kobe, I’ll mention that Lance Armstrong is underway to try and win his 5th straight Tour de Frace. His back-from-the-brink story should be an inspiration to us all. It must be contagious too because his teammate—Tyler Hamilton races on despite a broken collarbone.

I played beach volleyball with a gaping wound on my hand once. Well, maybe it was just a small cut, but that salt water really stings.

Kobe Under the Gun

Hardly uplifting, Kobe is under fire for sexually assaulting a woman in Colorado. I’m hoping that this is merely an upstart, gold-digger looking to get rich quick and that Mr. Bryant isn’t guilty of the things she’s alleging. Otherwise, there’s another American hero failing to be a decent role model for our starry-eyed youth. Maybe kids should try to be less like thug-life Allen Iverson and more like Allan Houston?

Top Dog

Kobayashi does it again. 6 of the last 7 years he’s the hot dog eating champion of Coney Island, and the world for that matter. Poor “Fridge” bailed after 4 dogs. Poor effort for the big guy. Who can stop this eating machine?

Athletes Thrive with Inner Strength

From John Wooden’s Seven Keys to Life to the Rituals of Nomar Garciaparra to the testimony of David Robinson, what do all these have in common? ToTheNextLevel.org sheds some light on what gives certain athletes a certain inner strength.

Football vs. Football

Who says football players are fat and slow? Not this European soccar player.