The Future of the Game of Golf!

In Baseball they have minor league—in hockey they have the Juniors and Minor Hockey—in Football they basically have the SEC (just kidding) and in Golf they have the Web.com Tour Championship at Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas.

This used to be called the Nationwide Tour, but Web.Com took it over shortly after August the announcement of the field that was going to participate in this tournament.

Its late October, in North Texas, the weather could be anything from warm and sunny to cool and bright—to the most awful of storms.

The Golf Gods are smiling on the tournament—great weather so far- just a bit cool, and the winds have died down from earlier in the tournament.

Names that you need to keep an eye on for the future of Golf, this are the guys that will be chasing people like Vijay Sihng, and Tiger Woods, along with Phil Mickelson.

This tour has gone through their growing pains over the years, starting out as the Ben Hogan Tour, to the Nike Tour, Buy.Com tour, then Nationwide Insurance took the naming rights—and then in Web.com took the naming rights earlier this summer and will be the title sponsor for the next 10 years.

In North Texas, where golf is pretty prevalent, having high school stars and in some cases College athletes go on and become stars on the big PGA Stage. Such as the Late Payne Stuart, or Case Knolt (both out of SMU), what about Scott Verplank, growing up in North Dallas, being a volunteer at the Byron Nelson Golf Championship when he was younger—and then headed off to Oklahoma State winning on the NCAA stage and then on the PGA Tour, including winning the Nelson in 2007 nine months after Lord Byron passed away!

This “under” tour, is a great showcase for the younger players to make their Tour Card, without having to go through the grind of the “Q” Schools! Though they are still around, this tour provides a way for the players to earn money, and the top 25 who finish in the money get their tour cards.

The course in McKinney works to the advantage of the long hitter, it’s a long course, not so much a shot makers course, such as Colonial is in Fort Worth, but more like the TPC course in Las Colinas, but don’t take that one lightly or this one for that fact. Craig Ranch TPC is a tough par 71 course, and when the wind does howl down from the north or in the summer months from the south—it changes how you chose your clubs and what type of shot you have to make, to get the score!

Long hitters are great—but if you play the game of golf, the old adage of, HIT FOR SHOW, PUTT FOR DOUGH!

These young men out on the course today are finding out just what it means to make the short game work for you. 250 to 300 yard drives look great on TV but that is not what is going to win tournaments. You have to put the ball into that little round hole on the shortest of grass on the course! Yes that’s obvious but it is still the name of the game!

The other thing about golfers that some might have noticed, they are the nicest guys out there in the sports industry! They take the time to talk with reporters, as well as fans, they don’t mind signing the autographs, they don’t mind chit chatting with youngsters standing in the gallery, they have fun, they have a smile on their faces, and they enjoy the life of the tour!

Refreshing at best to see someone who has the opportunity to make a pretty good living, and not really have to flaunt it!

Oh yeah well there is still Tiger Woods, who make a pretty good living and at times has been surly, but after a bit, I would probably be the same way as well.

However, golfers are still better dressers, and they have a better attitude when they are in public!

The Web.com tour will be here in North Texas, and with the help of the Salsemanship Club of Dallas, this tournament will be able to funnel more players into the fold of the new generation of golfers and maybe another superstar will emerge and bring the game another bright star!

Just a thought!

Its Called-- a Collapse!

Yep -- that's what they call it! A colossal collapse!

The Texas Rangers, most likely pulled off the biggest failure since last years Red Sox, or maybe even Greg Norman's Masters el-foldo back in '95!

No matter, what happened the last several weeks of the Texas Rangers 2012 campaign, will go into the history books, as a study in futility from players, who for the most part led 178 days in their division!

Twice to the World Series, (twice losing) and twice the Defending American League Champions, and as of today-- they are at home watching the rest of the playoffs with other teams, including the Atlanta Braves, who were also eliminated from the playoffs by the Defending World Champions, St. Louis Cardinals.

We could sit here and dissect each player and, break down where the trouble laid, or we can look at the final game of the season against Oakland and point a finger at a certain center fielder, but no matter what the demise was, it all boils down to, the Rangers hit a slump that came at the absolute worse time in a teams drive for the post season.

Players go through slumps, and teams go through slumps, but the truth is, no one should point a finger at the manager! Ron Washington has led this team for seven years, and for the last three, he got the Rangers into the post season and twice he took them to the dance and gave them a chance to win!

Last time I remembered... Washington was not on the mound throwing pitches, he was not out there running in the outfield or fielding in the infield, he didn't run the bases and he didn't swing a bat-- thats why he has 25 other guys out there doing that, and getting paid to do it well!

So where does this team go from here? Hmmm good question. Do the Rangers make a solid offer to Josh Hamilton, even though he was booed quite loudly at the game against Baltimore for the last spot in the Wild Card Play In Game...  its hard to think that just because he went 0-4 on that night that the crowd would turn on him.

Frustrated! YES! I can see that, but to boo the guy in his stadium, and loudly too! It was just two years ago, that Hamilton missed a good portion of the season, only to return for the post season play and be a integral part of their getting to the Series against the San Francisco Giants... then just a year ago, not only injured, but had to deal with the death of a fan that he tossed a ball to up in the stands-- he came back and led the team along with Beltre and Cruz to the promise land once again, only to lose in game six and finally in game seven in St. Louis! Yes heart breaking, but for 40 years, this team only tasted the playoffs three times prior to Ron Washington getting here, and they were 1 for 9 in those games against the Yankees. 2010 came along-- and those dreaded Yankees came tumbling down to Neftali Feliz and a fast ball to get strike three on Alex Rodriguez to end the game, get the Monkey off the back and send the Rangers to the World Series for the first time in franchise history!

So now, with all the "nay" sayers out there, that want Hamilton gone, or Washington gone, or Michael Young gone... really? thats your answer!

These Texas Rangers are fine-- there will be some fine tuning, and I am sure that there will be some changes, and yes a real possibility that Hamilton might leave, and that new faces will arrive, and we will have another chance at the West, and the playoffs, oh and lets not forget, we now get the Houston Astros in our division, and there are at least a third of our games to be seen in the central time zone! Now thats worth getting excited about! That, and the fact that, unless the Astros do a major overhaul, the Rangers might just get 12 more wins added to their totals after they faced their I-45 foe! (No offense to my friends in Houston but lets face it, you lost 100 games this year!)

Another season is over, and the fall winds are blowing in, and the attention of the Metroplex will now turn solid to the Dallas Cowboys, and their problems!

Speaking of the Cowboys! I just wanted to add this thought!

Cowboys Stadium! I have covered games in that building, mainly though high school and college games, not so much a Cowboys game, though I can imagine what that is like anyway!

But after watching the Cowboys play recently on a Monday Night against the Chicago Bears, I am concerned that this stadium doesn't lend itself to being what Jerry Jones thought it would be when he built it.

Its a shrine, its a temple, its a cathedral! All in one! And people inside that building act like it. There is no noise other than the canned music that the entertainment provides, and thats used primarily to wake the fans up from their slumber because the product on the field ain't worth watching!

Jerry! Get rid of the Dancing girls in the end zone-- your dancers are called Cowboy Cheerleaders-- why bring in competition for those ladies, get rid of the Cars and Trucks in the end zones as well-- this is not the Auto Building at Fair Park nor is this the State Fair Of Texas! Get rid of the fountains, and if you wish to hang art in the building then build an art gallery not a FOOTBALL STADIUM! There is NO HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE INSIDE THIS BUILDING!

Corporate America, does not care about the guys on the field, the FANS DO, yet they can't afford the tickets, parking or concessions! The guys with the Black American Express Cards can, and they might buy the tickets-- but they aren't your fans!

And another thing-- instead of spending all that money on the "entertainment" experience for the fans-- why don't you pay more attention to the product between the hash marks and that might bring the noise level up a few notches!

Just a thought!

It Was Late Getting Here But its HERE NOW!

It was a year ago, that the Coppell Copperheads swept Brazos Valley in the best of three championship down near College Station, Texas.

Ok! What does all that mean?

The Coppell Copperheads were one of the 8 original teams in the Texas Collegiate League, that began in 2004.

Our little company, known as Davradio Productions, put on the internet the first broadcast of those games, when we sided up with the Highland Park Blue Sox, and produced those games for the entire 2004 season, then we took on two other teams in the summer of 05, including the Copperheads and the Weatherford Wranglers. 

Well since those meager beginnings, we kept the Blue Sox, even after they moved to Plano, and then after they ceased operation, we connected with the Continental Baseball League for two seasons, then out of baseball all together for one summer! 

Then, last May, the General Manager of the Copperheads, Kyliegh Calendar, was contacted, and asked if they wished to be broadcast this year, and with a resounding YES, we were back in the biz!

The Copperheads were taken over by a group who were associated with the Select Baseball Team known as the Dallas Tigers, and though they were called Copperheads, their uniforms looked more like the Tigers. Despite all of that, they pulled together as a unit and took the Championship from Brazos Valley, and it was their fourth such championship in the 7 years that the league was around.

When Coach Haynie informed us that championship rings were available to both J.R. Schumann and myself, since we broadcast the games, it didn't take long for us to put in our orders. All the players and coaches and the staff were offered rings, and the majority of them have them! They are impressive!

On September 6th, 2012, it arrived, and though it was a year late, we are very proud of our work and our association with the TCL, and with all those who were involved, from Paul Rogers and Christi Baker, to John Blake (V.P. Communications of the Texas Rangers) and the rest of the TCL owners and staff, from every team that was there from the very outset. Along with the Copperheads and the Blue Sox, the Marshals out of McKinney, Mineral Wells Steam, The Graham Roughnecks, Grandbury Generals, Colleyville Lone Stars, and the Weatherford Wranglers.

Our thanks, and appreciation, for allowing us to be a part of something special, as well as not only giving young athletes a chance to hone their skills to the next level but also our own mentoring of prospects that wanted to elevate their skills for being broadcasters. One of ours went on to work for the Chicago Cubs organization, then moved to the Phillies only in the last few years.

Its all about learning, and at times that is more rewarding than the trophies.

Just a thought!

Saying Good Bye To Steve Sabol

On March 20th 2011, I wrote that I had read that Steve Sabol had cancer-- Brain Cancer-- and today, Tuesday September 18th, 2012, 18 months later, he died from that disease!

Steve Sabol along with his father Ed, created Blair Motion Pictures, that was his sister's name, and from those meager beginnings became the NFL FILMS as we know it!

Just a few cameramen and a new way of looking at the game of professional football, was brought to life on our TV screens in the 1960's through today.

The Super Bowl, America's Game... is because of NFL Films and the Sabol's. They created stories and they moved our emotions to different heights, that became clearer as that spiraling football came ever closer to the hands of the receiver and he ran down the field. Or the crushing blow that the linebacker gave the quarterback, as he sat in the "pocket". All brought to us because of the vision one man had, and the love of the game that his son showed through the lens of a camera.

Steve Sabol, in August of 2011, gave the induction speech for his dad, as Ed Sabol was inducted into the Pro Football hall of Fame. I am certain that there is another seat waiting Steve, and it will be fitting to have both Father and Son in the Hall for their contributions to the game of football!

Rest in Peace Steve-- Oseh Shalom!

Just a thought

Depression!

The year was 2006, and I had just returned to Dallas from a trip out west to bring my wife back home after she took a leave and went out to Los Angles to work for Kaiser as a sales rep. Thinking that it was going to improve our life, and make us more money!

In doing so, she left me here in Dallas, with her two children, (my step children) and to become a parent that was a tall order.

Some time, around January of 2006, I started to tail spin, meaning I felt the beginnings of depression, and in my case, I have been there before.

In 2000, I had a horrible bout of it when I was in Lufkin, Texas, and before that I was a teenager, and the bullying in school and such.

Somehow I survived those bouts, with some "mental" toughness of my own. Or at least I thought so!

So here we are in 2006, coming back from the West Coast, and getting my "wife" settled back home, and then all of a sudden, a day or so after coming back, I tried to commit suicide. Yep you saw the word, in plain black and white. I wanted to step off this world and make a permanent solution to a temporary problem.

There are so many reasons that I wanted to end my life. There was a year of depression that set in, and in doing so, this was not a snap decision to make. My work, my marriage, my surroundings, my finances, my health, everything was tail spinning around me.  It was like a Rubic's Cube that all the colors came up the same, and that's suppose to mean you one the game, but in my case, it meant that I could not juggle my life anymore, and it was crashing around my ears.

So after being admitted to the Mental Ward of a hospital for four days (thats what the law allows) I was sent home, only I had no home.

Somewhere along the line, my "wife" decided that it was time to file for divorce... so much for that "better and for worse" line in vows right?... So she packed her stuff up and moved in with her mom, I just packed up and moved.

Here we are six years later, I am a bit better-- I had a heart attack in 2008, and for a person who tried to end his life, I tried to save it on that night in January of '08... so there's an oxymoron for you!

This is Mental Health Awareness Week.  What does that mean?

It means that we must be aware of our friends and family members that might suffer from depression or have suicidal tendencies, or those who suffer from anxiety attacks. This is not something that goes away if you take medicine, this is an ongoing fight every day of our lives. We win the day to day battles, but the war rages all around us.

Look for signs of depression in those that you care about. You probably know them by now-- the one strong sign though is, when they start giving away things of value to them to others. Jewelry, mementos, heirlooms, and such. These are tell tale signs that there might be something going on inside their head, and you have to get to the bottom of it.

Every moment is precious, and a person who suffers from depression no longer appreciates the moment, all they know is that they want to end the pain, and the hurt deep inside their soul. They are aware of the people that might be hurt by it, but by the same token they believe that it is the best thing for them and others in their lives, if they were no longer around, no longer a burden to them and to others, and that the world would be a better place without them. That their life has very little purpose or meaning to others, and that they understand that in the morning, the sun will come up and it will set, whether they are here or not.

Life goes on with us or without us, thats a fact, but it sure does make it a lot less of a place to be in when someone leaves us like that.

I for one, wake up each day and am thankful for the day, but then again-- I fight the demons off every day as well!

If you suffer from depression or any other mental illness, seek help, and surround yourself with good friends and family, they are the best medicine for you!

YOU will WIN THE DAY!

Just a thought!

Good Bye My Trusted Companion and Friend!

There have been a few times, over the last year or so that I have sat here and typed an obituary, or some sort of honor to a fallen friend, or someone I admired.

However, this is a little more difficult. This is about, not just a friend, but a companion, and who is not human.  In fact, it was a canine.

My friend, my companion of 13 years, was a Siberian Husky.  Her name was Sasha, and for some of you, you’re aware of the closeness that this dog and myself, had for the last 13 years.

I found Sasha, in the spring of 2000, where she was at a pet adoption in front of a pet store in North Dallas.  She was in a crate, and all I saw through the bars were blue eyes, and a white face that was framed in black! The perfect “opera mask” as they call it on Huskies. She was beautiful! However, the name they gave her was “Sugar Bell”..,. to which, when called by that name, she would not respond… I whispered “Sasha” in her ear, and she sprang into my face and licked me like we were long lost friends.

Now the humor behind this, is that, I had put to rest another animal six month prior to this, and I had promised the woman I was dating and her children, that, when the time came I would purchase another dog and return to Dallas from deep East Texas (Lufkin). Well it took another year and half before that happened, but Sasha and I began our journey together. From the Deep East Texas area, to bringing her to Dallas, and through a marriage, and then a move from one house to another, to a mental break down that I had in 06, to moving again, to another home, to a divorce, a heart  attack in 08, to my 50^th, in 09 and now to losing her, because of an injury, that caused the both the Doctor and myself to choose to humanly to put her to sleep and let her suffer no futher!

The human in this story lost his friend, the one that knows all the secretes, the tears from fighting off the demons in his dreams, the hurt that they felt when they lost love, but Sasha was always there, by my side. Giving her unconditional love to me, day in and day out.

I am not the only person in the world to have put a pet to rest, however, for every time a person has to do that, it is always amazing to me, how many people come out and offer their condolences, and best wishes, and even for some to check up on me to make sure that I am ok!

I miss my friend.. I will miss her jumping on me to tell me that she missed me during the day or at night after a game, or to greet friends when they could come to the house! HER love, her sparkle in her eyes, and her kisses, those dog kisses will be missed!

I loved that big beautiful wolf! My 60lb fur coats with fangs! My Sasha!

Rest in peace my friend, my buddy—my puppy—my Sasha!

Mr. Magoo! You’ve Done It Again! NCAA!

What in the world is the NCAA thinking?

Penn State has been stripped of their victories dating back to 1998—they have now tarnished every STUDENT Athlete that put on the Nittany Lion Blue, and for what? Because the NCAA think that its best to penalize the entire program and not those who were or ARE involved!

They take away scholarships, they take away bowl appearances, they take away the wins, they take away Bowl victories, they take away the statue of the long standing coach—they take away all the things that we connect with Penn State!

BECAUSE LARRY SANDUSKY is a moron! Sandusky is a Pedophile! Not the kid who lined up on the gridiron against his opponent every week and played the game, he didn’t hold the children in the showers, he had nothing to do with the problem of ONE man—and one system that protected him.

The Administration, the Athletic Director, the Coach, the President of the University, they all should be thrown in jail, they all should be taken to the wood shed… and let the penalty be stiff!

BUT to make the kids that go to school, because of the education, and the tradition of what Penn State has been, and to throw all of that away, because of this one person’s psycho background these kids are going to suffer!

And for those others who have the rings from their bowl championships, or their trophies, that they won—they are now gone!

When SMU was given the death penalty—it sorta made a bit more sense, mainly because it was the program that was corrupt—THE PROGRAM—this is not the PROGRAM—this is one PERSON who is corrupted, and because of his mental problem of wanting to take showers with little boys—the entire program will suffer! NO! that’s not whats suppose to happen! NOT THE PROGRAM!

Attack the school! Go after those in charge, take those to task—but leave the kids alone!

No where in the NCAA BY-LAWS does it state, that the action of the administration should be taken out on the student athlete that had nothing to do with the crime! In short—when a recruiting violation takes place—the School must forfeit its scholarships and then have sanctions placed upon it, because the program as a whole failed. This is NOT the case—this is about a MAN who has a sickness, and illness, and it was with adolescents, who could not speak for themselves!

This will never be reversed, and for those athletes who played for, and are still at the school are now told what you did during your time there doesn’t matter! It was all for not! It just sickens the soul, and worse, it gives these former players and students a sense of LOSS that they can never get back! Your records mean nothing now!

SMU for the most part, hasn’t fully recovered from those days, and its been almost 25 years since that happened! How long is it going to take Penn State? No one knows!

Joe Paterno’s name has been removed as the coach with most wins in a career, his statue taken down, however the University says that his name will remain on the School Library…. Don’t know if that is a good consolation or not, but none the less, what does need to happen is for the School to police itself, and let the court system run its course.

The bottom line here is, the NCAA got this one wrong. The Penalty should not have taken ANYTHING away from the student athlete, it should have left the program in-tact, and let those involved been dealt with by the proper authorities.

Its just a thought!