The golf world has been full of praise for Phil Mickelson after his surprise win at the PGA Championship, with big congratulations coming from one of Mickelson’s longtime rivals.
Tiger Woods took to Twitter after Mickelson’s win on Sunday to pay tribute to his fellow pro’s “inspirational” victory at Kiawah Island.
Once rivals, the relationship between Mickelson and Woods has warmed in recent years. They’ve joined together for multiple celebrity events for charity. More recently, Mickelson was among those paying tribute to Woods after the latter’s serious car accident.
At age 50, Mickelson became the oldest major champion in golf history. The victory could serve as motivation and inspiration for the 45-year-old Woods, who is still recovering from the accident, to make a comeback and try to match Phil’s feat if he wants to.
The Los Angeles Clippers remain unable to slow down Luka Doncic, and it sounds like coach Tyronn Lue is turning to his last resort to try to do it ahead of a pivotal Game 2.
The Clippers tried to use Patrick Beverley to defend Doncic in Game 1, but the Mavericks simply ran pick and roll plays to match Doncic up with center Ivica Zubac instead. Zubac struggled to deal with Doncic, forcing the Clippers into double-teams that left perimeter shooters open. Dorian Finney-Smith and Tim Hardaway Jr. combined to go 9-of-14 from beyond the arc, a major factor in Dallas’ 113-103 win.
Notably, the Clippers opted not to put former Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard on Doncic. Lue suggested that will change in Game 2.
The worry for the Clippers is that putting Leonard on Doncic might force Leonard to expend a lot of energy defensively, causing his offense to suffer. After Doncic dropped 31 points and a triple-double in Game 1, it seems they’re not really left with a choice. The Clippers can hope the likes of Paul George step things up on offense so Leonard can focus on Doncic.
One thing is for sure: it wouldn’t be a good look for the Clippers to seemingly duck the Lakers, only to lose to Doncic and the Mavericks in the first round.
Phil Mickelson became the oldest golfer in history to win a major when he claimed the PGA Championship on Sunday, and he probably followed some of his own advice along the way.
After Mickelson’s victory, a tweet the golfer sent 12 days ago began to spread around the internet. In it, Mickelson discussed learning from previous failures and using them as motivation going forward.
It’s safe to say this advice probably served Mickelson well during his remarkable weekend at Kiawah Island.
Mickelson’s last major win came in 2013. It’s been a while to say the least, and Mickelson had to battle through some adversity to get there. Based on the remarkable scenes when he won, it’s fair to think it was worth it.
Phil Mickelson entered the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island, S.C., as the 115th-ranked golfer in the world, and he left with arguably the most impressive accomplishment of his career.
Mickelson held off Brooks Koepka and the rest of the field to win his second PGA Championship and sixth major. At age 50, he became the oldest golfer in history to win a major. He already entered Sunday as the oldest golfer to hold the 54-hole lead in a major.
The only major Mickelson hasn’t won is the U.S. Open, where he has finished as a runner-up six times. The PGA Championship win was his second, with his first coming all the way back in 2005. The 16-year gap between winning the same major is the longest in golf history.
Mickelson’s final round at Kiawah Island was a bit of a rollercoaster. He got off to a rough start before holing an incredible bunker shot for a birdie at the 5th hole (video here). But he maintained control and held a two-shot lead entering the 18th hole. He was able to tap in for a two-stroke victory, capping a huge win.
The real prize for Mickelson would be completing the career grand slam by finally winning the U.S. Open. But his win at the PGA Championship is nothing short of remarkable. This win makes his strong legacy even more impressive.
Was Phil Mickelson playing at the PGA Championship on Sunday or a music festival? You couldn’t tell based on the huge mob of fans.
As Mickelson made his way through the 18th hole at Kiawah Island, South Carolina in an attempt to close out the PGA Championship, he was absolutely mobbed by the fans. There were swarms of people all over the place, and they congregated at the 18th hole.
After going so long without big crowds at sporting events, seeing Phil win the PGA Championship at age 50 in front of so many fans was incredible. He became the oldest golfer to ever win a major. This marks his sixth major ever and first since 2013.
The Los Angeles Lakers dropped Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals 99-90 on Sunday, largely because Anthony Davis was an afterthought.
The Phoenix Suns keyed in on Davis after the forward scored 42 points in the teams’ last regular season meeting two weeks ago, and they essentially took Davis out of the game Sunday. The big man went just 5-of-16 from the field, holding him to 13 points and seven rebounds. Davis was a team-worst -18 when on the court as well.
Davis owned up to his brutal performance after the loss, striking a note of confidence that he would improve while taking responsibility for Sunday’s defeat.
Davis was the worst performer, but none of the Lakers played particularly well on Sunday. LeBron James led the team in scoring with a modest 18 points, and the Lakers went just 7-for-26 from three as the Suns locked down the perimeter.
The Lakers looked out of sync on Sunday, and adjustments will be necessary. It certainly gave some backing to this player’s theory that ducking the team was the wrong move ahead of the playoffs.
After a rough 2020 season, it sounds like Cam Newton has spent the offseason getting back to basics in preparation for 2021.
According to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Newton quietly spent the offseason rebuilding some fundamentals with the help of a throwing coach. The work appears to have paid dividends, as some players who also played with the New England Patriots quarterback last season noticed a difference during voluntary workouts last week.
Newton completed 65.8 percent of his pass attempts in 2020, but only racked up 2,657 yards and eight touchdowns. Part of that came down to a lack of weapons and a more conservative gameplan, though that second factor may have been in response to Newton’s issues, not a cause of them.
The veteran quarterback will have to fend off rookie Mac Jones if he wants to keep the Patriots’ starting job. He’s named one reason he thinks he could be better this year, and if this work pays off, he might end up fairly well-positioned to start again.
Devin Booker had to wait a long six years to appear in his first ever NBA playoff game, and the Phoenix Suns star wasted no time proving he is ready for the big stage.
Booker led the Suns to a 99-90 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series between the two teams on Sunday. He had 34 points on 13-of-16 shooting to go along with eight assists and seven rebounds. The 34 points were a record for a Suns player in his playoff debut.
Booker is one of the best scorers in the NBA. He averaged 25.6 points per game during the regular season, and he already holds the Suns record for most 30-point games by a single player. That’s pretty impressive considering he is just 24.
The Suns had a scare early in the game when Chris Paul went down with what looked like a very painful injury. Fortunately, he was able to return. If Paul stays on the floor and Booker continues to play like he did on Sunday, Phoenix has a legitimate chance to knock off the defending NBA champions.
If Game 1 is any indication, the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers are set to play an intense and physical Western Conference quarterfinal series.
Things got heated early in the fourth quarter after a LeBron James missed free throw. James and Chris Paul got tangled up going for the rebound, causing James to fall hard and seemingly hurt his shoulder. Lakers guard Alex Caruso and Suns guard Cameron Payne still went after the loose ball. Caruso got there first as the play was whistled for a foul on James, but Payne still essentially checked Caruso to the ground.
Caruso took exception and shoved Payne, leading Payne to throw the basketball at Caruso. Lakers center Montrezl Harrell promptly intervened, starting a scuffle between both teams.
Harrell came all the way in from the other end of the court to back up Caruso.
Payne received two technical fouls for his role in the skirmish and was ejected. Caruso and Harrell both received one technical. James, meanwhile, remained in the game despite the hard foul and the pain he was in.
Sunday’s game had already been physical and marked by a notable injury even before this. With the Suns looking like the better team, perhaps the situation will help fire the Lakers up going forward.
Stephen Jackson and Kwame Brown have been going at it via social media and podcasts this week, and Jackson is ready to have a face-to-face discussion with Brown about it. Well, maybe even more than a discussion.
In a YouTube video he published earlier this week, Brown blasted Jackson, Matt Barnes and Gilbert Arenas for some comments the three former NBA players made about Brown on the “All the Smoke” podcast. Arenas, who was teammates with Brown with the Washington Wizards, described Brown as a “show pony” who had his confidence destroyed by Michael Jordan.
Brown fired back by calling Barnes “Becky with the good hair.” He told Jackson to put down his blunt and “act like a grown a– man instead of a little boy.” He then accused Arenas of taking money from him via their contracts. Brown later called Jackson a “fake Black Lives Matter activist.” You can see a video of some of the comments here.
That brings us to Sunday, when Jackson took to Instagram to let Brown know he is in Atlanta and tell him to “pull up.” Jackson insisted he was not threatening Brown but told him the two should settle their dispute in person before “people who love me do something I can’t control.” Jackson deleted the post, but you can see a screenshot below:
Brown is a former No. 1 overall pick who will always be known as a draft bust. He’s used to people criticizing him, but he said he doesn’t understand why Jackson and others won’t let things go.
As for whether or not Jordan ruined his confidence, Brown also tried to clear up some information about that situation.
H/T Bro Bible
