Tennis from Cincinnati!

This week, it is all about tennis from Cincinnati, the Western and Southern Open (a Masters 1000 event)!  This will likely be the final hard court tune up before the US Open which begins August 26th for all the “big names”!  Yesterday, Venus Williams returned to action and won in two sets.  Great to see Venus back, playing well and looking healthy!  The Jerzy boy, hard serving Janowicz from Poland fell to American James Blake.  P. Kolschreiber won his first match yesterday and he will get the grand prize of facing Roger Federer tonight in Fed’s return to action (much anticipated by me!!).

So far today, Ryan Harrison of the US fell to David Ferrer in three tough sets, nice performance by Harrison.  The other Swiss, Wawrinka advanced in two sets, the Canadian star from last week’s Rogers Cup, Pospisil won in two sets over G. Simon (who retired), and Victoria Azarenka returned to action after healing from injury and won in two tough sets over V. King of the US.  Also, the ageless Tommy Haas (35) won in two sets over K. Anderson, 6-4, 6-4.

The headline matches are tonight.  Maria Sharapova returns to action from injury as well, making her hard court debut along with her new head coach on board, non other than Mr. Jimmy Connors.  Should be interesting to see how these two very strong personalities mesh together as a team.  She will face American Sloane Stephens.  To follow, will be what I am waiting to see, Mr. Roger Federer makes his hard court debut after sitting out the Rogers Cup last week.  He has returned to using his 90″ Wilson “magic wand” (the one he used in winning 17 Grand Slam titles) after trying out a larger 98″ version and hopefully the back spasms are a thing of the past.  Federer is the defending champion, has won this event five times, and he has 1000 points to defend at this event.  Not to mention, he really needs to get in some good match play and develop consistency heading into the US Open.  Stay tuned…Federer in action against P. Kolschreiber later tonight!

Update: Sloane Stephens sends the #3 seed Maria Sharapova out early, 2 – 6, 7 – 6, 6- 3!  Great win for the young American.  Sharapova had at least 60 unforced errors and it was not a good performance for the first showing of the new Sharapova/Connors pairing!  I am not disappointed…and now, it is almost Federer time!!  May have to catch you up on that tomorrow…until then!  (Also, M. Ranoic comes back from one set down to defeat Jack Sock, 3 – 6, 6 – 4, 6- 3).

 


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Rogers Cup updates and PGA, etc.

First off, the Atlanta Braves’ 14 game winning streak came to end last night with a 1-0 loss to the Florida Marlins (Boo!!!)  Oh, well, many good things do come to an end, and then on to something better!!  Braves still lead the division (commanding lead) and an excellent performance by rookie pitcher Wood.  They are back in action this afternoon.

Rogers Cup action this afternoon saw Serena Williams defeat Cirstea (the young Romanian player coached by Daren Cahill) with ease, 6 – 2, 6 – 0.  Serena has been bothered by a stomach bug but still looks very strong headed into Cincinnati and then the US Open.  Later this afternoon, Rafael Nadal will face off against hometown boy Milos Raonic (I am pulling for Raonic, but expect Nadal to win!).  Raonic is in his first ever Masters 1000 final, so very fitting that it would be in his home country of Canada!  Nadal won a tough three set match over world no. 1 Djokovic last night, 6 – 4, 3- 6. 7 – 6.  He played very aggressive hard court tennis, something he will have to continue to do with those “fragile knees” on the hard courts as we head to the year’s final major at Flushing Meadow.

Still, if I am completely honest, which I usually am (?), I am eagerly awaiting the return to action next week of Mr. Federer.  Roger is already in Cincinnati, practicing for the Western and Southern Open next week, apparently with the new, larger Wilson prototype racquet in tow.  Roger really needs a good tournament next week, he is the defending champion and he has points to defend, as well as his ego.  It has not been a good 2013 for Roger Federer.  He says the back is healthy (let’s hope so!) and he still has the passion and he is ready to go.  Well, I will be ready to watch and I hope he can perform “Federer like” and head into the US Open with some positives!!  GO FED!  Meanwhile…results of the final of the Rogers Cup to follow later…

At the PGA, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson were in unfamiliar territory, teeing off in the am on TNT coverage, non-factors in the main event later today on CBS (action underway now!)  Phil finished this year’s final major at +12 and Tiger came in at +4.  Very disappointing for these two!!  Oh well, Tiger is still the no. 1 ranked golfer in the world and Phil can go home and gaze fondly on that Claret Jug he won at the last major in Scotland!

Final results of PGA to follow later as well…I am enjoying “kale” for the first time today while I watch!  It is supposed to be the new “in” thing for healthy eating…we shall see!

Rogers Cup final – Nadal over Raonic 6 – 2, 6 – 2.  Nadal looks very impressive, expect him to show up next week in Cincinnati and not rest the “knees” prior to US Open?  As for Raonic, he will become the first Canadian to be ranked in the ATP top ten next week coming in at #10.  (Still looking for Roger Federer to show up next week as he starts the hard court season)!  As for the kale…pretty good!  Put some olive oil and sea salt on it and bake in oven at 350 for about 15 minutes…really tasty…do recommend adding your beverage of choice (mine was red wine!)  OK,  PGA still going strong, Dufner and Furyk both in the lead at -10…stay tuned!

It’s Dufner, sweet redemption for “Duf-Daddy” as his good buddy Keegan Bradley calls him.  Dufner survives #17 and #18 as he and Jim Furyk battled together the whole day to finally win his first major.  Two years ago in Atlanta, Jason Dufner had a 5 shot lead leaving the 15th hole only to falter and lose in a playoff with Bradley.  Really classy of Keegan to be one of the first to greet him after his victory (after Jason’s wife, of course!)  Heart felt hug from Jim Furyk as well.  Well done Jason and War Eagle!  Final day leaderboard: Jason Dufner -10, Jim Furyk -8, Henrik Stenson -7, Jonas Bixt -6, Adam Scott -5, Scott Piercy – 5, David Toms -4, and Zach Johnson, Jason Day, and Rory Mcilroy (finally some good golf from Rory) all at -3.

Much speculation that Jim Furyk has cemented his name as the next Ryder Cup captain for US with this performance.  Well deserved if so, but the day belongs to Jason Dufner!


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Couple of semifinal results from Rogers Cup action

Semifinal action got underway today at the Rogers Cup.  For the women in Toronto, Li Na was upset in two sets by S. Cirstea, 6 – 1, 7 – 6.  Li Na blew a 4 – 1 lead in the second set and fell to the young Romanian player who is coached by Aussie Daren Cahill.  The battle of the Canadian boys in Montreal was a thriller, especially for the hometown crowd.  M. Raonic prevailed in a third set tie break over Pospisil, 6 – 4, 1- 6, 7 – 6.  Raonic will reach his first ever Masters 1000 final and will move into the top ten in the ATP rankings.  Pospisil will now be seeded at the upcoming US Open.  Serena Williams will play A. Radwanska at 6:30 pm EST but for some very odd reason, it is only airing live on ESPN3?  The big match is tonight at 8:00 pm EST on ESPN2, Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal (the winner to meet M. Raonic in tomorrow’s final).  Have to see Djokovic as the slight favorite.  As for the women, well Radwanska has only won one set against Williams ever.

The Atlanta Braves take their fourteen game win streak into tonight’s match up with the Florida Marlins.  This is the longest win streak in MLB regular season history since the 20 game win streak by the Oakland A’s in 2002 (you all know that story, Brad Pitt as Billy Beane in Moneyball!!)

At the PGA, the two co-favorites, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, went in reverse today and are very likely out of it, finishing at a combined total of +14, Phil at  +10 and Tiger at +4.  Very disappointing performance by both and the five year major drought for Tiger Woods will continue it would appear.  Action is very much in progress now on CBS, Jim Furyk currently in the lead at -9 followed by Jason Dufner at -8.  Nice day for Rory, -3.  Updates later…

Final round pairings: Jim Furyk at -9 and Jason Dufner at -8, Henrik Stenson at -7 and Jonas Blixt at -6, Steve Stricker and Adam Scott, both at -5, Rory Mcilroy and Lee Westwood, -3.  Matt Kuchar wound up his round at -2.  Coverage begins at 11:00 am EST on TNT (tune in early if you want to see Phil and Tiger) and continues on CBS at 2:00 pm EST.


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PGA second round…all about Jason Dufner

The guy from Ohio who played for Auburn and rarely shows much emotion sits atop the leaderboard after day 2 at the PGA Golf Championships (the final major of the 2013 season) at -9.  Jason Dufner shot a round of 63, matching the lowest round ever in a  major (along with 23 other previous performances).  Quite a performance for Mr. Dufner but watching him play, one would never know it.  He is about as even keeled as they come!  In second place, Adam Scott, Matt Kuchar and Jim Furyk at -7.  Next, Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson at -6, and Robert Garrigus and Steve Stricker at -5 round out the top of the leaderboard.  Webb Simpson and Sergio Garcia along with others are at -3, Jason Day, Hunter Mahan, Rickie Fowler and Bill Haas along with others are at -2, Lee Westwood and Greame McDowell are at -1.  Rory Mcilory came in at E par to finish off his second round and Tiger Woods finished at +1, while Phil Mickelson finished at +2.  The cut, +3.  Missing the cut, Luke Donald, Ernie Els, Colsearts and Davis Love III (playing with Tiger along with Keegan Bradley (+1) will miss the cut).  Tiger had an up and down day, pulling E, then going under at -1, and finally finishing at +1, ten off the lead set by Duffner.  Jason had one eagle, five birdies and no bogeys in a brilliant display of golf today at Oak Hill.  So, Tiger is once again way off the pace but will make weekend play at the final major of the year.  Interesting to see if he can play catch up with the leaders and will the leaders fall back and give those trailing room to make up ground.  Tomorrow’s action resumes at 11:00 am EST on TNT and then moves to CBS from 2:00 pm EST to 7:00 EST.  Now, time to catch up with some tennis, Rogers Cup action in Canada.  Coverage currently airing on ESPN2.

Two Canadians, Pospisil and Raonic will face off tomorrow in the semifinals much to the delight of the hometown Canadian crowd.  Unfortunately, Raonic’s advancement is marred by a bit of controversy in his victory over Del Potro, failing to admit to his foot touching the net in a winning point in the match.  Disappointing since he seems like a really classy young man.  Never the less, he moves on to the semi’s against his countryman.  Novak Djokovic dispatched R. Gasquet with ease 6 – 1, 6  – 2 and awaits the winner of Rafael Nadal vs. Matosevic (expect it to be Nadal).  In women’s action, Serena Williams advanced in two easy sets, 6 – 1, 6 – 1 and A. Radwanska survived S. Errani 7 – 6, 7 – 6.  Li Na advanced today and P. Kvitova fell to S. Cirstea of Romania in three sets.

As for me, I still await the return of Roger Federer, hopefully next week in Cincinnati.  You all know, I am all about Mr. Federer!  Cannot wait to see what Wilson racquet he shows up with!


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Rain at PGA halts play

Rain swept through Rochester, NY today halting play at the PGA Championships at Oak Hill Country Club.  This is the final major of the 2013 season.  Jim Furyk sits atop the leaderboard at -5 after completing his round with an early morning tee time.  Adam Scott is currently tied with him at -5 and still on the course.  Tiger Woods had an average day, arriving at his final hole (#9) at -1 only to double bogey the final hole for his day one performance and finishing at +1.  Phil Mickelson had earlier been at +3 but is currently back on the course at +1, flirting with pulling to E par at #12.  Rory Mcilroy is -2 thru 12 holes.  Other top scorers were Matt Kuchar at -3, Lee Westwood at -3 thru 13, Justin Rose -3 thru 10 and Zach Johnson -2 thru 10.  Has been a bit difficult to keep up with due to rain delay, switching back and forth between today’s coverage on TNT (also on TNT tomorrow) and the tennis from Rogers Cup in Canada on ESPN3.  Anyhow, may have to give day one leaderboard results much later, this could go on way past 8:00 pm EST tonight providing weather allows.

In tennis action, Serena Williams dispatched Flipkens of Belgium, 6 – 0, 6 – 3, in Montreal.  In Toronto, Rafael Nadal took out my Jerzy guy, Janowicz of Poland, 7-6, 6-4 but #2 Andy Murray fell to the “rich” kid, Gulbris, 4 – 6, 3 – 6.  Del Potro and Raonic have yet to play but the other Canadian, Popisil took out the #6 seed T. Berdych in three sets, 7 – 6, 2- 6, 7 – 6 to the absolute delight of the Canadian crowd.  Much more action taking place.  Li Na advances and Djokovic will face Istomin in his first match at this hard court event.  Remember, Roger Federer is sitting this one out, so my viewing is on cruise control! (Happy Birthday to Roger today, 32!)

Tonight on TNF, the Cincinnati Bengals will visit the ATL to take on the Atlanta Falcons in preseason action (still gotta go with the Allen Iverson attitude, it is practice!)  Still, nice to see the Falcons take the field.  Only negative, no Motive since TNF will be on ABC.  Bummer!

Until later…Oh..results of Day one at PGA finally in!  Day one leaderboard: Adam Scott and Jim Furyk at -5 (Furyk in the am, Scott in the pm), David Hearn, Lee Westwood at -4, Matt Kuchar and five others including Jason Day at -3, Steve Stricker, Jason Duffner, Bill Haas, Henrik Stenson, Justin Rose and five others at -2.  Rory Mcilroy wound up day one action at -1.  Phil Mickelson found himself in the same position in the afternoon/evening as Tiger in the morning, approaching the last hole at -1 only to double bogey and finish the day like Tiger at +1.  So tomorrow, day two coverage continues on TNT.  Should get to see Tiger Woods in action tomorrow with an afternoon play time!


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Rogers Cup and other sports…

The ATP and the WTA is in action at the Rogers Cup.  The women are in Montreal and the men in Toronto.  As you all know, I am a Roger Federer fan, and he withdrew earlier from the Rogers Cup due to a bad back and difficulty in deciding whether to continue with the new larger Wilson racquet or fire the person in his camp who suggested he try it out at two small clay court tournaments prior to the hard court season.  At any rate, I am loyal to a fault and if Roger is not playing I am simply not watching, or at least not as diligently.  But there has been some big name action today, Andy Murray advanced in two sets, Rafael Nadal advanced in two easy sets, 6 – 2, 6 – 0 and to the thrill of the Canadians, a guy with the last name of Popisil won over Stepanek in two sets.  The other Canadian, Ranoic, is taking the court against Youzhny as we speak.  (Update: he wins 6 – 4, 6 – 4!)  A guy I pull for Janowicz, I like to call him the Jerzy guy, he won today as well.  I believe Serena Williams will be in action later tonight on Tennis Channel.  World number 1 Novak Djokovic should take the court tomorrow.  The other Swiss guy, Wawrinka went out today and thirty five year old Tommy Haas was forced to retire with a sore shoulder.  Age is a “blank”.  Still looking for Roger to return next week at the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati (he is the defending champion).  He could sure use another victory this year (only has one, at Halle, Germany prior to Wimbledon).  Cannot wait to see what racquet he shows up waving!  Anyhow, coverage of this tournament will be light, see my above Federer rule, but I will give you winners when important.

In MLB, A Rod officially appealed his suspension through the 2014 season for PED’s which is set to start tomorrow (Thursday).  No surprise with that move.

The Johnny Manziel autograph for pay scandal continues to gain ground.  Still expect to see him playing for Texas A & M in a few weeks when CFB gets underway, but stay tuned…this is a developing story.

Falcons and Bengals on TNF for NFL preseason.  Like Allen Iverson said, “it is PRACTICE”, but still look forward to seeing Matty Ice and the Falcons in action!

AND, finally the PGA gets underway tomorrow, the final major of the 2013 golf season.  Tiger and Phil are the favorites.  Can Tiger finally win a major after five years?  We shall see…


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2 Guns and Surviving “Paradise” on Wednesday

Well, it is Wednesday and you all know what that means…Surviving “Paradise” the book day!  But first, I finally saw the movie 2 Guns with Denzel Washington, Mark Walhberg and others today!  Very entertaining movie I thought.  Lot of bad guys, Mexican drug cartels, US Navy, CIA, and DEA, hey, who were the good guys???  OK, that is all you are going to get from me but I will say, I enjoyed it.  Despite some reviews, (merely two good guys and that is about it), it was very entertaining.  Top grossing movie this past weekend so apparently many people wanted to see it as well.

Now to the day’s main event, please check out my book Surviving “Paradise” by Susan Willoch Shaver.  It is available at Amazon.com for $9.99 in paperback, $4.99 kindle edition and also at Barnes and Noble nook for $4.99.  It does not have Denzel and/or Mark but it does have “me”, spunky gal from “Georgia”, a horny inappropriate cop, a jealous bitchy wife, an ugly girl (will have to read it to find out more), a redneck homeowners’ association “Prez”, and some really horrible Bulgarian criminal neighbors all coming together in a crazy neighborhood in southwest Florida.  Hope to get final draft of screenplay from ghostwriter next week and all I can say is I hope it is onwards and upwards from there.  Meanwhile, you guys read my book!!


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Sad day in MLB – A Rod suspension handed down

Very sad day for MLB today as A Rod along with twelve others were suspended for their alleged involvement with an anti aging clinic in South Florida (notice it is always trouble brewing in Florida!).  A Rod has been suspended until 2014, beginning on Thursday, so it will in effect be for 211 games.  He is, of course, going to appeal.  The other twelve players have all agreed to their penalties and have agreed to waive their rights to an appeal.  So what do you guys think?   Is the punishment too harsh or just?  It would seem many think it is time to clean up baseball so we shall see what develops in the next three days.  This is after all, the second time A Rod has been “caught”.  (Me thinks he doth protest too much?)

Moving onto to Johnny Manziel and his alleged taking of “cash” for autographs being investigated by the NCAA.  I think this one is going to be very hard to prove.  Manziel has certainly shown his “blank” as of late, a lot of brat like behavior, not the least of which occurred with him leaving the Manning Football camp early, leaving or being asked to leave, however one chooses to interpret the events.  Still, I do not think this will result in Manziel not being on the field for the Aggies when the College Football season begins in a little over three weeks.  Still, another wait and see…

In tennis, the boys are back, or at least three of the big four return to action in Montreal for the Rogers Cup.  Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray all return after likely enjoying wonderful vacations on beautiful beaches and will be back in action at this hard court Masters 1000 event.  Meanwhile, Roger Federer has taken a “pass”.  He is nursing an ailing back along with probably trying to decide the fate of whoever convinced him to try out the larger racquet (98″) and abandon the smaller 90″ Wilson racquet he has used for over a decade and won 17 Grand Slam titles using!!  Expect Roger to return to action hopefully in Cincinnati the next week and defend his title (and points).  If so, wonder what racquet he will show up with?  Expect my coverage to be a bit on the light side, as you all know, if Mr. Federer is not there, I am not there (as much) either…

Until tomorrow…


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Sad day in MLB – A Rod suspension handed down

Very sad day for MLB today as A Rod along with twelve others were suspended for their alleged involvement with an anti aging clinic in South Florida (notice it is always trouble brewing in Florida!).  A Rod has been suspended until 2014, beginning on Thursday, so it will in effect be for 211 games.  He is, of course, going to appeal.  The other twelve players have all agreed to their penalties and have agreed to waive their rights to an appeal.  So what do you guys think?   Is the punishment too harsh or just?  It would seem many think it is time to clean up baseball so we shall see what develops in the next three days.  This is after all, the second time A Rod has been “caught”.  (Me thinks he doth protest too much?)

Moving onto to Johnny Manziel and his alleged taking of “cash” for autographs being investigated by the NCAA.  I think this one is going to be very hard to prove.  Manziel has certainly shown his “blank” as of late, a lot of brat like behavior, not the least of which occurred with him leaving the Manning Football camp early, leaving or being asked to leave, however one chooses to interpret the events.  Still, I do not think this will result in Manziel not being on the field for the Aggies when the College Football season begins in a little over three weeks.  Still, another wait and see…

In tennis, the boys are back, or at least three of the big four return to action in Montreal for the Rogers Cup.  Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray all return after likely enjoying wonderful vacations on beautiful beaches and will be back in action at this hard court Masters 1000 event.  Meanwhile, Roger Federer has taken a “pass”.  He is nursing an ailing back along with probably trying to decide the fate of whoever convinced him to try out the larger racquet (98″) and abandon the smaller 90″ Wilson racquet he has used for over a decade and won 17 Grand Slam titles using!!  Expect Roger to return to action hopefully in Cincinnati the next week and defend his title (and points).  If so, wonder what racquet he will show up with?  Expect my coverage to be a bit on the light side, as you all know, if Mr. Federer is not there, I am not there (as much) either…

Until tomorrow…


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Tiger Woods wins for 8th time at Firestone!

For the record 8th time, Tiger Woods wins the WGC Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio with a final round of 70, finishing at -15.  It was a par day, protecting his seven shot lead for Tiger today.  He played along side Henrik Stenson who tied for second with Keegan Bradley at -8.  Jason Duffner, M. Jimenez, and Zach Johnson finished in third at -6.  Luke Donald came in fourth at -5.   Other big names, Rory Mcilroy finished at +2 and Phil Mickelson at +1, disappointing tournament for both.  Tiger had rounds of 66, 61, 68 and 70 in this victory.

This was Tiger’s 79th career victory, 2nd most all time behind Sam Snead at 82.  Clearly, once again Tiger heads into a major, next week’s PGA in Rochester, NY as the favorite after winning a big tournament the week before.  With 48 of the top 50 golfers in the world participating at Firestone, it is a huge win for Tiger.  But will the momentum carry over to the final major of the year next week?  Will certainly have to wait and see, PGA gets underway next Thursday (August 8th).  I really hope Tiger can break the five year drought and win next week at Oak Hill.

Very touching moment after Tiger’s win, son Charlie leaping into Daddy’s arms, hugging Daddy as they walked off the course up to the clubhouse to sign the score card.  Rare personal insight into Tiger as “Daddy” not often seen.

Meanwhile, in Lexington, Ohio, Charlie Kimball won his first ever Izod Indy race.  Charlie suffers from diabetes and it is the first race won by a diabetic racer.  Charlie was joined by teammate Dario Franchitti on the podium, Dario coming in at 3rd.  Fellow teammate Scott Dixon had won this race more than other other driver in history, but today was all about Charlie Kimball.  Congrats to him and Gnassi Race team for another victory.  S. Pagenaud came in 2nd, Will Power was 4th, and Ryan Hunter-Reay was 5th.  Dario has finished 7th or better in the past seven road races (“parades” as my Indy insider calls them) and it was his third podium finish this year (still has not won a race outright).

Moving on, it is all happening in Ohio today as the NFL Hall of Fame game from Canton, Ohio kicks off the preseason tonight with Miami and Dallas facing off.  Gee, is it really time for football?  Apparently so…let’s get ready for some football!!

Pop culture note:  Unforgettable with Poppy Montgomery and Dylan Walsh on CBS tonight at 9:00 pm EST.  GREAT SHOW!


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