italiansportsguys.com Blog

Doctors are amazed by the performance of Tiger Woods in last week’s U.S. Open, given the extent of his injuries. Retief Goosen, who finished 14th however, hinted that Tiger exaggerated his injuries, only feeling the pain after bad shots.

First of all, there were plenty of occasions when Tiger winced in pain after drives tha hit the fairway, prompting the announcers to mention that you can’t judge where the shot is going based on Tiger’s reaction.

Second, where did Retief study medicine?

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/golf/article4160268.ece

Question:
How do you take all of the suspense out of a major sporting event and irritate your fans - those who have invested 4 days of their time and interest in your sport?

Answer:
An 18-hole playoff at the U.S. Open.

There’s no reason to play another 18 holes that allow 2 participants to separate after you’ve already played 72. The common defense of the 18-hole playoff is “One hole shouldn’t decide the tournament.” That’s lame. It’s not one hole that decides an open in sudden death, it’s 73 or 74 holes. What if we’re tied after 71 holes - does the 72nd hole decide the tournament? Nonsense.

I hope the playoff is a blowout. Maybe they’ll re-evaluate.

You start to run out of adjectives. Why not call the U.S. Open a day early and let the boys gome home for Father’s Day.

Looks like the Tiger faithful will get one more look at Alec Box stadium. Momentum should be in the Tigers’ favor. It will be tough for UC Irvine to regroup and win a game they feel they shouldn’t have allowed themselves to get extended to.

The Italian Sports Guys will be back next week, but here’s an appropriate video for Memorial Day weekend:

I like the Hornets in Game 7, but this one will be closer than previous games. I see the Hornets by 8. I must say, it’s baffling that these games have been so one sided. It makes more sense that a young Hornets team might get frustrated and taken out of the game, but an experienced championship club like the Spurs - go figure.

We all know the primary keys to victory, but here are a few less obvious ones:

- The Spurs are taking Peja 3-pointers away. If CP3 and Mo-Pete each have 2-3 from behind the arc, could free things up.

- A couple of steals out of the hands of Duncan by players coming over to help out would be huge. Once you steal a couple, Duncan could be hurried in anticipation of the extra defensive hands. Despite the experience, the Spurs don’t have a great track record in Game 7’s.

- Complacency - The Hornets have been trailing at the half at home in all 3 wins. If they are behind 7-8 points at the half and the Spurs knock down a couple of shots coming out of the locker room, this young team might tighten up. It’s a lot different being down in Game 7. The Hornets have to stay within 4-5 points at the break.

- The crowd - no doubt this team is getting a lift from the fans. The faithful have to be in this one from the get-go.

Craig

Could the Hornets finally break the stranglehold that the home teams have had on winning in round 2 of the playoffs tonight at San Antonio? It’s apparent that if they get David West involved in the offense early, this is a different team.

ESPN Flashback story about Chris Paul - scoring 61 in high school to honor his grandfather. Class act with a great role model.

An agreement has been reached to sell New Orleans’ FOX affiliate, WVUE to Saints owner Tom Benson….if the deal goes throuigh, it should prove to be very interesting in regards to who breaks ANY news regarding the New Orleans Saints.

Kyle

I never pick the favorites in the Derby - too many horses and too much uncertainty to go with short prices. I look for value in my pick - a horse with long odds that has shown some promise.

I’m going with Smooth Air to win. He ran 2nd in the FL Derby to today’s favorite Big Brown. He’s never finished worse than 3rd in 7 career starts. His speed numbers continue to look good as he goes to longer distances, which might indicate that he favors the 1 1/4. Only concern is that he had a mild fever this week, but trainer feels he’s ready.

Order of finish:

1. Smooth Air
2. Big Brown
3. Pyro
4. Eight Belles

I think the filly Eight Belles has a decent shot based on her speed numbers, and she’s a big enough girl to survive a few bumps along the way.

Personally, I wouldn’t mind seeing Pyro take it. Always good publicity for the Fair Grounds when the LA Derby winner takes a Triple Crown race.