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Federer sharp in opening match in Toronto

Posted on August 6, 2014 by susan

Roger Federer looked very sharp in his opening match at the Rogers Cup in Toronto, taking care of Peter Polansky, 6-2, 6-0. He also looked sharp in his mint green shirt and teal shorts..nice look! Anyhow, Fed broke Polansky immediately but then was broken in his first service game. He broke Polansky again and then never looked back..it was the maestro in full swing! Later, Stan Wawrinka had a real struggle with good friend B. Paire, needing three sets to win and advance, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6. In Montreal where there had been a power outage throughout the city, the ladies took the court a bit later than expected and first up was hometown darling and Canada’s #1 Eugenie Bouchard. She was beaten in a very convincing manner by Shelby Rogers from Charleston, SC, 6-0, 3-6, 6-0. Huge disappointment for the packed house and had to be equally as disappointing for Bouchard. Big win for Rogers! V. Azarenka was up next and she continues to try and get back to the top level in women’s tennis after a serious foot injury. She ended up getting a knee injury in the second set after taking a fall on the hard court and had to have the trainer out and it was wrapped for the third set. But, Vika did persevere and defeat A. Cornet of France in three sets, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. Gutsy performance by Azarenka as Cornet is not an easy out!

Today, so many of the top players come out to play in both Toronto and Montreal. Serena, Maria, Novak, Andy (Murray already defeated young N. Kyrgios in two sets), Dimitrov, Raonic…sometimes it is time to pause and just enjoy the show! Coverage continues on Tennis Channel and then likely moves over to ESPN on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for quarters, semis, and finals.

Motive (my favorite detective show) will take a week off from ABC tonight and instead a repeat performance of Nashville On The Record will air at 10:00 pm EST. Motive returns with a new episode next week.

And finally…it is Wednesday..time to do that thing I do…promote my book Surviving “Paradise” by Susan Willoch Shaver. Follow a southern woman who relocates to a new town full of great expectations – only to be met by a ridiculous set of people and circumstances. It is available at Amazon.com for $8.99 in paperback and $3.03 in kindle edition. See the HOME page at this website for more info and also check out the BUY THE BOOK option on the menu bar.

Thanks and Happy Wednesday!

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Rogers Cup getting underway (yes!!) Federer on tonight!

Posted on August 5, 2014 by susan

The Rogers Cup action is underway and tonight, Mr. Federer will serve in his opening act at this event against Canadian Peter Polansky. This match will be followed by Fed’s fellow Swiss star and good buddy Stan Wawrinka vs. B. Paire of France. There has been some rain, either in Montreal (where the ladies action is taking place) and/or Toronto (men’s action) so it does get a bit confusing. Also, it is Rogers Cup, not Rodgers Cup as I had earlier posted. When I say confusing, I do mean confusing. One thing for sure..the action airs daily and nightly on Tennis Channel this week with both live action and replays from earlier matches. John Isner was upset yesterday on the men’s side by Dodig and Venus Williams advanced in three sets today on the women’s side. Two Canadian players will be looking to really put on a show in front of their home crowd, Milos Raonic and Eugenie Bouchard. Bouchard is from Montreal so she will certainly be the crowd favorite. Very interesting pairing in men’s doubles action..Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka! Wawrinka plays a good bit of doubles with Roger Federer, they play for Switzerland in Davis Cup action, have an Olympic gold medal in doubles and often play doubles together at Indian Wells (they were playing some excellent doubles at Indian Wells this past March when I was there, making it to the semifinals!) So…Roger is of course a bit busy these days, he will celebrate his 33rd birthday on August 8th (Friday) during Rogers Cup action and has his wife and two sets of twins along with him. Maybe he is choosing to focus on his singles action at this tournament and family time when not on court. Anyhow…very interesting to see Nole and Stan playing a bit of doubles together!

Tonight..really hope Roger looks in great form after that incredible final at Wimbledon against Djokovic…five set loss but definitely a match for the ages. ( have it on my DVR and am resisting deleting it, but I need the space!)

Also it is terrific Tuesday on TV tonight…Rizzoli and Isles and Perception on TNT, Chasing Life on ABC Family Network, and Tyrant on FX. A lot to enjoy this evening!

Just found out that ABC will not be bringing back one of my favorite guilty pleasures, Betrayal this fall! SO BUMMED! I loved this show, as did many others based on the disappointed comments I saw posted. It aired in the 10:00 pm EST time slot and now we will be left to forever wonder, who showed up to meet Sara for dinner…Jack or Drew. I think most fans of the show were hoping for Jack!

OK..until later on…have a good one!

Update: Power outage in Montreal! This will delay women’s action at the Rogers Cup for at least one hour. Azarenka (continues her comeback from injury) and Bouchard headline the women’s action tonight. As posted earlier…Federer and Wawrinka headline the men’s action (Roger Federer is always the headliner in my book!!) GO FED!

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Rory Mcilroy wins WGC and regains #1 world ranking

Posted on August 3, 2014 by susan

Just in..Rory Mcilroy came from second place to first place today at the WGC at the Bridgestone Invitational to win the title and regain the #1 world golf ranking. The tournament was delayed due to rain…and just ended after 7:00 pm EST (gee…it was supposed to end at 6:00 pm EST) but anyhow…a lot of sports and other stuff happening so here we go!

Mcilroy becomes the first player since Tiger Woods to win back to back starts heading into the PGA Championship (next Thursday through Sunday) and because Adam Scott did not finish in the top five (a disappointing -7), he regained the #1 ranking. Wonderful performance by Rory. Another disappointment for Sergio Garcia, coming in at -13 in second place playing along side Rory. Sergio led coming into today’s final round, was playing lights out golf, but today he had only one birdie, 8 pars and a bogey and it was not enough. Speaking of Tiger, well he withdrew after nine holes at +4 after tweaking his back playing a shot out of the bunker on the second hole. More bad news for Tiger and his fans…have to wonder about his participation in the PGA Championship next week at Valhalla Country Club in Louisville, KY. So, the final leaderboard: Rory Mcilroy -15, Sergio Garcia -13, Marc Leishman -12 (solid performance by Leishman!), Justin Rose (the leader after the early rounds), Patrick Reed, Keegan Bradley and Charles Schwartzel at -9, Adam Scott, Rickie Fowler, Ryan Moore and Graeme McDowell at -7. Matt Kuchar and Brandt Snedeker both finished at -6 along with others. One of the outstanding performances of the day goes to Phil Mickelson, playing with strep throat, who shot a final round of 62 to finish at -5 after beginning the day at +3. Young Jordan Spieth finished his play at +5.

So, next week, we wonder if Tiger will play, Rory is the new world #1 and looks like the favorite every time he takes the course (we all know anything can happen) and Adam Scott is likely not very happy after this tournament. Meanwhile…

NFL Sunday night football tonight…! Gee, are we ready for this? The Hall of Fame game from Canton, Ohio (much going on in Ohio today and tonight!) airs tonight featuring Eli Manning and the Giants vs. the Buffalo Bills. This is of course the beginning of exhibition NFL games so calm down everyone. Starters will likely see very limited action!

Two Canadian players battled it out today in the Citi Open final in our nation’s capital..Milos Raonic defeated V. Pospisil, 6-1, 6-4. This leads us to next weeks tennis tournament from Toronto, Canada..The Rogers Cup!! So excited to see Roger Federer back in action. Novak Djokovic is seeded #1 and his top half of the draw is very tough! Fed is seeded #2 (due to Rafa not competing because of a wrist injury) and he is atop the bottom half of the draw. Would not be unhappy to see another Fed – Nole final, especially after that wonderful five set final a few weeks back at Wimbledon. Interestingly, with Rafa out of this event and the Southern and Western Open in Cincy, Fed has the opportunity to move very close to the #2 ranking. Rafa won both these events last year along with the US Open. With him not competing, he will lose a huge number of points. So, if Mr. Federer can do well…it could look really interesting when we get the US Open and then the hard court season this fall! Novak is coming off his wedding and honeymoon and expecting his first child this fall. Roger will be competing with his family (wife, two sets of twins) in attendance, as always. Interesting times for these two guys for sure!! Other notables..Andy Murray has really struggled after back surgery. Stan Wawrinka has been up and down after winning the Australian Open, but he is ranked #4 in the world. Up and comers, Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov should be threats at this event and the upcoming ones as well. Going to be some great tennis for our viewing pleasure!! (K. Nishikori has unfortunately pulled out of this event due to a toe injury it has just been reported).

Tonight…I am going to watch Unforgettable on CBS at 9:00 pm EST…will check out the football action but I want to get my pop culture fix! The show that follows…Reckless which showcases Charleston, SC is kind of peaking my interest as well.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday evening!

P.S. NBA news…all signs point to Kevin Love joining LeBron in Cleveland…trade seems imminent as Andrew Wiggins, the Cav’s first round draft pick will be eligible for a trade on August 23rd. Looks like he will go to the Timberwolves along with others, and Love will head to Cleveland.

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Look out Sergio, here comes Rory!

Posted on August 3, 2014 by susan

Look out Sergio, here comes Rory! That would be Sergio Garcia and Rory Mcilroy at the WGC in Ohio! Sergio headed into today at -11 and looking like for all the world he was on cruise control to win this tournament. But, inspite of a very nice round in which he came in at -14, Rory Mcilroy is putting on the pressure, birdying two of the final holes of the day and after beginning the day at -7, he finished in second place at -11, 3 strokes off the lead. The rest of the top of the leaderboard after day 3 (which started way too early due to rain in the afternoon forecast and made afternoon watching a bit confusing) is as follows: Garcia -14, Mcilroy -11, Leishman -9, K. Bradley and J. Rose -8 along with Adam Scott (interesting storyline to follow), B. Snedeker at-6, J. B. Holmes at -5, and a bit of an off day for Rickie Fowler who finished at -4. Now, if Rory were to win the tournament, and if Adam Scott finished out of the top five, Rory would become the new world #1. So…bit of drama there, but the real drama tomorrow for the final round is watching what happens with Sergio Garcia and Rory Mcilroy who will be the final pairing to tee off. Action gets underway at 2:00 pm EST on CBS.

Meanwhile, Lefty (Mickelson) is reportedly battling a strep throat infection (yuk, that is draining and painful!) and inspite of it he improved from +5 to +3. Young Jordan Spieth meanwhile went the other way, backwards, going from +1 to start the day to finishing at +4. And then there was Tiger Woods…he got to -2 but then that double bogey on hole #6 was ugly and he wound up finishing at +1, tied for 36th place. Not looking like Tiger is going to defend this title from last year. Bubba Watson who played along side Tiger today came in at +2.

Confusing news regarding Dustin Johnson and his personal leave from the pro tour. First reports indicated he had been suspended for testing positive for cocaine. Then official word that it was in fact not the case at all..he was taking time off to work on personal issues and hoped to be back in due time better than ever. He will miss some upcoming key events but I hope he gets things worked out and comes back to show his stuff. He is a hugely talented golfer!

Then we have the horrific injury to Paul George (Indiana Pacers) which occured in a Team USA scrimmage game from the campus of UNLV. The footage is graphic and troubling..not for the faint of heart for sure. He suffered a lower right leg fracture and if you do watch the footage, you will see just how awkwardly he came down on his right leg attempting to block a shot and the excruciating pain he was in. Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls) knows a thing or two about coming back from injuries…two season ending knee surgeries the past two years. He saw what happened and literally knelt down and covered his face in anguish for his fellow USA teammate. Such a shame…he has had surgery and the prognosis is that he will recover but likely miss all of the upcoming season. The remainder of the game was suspended. HATE to see something like this happen. Paul George is such a talent and good guy and wow..what a blow for the Pacers. The East favorites now look like Cavs, Bulls (hard to call) with the Pacers fading? Again, such a shame. His parents were in attendance and all of his teammates and the coaching staff were in shock! Best wishes to him and hoping for a full recovery. We want guys like him playing in the NBA!

Tomorrow the final round of the WGC will air and then the tour moves to Louisville, KY for the PGA Championship from Valhalla Country Club. But for me personally, the focus shifts to Toronto, Canada where tennis action resumes with the top guys competing (except for Rafa who has withdrawn with a wrist injury). So the “Big Three” will be there, Djokovic, Federer, and Murray (or is Wawrinka also now part of the Big Three or the Big Four?). Here’s to hoping for another great final matchup between Federer and Djokovic. We all know who I will be pulling for….Mr. Federer!

Until tomorrow!

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Sergio Garcia surges to top of Leaderboard at WGC!

Posted on August 2, 2014 by susan

Sergio Garcia surged to the top of the Leaderboard at the WGC at Bridgestone…literally! Garcia shot a round of 27 on the back nine, made six consecutive birdies and finished at -11 to surpass the day’s prior leader Justin Rose (-8). Really incredible nine holes of golf played by Garcia, playing along side Phil Mickelson. Tiger Woods had a very nice opening day yesterday, shooting a round of 68 but took a slight step back today, finishing with a round of 71 and at -1 he is tied for 25th, ten strokes off the lead heading into the weekend. Tiger is still trying to get his game on coming back from the long layoff and rehab after back surgery and he is the defending champion at this event.

After the second round, the leaderboard is as follows: Sergio Garcia -11, Justin Rose -8, world #2 Rory Mcilroy and Marc Leishman at -7, Rickie Fowler and Charles Schwartzel at -6, Patrick Reed and Keegan Bradley at-5. There is your “top five”. Other notables…world #1 Adam Scott is at -3 along with Georgia Tech standout and all around good guy Matt Kuchar. Wonderkid Jordan Spieth from Texas is at +1 and Lefty (Mickelson) is a disappointing +4 (at one point on the back nine, he was at +5).

Tomorrow’s tee times have been moved up…7:00 am EST due to the threat of bad weather later in the day. Stay tuned…weekend rounds still to come! Hard to imagine Sergio could replicate today’s play so things should get tighter tomorrow at the top. Tiger has a long climb ahead of him being ten shots off the lead…but of course stranger things have happened! Should be a good Saturday and Sunday of golf from Ohio!

Enjoy your Friday night!

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All Right..Wednesday, Surviving “Paradise”, sports, and more!

Posted on July 30, 2014 by susan

All Right, All Right, All Right (thank you Matthew McConaughey), it is Wednesday and that means Surviving “Paradise” day!

First, some sports news…all the sports pundits are currently talking about Johnny Football, ie. Johnny Manziel, and whether he will be the starter for the Cleveland Browns, or perhaps more accurately, how soon will he become the starter for the Browns. Well, it is most probably going to happen…so all of you “haters” out there go ahead and get it all out now…Johnny is going to be a Superstar! Like I said in my post (way back when) after the Chick-Fil-A Bowl in 2013…Just Enjoy the Show! Johnny is going to be GOOD!

In tennis news (always near and dear to my heart), world number 2 Rafael Nadal has pulled out of two US Open tuneup Masters 1000 tournaments…next week’s Rodgers Cup in Toronto and then the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati the following week. Um..makes me wonder about the US Open and Rafa defending his title? Also, makes me wonder about another Federer vs. Djokovic matchup in some upcoming finals? Not happy to hear about Rafa…but I want to see Federer win…a Masters 1000 title..and another Grand Slam (#18…please!!) Plenty of time for Fed however according to recent interviews he has given…he plans to grace us with his amazing tennis for at least 3 to 5 years to come? (Think the wife and kids along with the health of his mind and body will play into this long term plan, but it sure makes me happy!) ROGER THAT!

Meanwhile, hot ticket on TV tonight…Motive on ABC at 10:00 pm EST. I think it is the best detective show on the small screen at this time! Really love it!

And last (but not least), time to promote my book Surviving “Paradise” by Susan Willoch Shaver. Follow a southern woman who relocates to a new town full of great expectations – only to be met by a ridiculous set of people and circumstances. AND I DO MEAN RIDICULOUS!! You will have to read it and let me know! See the HOME page at this website for more info and also check out the BUY THE BOOK option on the menu bar! Thanks and have a great Hump Day (Wednesday!!)

Posted in Blog, celebrities, events, football, gossip, pop culture, sports figures, Surviving "Paradise", susan shaver, Susan Willoch Shaver, Tennis, tv shows | Comments Off

Terrific Tuesday on TV and more!

Posted on July 29, 2014 by susan

It is Tuesday folks…and a a terrific Tuesday on TV for those of us “couch potatoes”, ha ha! TNT offers us Rizzoli and Isles and then the great new show starring Eric McCormack, Perception. Meanwhile, FX offers Tyrant (hey, this show intrigues me, no matter how troubling, but I love The Following with Kevin Bacon on the ABC fall lineup so I don’t know for sure what that says about me!) and also Chasing Life on ABC Family Network. A big night of work for the old DVR for sure. I really enjoy Chasing Life and I think this is the next to last show in this new series for our summer viewing pleasure? Maybe, we will see tonight.

Moving to sports news…still nothing on the “Love”, as in Kevin Love. Where will he go? The Cavs, the Bulls? He will not play for Teams USA nor will Blake Griffin of the Clippers due to a small fracture in his back. Gee, the hits just keep on coming for Team USA!

Meanwhile, I guess I would remiss not to address the whole Ray Rice…Stephen A. Smith…Michelle Beadle cluster…..! First of all, Roger Goodell really disappointed me in his very lax response to this incident. You do not put you hands on a woman and Goodell has really been very good up to this point about addressing issues of misconduct in the NFL. Big “F” on this one. Meanwhile, as far as Smith vs. Beadle?…First, I did not see Stephen A. Smith’s rant (he has many, one has to say) but I do support Beadle in standing up for her beliefs and calling out a fellow ESPN correspondent. I do not think Stephen A. Smith supports violence against women, but his comments were a bit confusing?? Good for Beadle in standing up for her beliefs…always proud to be a woman when I see someone like her do that!! You go Girl! Not to mention, violence of any kind is NEVER acceptable unless you are defending yourself/and or family. But, I also believe emotional and psychological abuse is sometimes just as horrible and devastating. The scars are not as visible, but they are there non the less!! To be a bully is to be a coward. We need to be kind to one another, and treat people with the dignity and respect they deserve. To be on the other end of any kind of abuse is never fun and can be traumatizing. Hope everyone heals in time from this horrible event. Kudos again to Beadle..have to say..you leave SportsNation with Colin Cowherd (on of my favorite sports shows of all time) in Connecticut to go to NYC and work for NBC Sports and Access Hollywood. For whatever reason, it did not work out and you come back to a “new” SportsNation, live from LA! What star are you living under…I want to live under that star!! Anyhow…well done!

Always stand up for yourself people and do not allow yourself to be torn down by bullies…be kind and rewind…until tomorrow!

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John Isner wins 2nd consecutive Atlanta Open

Posted on July 27, 2014 by susan

John Isner won his second consecutive Atlanta Open Championship today (that would be the BB&T Open) defeating Dudi Sela of Israel, 6-3, 6-4. Kudos to both these guys, it is a SCORCHER of a day in the ATL. This is the first of ten US Open series tournaments, it is held at Atlantic Station in Midtown…a pretty cool place actually. John hails from Winston-Salem, NC but played his college tennis in Athens at UGA (I am a GT fan but that is OK!, go John) and now he lives in Tampa, FL. Nice win for Isner. But let’s get right to it…what we are all really waiting for is the Rodgers Cup in Toronto, followed by the tournament in Cincy where Mr. Federer, Djokovic, Nadal and Murray will all be in attendance. Then…drum roll please..the final Slam of the year…The US Open from Flushing Meadow in NYC. All to come…starting August 2nd and continuing through until the men’s final in NYC on Monday, September 8th. Then we move to indoor tennis (Mr. Federer’s specialty) to finish out the year leading to the Year End Finals in London!

So, watched The Internship (for the third time?) today on HBO on a lazy, hot Sunday afternoon. Really love Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson together. They are such a great duo, and I love this movie. It has such a good message…don’t give up on your dream(s)… and it has laughter and tears..what could be better?

On LMN at 6:00 pm EST a movie called The Trials of Cate McCall will air today. It stars Kate Beckinsale and Clancy Brown. I am intrigued. Don’t know if it was meant to be a Lifetime Movie or was originally meant for the big screen. First I have heard of it but I am going to check it out!!

Tonight Unforgettable on CBS at 9:00 pm EST. Love Poppy Montgomery and Dylan Walsh together! Also, MLB game of the week…ESPN at 8:00 pm EST, San Francisco vs. LA Dodgers (in LA)…battle of California. Oh, how I love California!! Wish I was there!

Until tomorrow..enjoy your Sunday night!

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Twitter info!!

Posted on July 26, 2014 by susan

Just so you all know, I am on Twitter (heaven help me) and I wanted all of you faithful followers to know my twitter “handle”… Susan W. Shaver@survivingpara! Been a bit of a laid back day today…Isner will face Sock in the final of the BB&T Open in Atlanta (I think I finally got that right) tomorrow. Isner has won this event multiple times. Very hot and humid in the ATL so best to both of these players tomorrow! Anyhow..twitter and website are not linked…website is accessible at Twitter but just wanted to let anyone out there who would like to follow me on Twitter know where to find me!! Thanks for your support!

Have a great Saturday and Sunday!

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This and that on Friday, 7/25/14 (updated)

Posted on July 26, 2014 by susan

A bit of this and that on Friday, 7/25/14. First, some pretty good tennis going on in Atlanta at the BB&T Tournament (Atlanta Open). Isner and Sock to face off tomorrow in the semifinals!

Yes, I do know that Byron Scott is spelled, Byron Scott! He has FINALLY been offered a contract as the Lakers next Head Coach. Please, let’s get this done and move on to finding Kobe Bryant some Real HELP!! Anyhow…things are at least moving forward!

Moving on…Josh Charles was on Jimmy Fallon last night. Still hard to accept that Will Gardner is dead (The Good Wife)! He is going to do some directing, recently got married (Congrats) but still, I miss Will and I wish he was back. But, the show must go on…this fall!

Two movies I was really hoping to see at the theater near me are not there! First Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s final movie in a A Most Wanted Man. Also, Wish I Was Here with Zach Braff and Kate Hudson. Neither has arrived yet, but one can hope. It is the ATL, not LA afterall! Soon, I hope, soon!

OK, time to call it a day, a week, whatever! Enjoy your Friday night and your weekend!

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Surviving "Paradise"