Larry Brown Sports

With the way Tiger Woods has declined over the past two or three years, many believe the best days of his career are behind him. In all likelihood, that is true. Tiger will get his swing back at some point and play more consistently than he is right now, but he will probably never be the Tiger of old who used to dominate every major and only miss the cut on tournaments he didn’t play in. At only 36 years old, Tiger envisions at least 15 years of good golf on the horizon.

Our friends The Sports Junkies from 106.7 The Fan in Washington, D.C. recently caught up with Woods at a press conference in Maryland. Either Tiger is putting on an act, or his confidence is still very high.

“Absolutely, 100 percent agree with that,” he said when asked if he can still win tournaments after he turns 50. “It just has to be on the right golf course. It can’t be, at that age — well, by the time I’m at that age, it’ll be some golf courses over 8,000 yards. It’s probably not going to be at one of those; it’s probably going to be at a shorter golf course like you’d find at a British Open.

“Tom (Watson), at Turnberry, it was like the perfect Open. It was howling, it was a golf course he had won on and knew how to play and it was playing very quick. … You can certainly see a certain player playing into their 50s and being successful on a certain venue. You can’t do it on all venues, there’s no doubt. Some ballparks are just too big.”

Watson shot an opening round 65 at the British Open in 2009 when he was 60 years old. Obviously it is doable, but it’s an extremely difficult task. The problem for Tiger is that he’s lost his edge, and the longer he goes without finding it the more difficult it becomes. It would be easy to envision the old Tiger whose life was in order and who dominated the sport winning tournaments into his 50s. This Tiger, not so much.

H/T Sports Radio Interviews
Photo credit: Allan Henry-US PRESSWIRE

If you are unaware of LBS’ highly-publicized man crush on Rory McIlroy, welcome aboard. This is likely either your first time visiting the site or one of only a handful. Although we were much bigger fans when he was still dating ex-girlfriend Holly Sweeney, we’re still very much on board with Rory. That’s why we fully approve of the Giants and their McIlroy bobblehead giveaway, despite the fact that it may be a bit of a stretch.

On June 12 when they host the Astros, the Giants will be holding “Irish Heritage Night.” With McIlroy already in the area that week to defend his U.S. Open championship, the Giants have decided to honor him by giving away the nifty bobbleheads you see in the photo above. It’s rare that you’d see bobbleheads of a golfer given away at a baseball game, but it certainly beats this lame giveaway the Dodgers have planned or this creepy bobblehead the Rays gave out last season. Giants fans should be grateful to be a part of it.

H/T Devil Ball Golf

Golf will be making its glorious return to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Games after a staggering 112-year absence. But even though that moment is four years from coming to fruition, Ian Poulter is already assuming the role of an Olympic organizer and expressing ideas for what he thinks would be in the sport’s best interest.

The current plan for Brazil is to use a 72-hole stroke-play tournament format, similar to what we see almost every week on the professional tours. But Poulter thinks the Olympics should abandon uniformity and go for entertainment value by utilizing match play.

“Most other sports are one-on-one,” the Englishman told The Telegraph. “And that’s why I think viewers enjoy match play more. It’s more exciting and plays out better on TV. I think match play would suit the Olympics better.”

In fact, Poulter wouldn’t be upset if match play started popping up more frequently on the calendar.

“How about every week?” Poulter added. “The more we play, the better. I love the cutthroat, face-to-face nature of it and find the buzz a refreshing change from what we play week-in and week-out.”

Pretty bold idea from a guy with a pretty bold sense of style in his own right.

But, ultimately, people aren’t going to care what format in which golf is played during the Olympics, so long as stars like Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy are on the course. And, yes, we too crack a smile at idea of Tiger possibly hanging out at Rio.

Note: This post also appeared on Yardbarker’s Olympics blog Medal Detector.

Photo credit: Simon Stacpoole/Offside Sports via US PRESSWIRE

No high school golfer — male or female — has ever won the Oregon state title four consecutive years. But Churchill (Eugene) senior Caroline Inglis almost accomplished the feat this week — and technically did — were it not for a scorecard violation that resulted in her disqualification from the Class 5A state tournament.

Inglis, who took the state title her first three years, finished her final round on Tuesday with a 3-under 69. However, because of a scoring error, Inglis was marked as shooting a 4-under 68. Players are tasked with keeping their partner’s score for the round, and Inglis’ partner scored her making a par on the final hole when she actually made a bogey.

When Inglis realized a mistake had been made, she had already signed and submitted her own card. By then it was too late. She submitted an incorrect scorecard and, per USGA rules, was disqualified, ending her chance at history. She would have been the winner by nine strokes.

After Inglis’ DQ, the state title went to freshman Madison Odiorne of Bend’s Summit High School, which won the team championship. A reportedly distraught Inglis left the course without talking to the media.

“It doesn’t really feel like a win, because I know Caroline really won the whole thing,” Odiorne told The Oregonian.

It’s easy to blame Inglis’ playing partner for not putting down the right score. But Inglis, who is set to play for the University of Oregon next year, was the one who signed off on the score. She should have caught the mistake, especially since the error was on her most recent hole. It’s a brutal lesson, but one she’ll keep with her for life. Or at least whenever she has to play with the USGA’s bogus rules.

Tiger Woods has had plenty of issues over the past couple of years. Many of them have been mental and some have been physical. After another forgettable finish at the Players Championship over the weekend, something else was bothering Woods: rate of play.

“Last week, we were playing 4:40 (on Thursday and Friday at Quail Hollow) and there’s no wind,” Tiger explained according to the Golf Channel. “That’s hard to believe.”

Warnings, he says, aren’t cutting it. For starters, every player gets a warning if they falter on the clock and then a penalty stroke the second time it happens. The tour can also fine players between $5,000 and $20,000 for violations. Tiger’s resolution? Skip the warning and make the fines more hefty.

“Strokes is money. I would take the five grand (fine) over the 800K,” Woods said referring to the relationship between the amount players are fined and the amount they can win for finishing among the leaders. “That’s one shot. That’s the difference. That’s what people don’t realize – that one shot is so valuable out here.”

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Kevin Na has a pre-shot routine longer than a “Godfather” movie, but far less entertaining. The 28-year-old golfer, who led The Players Championship through three rounds before shooting a four-over 76 in the final round to finish tied for 7th, recognizes how ridiculous his routine is and apologizes for it.

“There’s so much on the line that I just have to sometimes back off,” Na told the media on Saturday. “Or I’ll force myself to take it back, and on the way down I’ll pull up and go over the top (of the ball). As ugly as it is, and as painful as it is, believe me, it’s really tough for me. And I’m trying.

“Trust me, I get ripped a lot,” he said. “I know TV, Twitter and fans are tired of me backing off. I understand people being frustrated with me backing off, but all I can tell you guys is honestly, I’m trying. And it’s hard for me, too.”

Na was on the clock throughout the back nine because his routine was taking so long, and he was even given a bad time on the 16th hole. He says the lengthy routine is due to a swing change.

Some golfers, like Graeme McDowell, can overlook the routine to see the positives in Na’s swing. He tweeted the following on Saturday:

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When Rory McIlroy was a young boy aspiring to someday become the best golfer in the world, Tiger Woods was in a class of his own.  Like every other young golfer, McIlroy admired Tiger when he was a teenager. Now 23 years old and one of the top golfers in the world, McIlroy has met a number of famous and powerful people, including the president of the United States. Interestingly enough, he says he was more nervous meeting Tiger than he was when he met Barack Obama.

“I think the first time I met Tiger I was a little star struck,” McIlroy said according to Eye on Golf, noting that he was 15 years old when the meeting took place. “I watched him on TV winning majors by 15 and 12 and doing things that no one else could.”

“It’s funny, I was talking about this last night. I was more nervous meeting Tiger than I was meeting Barack Obama.”

Considering he once went undercover just to get close to Tiger and watch him play, it doesn’t surprise us that McIlroy was star struck. He was also 15 years old and had yet to enjoy life as a celebrity, so it makes sense that he was more composed when meeting Obama. Nevertheless, McIlroy’s comments remind us of how dominant Tiger used to be. Golfers wanted to be him and woman wanted to be with him. As we all know, it’s that second part that has his game all out of whack.

Photo credit: Allan Henry-US PRESSWIRE

Albert Miller does not want to see or touch an alligator for the remainder of his life. That is because he would not have any life remaining if his friends were not on hand to save him from a 9-foot alligator on the golf course last week. According to The Ledger, the 75-year-old was playing golf on a Florida course when his ball rolled into the water after a bad shot. He went over with his ball retriever to look for it, and things went downhill from there.

The 75-year-old Miller only saw two balls in the water that weren’t his, so he gave up and turned to walk away. At that point, he says, an alligator launched out of the water and grabbed him by the left knee.

“He lifted me up three feet and slammed me down,” Miller said. “It was excruciating to say the least.”

Miller’s friend, 66-year-old Ted Price, ran over to help along with the two others who were in their foursome. The alligator began dragging Miller into the water before suddenly letting go.

“He let me go,” he said. “I was three feet from my life. He had me submerged up to my belt buckle. That was my miracle of the month.”

Price described Miller’s leg as a “mess” after the alligator let him go. He and the other golfers drove Miller to the front to meet an ambulance, and he later required 35 to 40 stitches to mend one 10-inch wound and two other five-inch wounds. Although he says you could see right through to the bone when it happened, it seems as though Miller is going to be fine. Trappers captured the alligator and weighed it in at 190 pounds. Remind me to stick to New England golf courses from now on.

H/T Eye on Golf
Photo credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Big news for Tiger Woods fans — the golfer may be getting some of his swag back. The New York Post reports that Tige spent last weekend hanging out with his buddies in Las Vegas, scoping out chicks.

From the Post:

The fallen golf great was surveying bikini-clad girls at the Liquid Pool at Aria Resort and Casino on Saturday. Woods made a low-key entrance through the back door and relaxed in a cabana with a few male friends and “good-looking girls,” said witnesses. Soon a group of women began fighting to get his attention. One source said, “There was a frenzy . . . many girls were trying to get up to his cabana, but were unsuccessful.” Woods, coming off his worst performance ever at the Masters, “seemed to be more interested in the people he was with.”

Tiger seemed more interested in the people he was with than the hot chicks swarming around his cabana? Yeah, and Kobe’s more interested in finishing in second place. We all know that can’t be true.

I don’t care how much sex rehab he went to, there’s no way Tiger’s no longer interested in tail. That dude was probably digging into the black book and dialing up all his old phone numbers over the weekend. His fans better hope that’s the case if they want him to return to his old form. It’s the 3am sessions the night before a championship round that he’s missing.

You hear that, fellas? If you’re in the United States military and happen to have a free night on May 18, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity has presented itself. LPGA superstar Lexi Thompson is 17 years old and rising quickly through the golf world. Despite her success, she still wants to do the things that a normal high school girl would do. With prom coming up in a few weeks, Thompson is in search of a date. She’s looking for military men between the ages of 18 and 20, and all those who are interested can shoot on over to her Facebook page to make your pitch.

Who knows, maybe you and Lexi could hit it off. She’s destined to be worth quite a bit of money some day, so it certainly wouldn’t be a bad investment. Typically we see high school students like this one and this one asking athletes to take them to prom, but it’s nice to see the tables turned for a change. What are you waiting for, servicemen? Get on it.