Teeing off: Should more tournaments replicate Scottsdale's 16th?

Welcome to Teeing Off, where Devil Ball editor Jay Busbee and head writer Shane Bacon take a day's topic and smack it all over the course. Suggest a future topic by writing jay.busbee@yahoo.com, or hit us on Twitter at @jaybusbee and @shanebacon.

Today we discuss the Waste Managment Open, the party in the desert, and the infamous 16th hole. Should more tournaments try to replicate the party atmosphere to get the event more notoriety? We dive in, discuss, and try not to yell at any golfers. 

Bacon: Should the PGA Tour have more holes like the 16th at TPC Scottsdale? Actually, I don't think so. It's a once-a-year experience for the PGA Tour members, who are used to serene landscapes and quiet patrons. Now, they get drunk college kids that boo you if you miss the green. It might be too much if it happened a few times a year, but this week, at the Waste Management, it's a great experience, and loosens everybody up.

Busbee: Loosens them up? What the hell do they have to be tight about? Most of these cats have only played one or two tournaments this year, and those in Hawaii and San Diego. Bunch of nancies. We need to put this tournament, or an experience like it, right after Augusta and the U.S. Open. Everybody's going to be like jelly then. But more to the point: This is a golf experience unlike any other, to coin a phrase. But why not replicate this in a couple other locales around the country? Not every tournament, certainly, but why not have a couple places on tour where the experience is more like the Ryder Cup than the buttoned-down Anonymous Insurance Company Classic?

Bacon: Well, the Buick Open did this on the 17th hole, may it rest in peace, and it seemed to be a success. I actually love the idea of having this the week after the Masters, at a lowly event that would get people talking. Maybe let the fans pick the Sunday pins after a few drinks. Your point about the Ryder Cup might actually go a little deeper ... if the PGA Tour had more raucous crowds during the season, it might help the American teams with the atmosphere when they play in the event.

Heck, can we get Justin Leonard to run out in everyone's line before they have to putt? I think this might work!

Busbee: As long as it's just Justin, and not a collection of frat dudes spelling out BUBBAROX, I'm cool with that. There's got to be some kind of middle ground here between the borderline anarchy of the Waste Management Open and the private-school cafeteria lockdown of most tournaments. I'm for erring in favor of more freedom; I think the atmosphere at the 16th is exactly what you want at more tournaments. It's probably impossible to replicate that success, but that doesn't mean the tour shouldn't try.

Bacon: Maybe you're right, but I feel like adding it to different tournaments would make the Waste Management less significant. It's just a perfect storm here. One of the biggest party schools in the world, plus good weather, plus a town like Scottsdale that is infamous for having a good time, plus a fun vacation for people snowed in during the winter ... it's just perfect. But I think if some other places followed suit, it would bring out a different group of fans to the game, much like we saw when Happy Gilmore was playing solid golf.

Now, your thoughts? Should more golf tournaments turn to a fun hole to make it more interesting for the fans? 

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Secondhand Eight: Calvillo's recovery and coaching changes

Welcome to Secondhand Eight, 55-Yard Line's regular roundup of the top CFL stories from around the web! This week's edition starts in Montreal, where they've gone from thinking about free agents and potentially departing head coaches to quarterback surgeries and potentially departing coordinators...

Montreal: There's good news on the Alouettes' front this week, with quarterback Anthony Calvillo's surgery to remove a potentially cancerous throat lesion reportedly going well. However, it's far from certain that Calvillo (pictured at right with head coach Marc Trestman) will in fact return to the Alouettes this coming season; his recovery has just begun, results on exactly what was wrong with him haven't come out yet and he doesn't currently have a contract.

Calvillo may be 38, but he proved this year that he's still one of the best players in the league (even if he lost the Most Outstanding Player title to Henry Burris), and it would seem highly unlikely that the Alouettes wouldn't do everything in their power to keep him (given that Adrian McPherson, Chris Leak and Ricky Santos aren't exactly the most proven backups). A lot may depend on how long Calvillo wants to keep playing for, though. It looks like the Alouettes might have to find a new offensive coordinator as well, as Herb Zurkowsky reports that Scott Milanovich is a candidate for the head-coaching job in Regina.

Toronto: The Argonauts are facing potential departures of their own, with reigning special teams player of the year Chad Owens apparently deciding to test the NFL waters. It isn't a sure thing that he'll head south, as Owens still seems quite open to the prospect of playing in Toronto again next year and the CFL-to-NFL transition goes quite poorly in the majority of cases. There's also the spectre of labour doom hanging over the 2011 NFL season, so CFL players may be more tempted to remain north of the border than in previous years. Still, with all that said, the NFL quite often has the money to make players offers they can't refuse. We'll see if that's the case in the Owens situation or not.

Hamilton: There's apparently next-to-nothing happening on the Tiger-Cats' front, but there may be some intriguing stories there in weeks to come. The most interesting potential free agent they have might be Canadian receiver and former Regina Ram Chris Bauman. Dave Naylor writes that Bauman "had the best stretch of his career during the final few week of the 2010 season and will look to cash in". Hamilton's got a pretty deep receiving corps, so they may have to make some tough decisions on just how hard they'll pursue Bauman. There's also still a lot of uncertainty around their stadium proposal. In other Tiger-Cats' news, former offensive coordinator Mike Gibson has been hired as the Stampeders' new running back coach; he should provide some veteran experience on Dave Dickenson's offensive staff.

Winnipeg: The big Blue Bombers news is that they finally have a stadium deal in place. Other than that, Kirk Penton has a nice piece on Shawn Gallant retiring to join the Winnipeg police. There isn't much other news on their roster front, but linebackers Joe Lobendahn and Obby Khan are going to be crucial free-agency names to watch. They're also going to have to find a new defensive coordinator to replace new Edmonton head coach Kavis Reed, who Doug Brown has high praise for.

Saskatchewan: The Roughriders' coaching search continues, but GM Brendan Taman says they're "getting there". Milanovich is an intriguing addition to that mix, and one who's had more recent success than any of the other prominent candidates; Doug Berry's offence struggled down the stretch, Richie Hall just got fired and Greg Marshall's Hamilton defence was good but not great. By contrast, Milanovich's offence has taken the Alouettes to three straight Grey Cups and won the last two. It's impossible to separate how much of that is him, how much is Marc Trestman and how much is Anthony Calvillo, and we don't know how he'd do as a head coach, but that's still a pretty good resume.Whoever inherits the Riders' job won't have all rainbows and sunshine to deal with, though, as they could lose some top talent to free agency and the NFL, including Andy Fantuz.

Calgary: The Stampeders may have lost running backs coach Rick Campbell to Edmonton, but Mike Gibson is a pretty solid replacement. He presided over a good Hamilton offence this year and should add to the mix of great offensive minds in Calgary. Apart from his hire, it seems things are pretty much steady-as-she-goes on the Calgary front for now, but they have locked up Juwan Simpson, Brandon Smith and Keon Raymond. The interesting free agency situation to follow there is with all-star cornerbacks Brandon Browner and Dwight Anderson.

Edmonton: There have been plenty of moves on the Eskimos' front, most noticeably with the hirings of Marcus Crandell as offensive coordinator and Steff Kruck as receivers coach. Crandell hasn't been an OC before, but did solid work as Saskatchewan's quarterbacks coach these past couple of seasons. Kruck's spent five years with B.C., most recently as their quarterbacks coach, but he also served as co-offensive coordinator with Dan Dorazio for a time. The Eskimos are also keeping Mark Nelson on as linebackers coach. The team made more changes on the personnel front this week, releasing Jason Goss, Kerry Joseph, Derick Armstrong, Skyler Green and Randy Drew.

B.C.: There isn't too much happening out on the West Coast, but Mike Beamish has an interesting note; National Football Post draft guru Wes Bunting is quite high on the NFL prospects of Baylor offensive tackle Danny Watkins, who B.C. selected fourth overall in last year's CFL draft. (Differences in draft eligibility procedures are why Watkins is eligible for this year's NFL draft but last year's CFL draft). If he winds up getting drafted or signed as an undrafted free agent, the Lions may not be able to count on him for offensive line help next year. They could be players in the CFL free agency market, though, as they only have two potential free agents of their own; Jarious Jackson is expected to be brought back, while Tad Crawford may test the free agency waters.

Thanks for reading 55-Yard Line! Remember to get in touch with me by e-mail or Twitter if you have tips, questions or comments.

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Hamilton stadium soap opera switches to Burlington

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats' stadium situation has had more twists than a bad daytime soap opera so far, so we're going to describe it in that style. Previously on The Days of The Week, city council originally voted in favour of a West Harbour location opposed by the Tiger-Cats, owner Bob Young pulled out of discussions and threatened to leave town, negotiations over East Mountain and Innovation Park compromise sites collapsed, a promising railyard plan was shot down by costs, a local election may have been influenced by the stadium debate and council decided last week to kill the last Hamilton site both sides were looking at in Confederation Park. Now, it looks like the focus has shifted elsewhere. After being spurned by Hamilton council, the Tiger-Cats are on the rebound and are now trying to land a stadium in nearby Burlington near the GO Train line (pictured above).

Burlington is a smaller city (population of 164,415 in 2006) than Hamilton (504,559), so the municipal government probably doesn't have the funds to contribute the $45 million Hamilton's council was going to put forward. However, there's apparently $30 million in private investment lined up for a Burlington site, and vast tracts of prime land are available as well, making Burlington a more attractive proposition. That alone would cover much of the funding that would have come from Hamilton, and it's possible the Tiger-Cats could get other benefits from the municipality (in-kind services, special taxes, et cetera). The presence of that private investment also speaks volumes, as none of the sites considered in Hamilton drew much interest from the private sector.

The Burlington proposal seems quite far-advanced for something that's just popped out of the woodwork, and that's for good reason. Discussions on the file have been apparently ongoing since the summer, which makes sense; there were plenty of times, particularly in late August, when it didn't look like there was any hope of a Hamilton stadium solution for the Tiger-Cats. That probably isn't going to make Hamilton council all that happy, though, as it looks like the Tiger-Cats were going around behind their backs. Relations on the Hamilton front had grown more optimistic in recent months, but the demise of the Confederation Park plan has apparently prompted the team to go back to looking at other options outside the city.

This seems like a reasonably logical move on the team's part. For one thing, the deadline to have a stadium built with PanAm Games money (a sizable portion of the funding that's already on the table) is the fast-approaching Feb. 1. That funding comes to about $70 to $100 million (depending on the specifications of the stadium). Ian Troop, who's the CEO of the 2015 Games, told The Hamilton Spectator's Ken Peters and John Kernaghan that the funding won't be shifted to Burlington unless there is a firm, solid proposal in place by that point. It's important to keep in mind that the Games organizing committee doesn't necessarily need the CFL, as a 5,000 seat stadium in any number of neighbouring municipalities is sufficient for their needs. A bigger facility that could have the Tiger-Cats as a long-term tenant would make a lot of sense for all parties involved, but it isn't a requirement. Thus, the Tiger-Cats needed to do something fast to try and still capitalize on the PanAm funding, and with things stalled in Hamilton, Burlington becomes an attractive suitor.

Burlington, and particularly the Aldershot area, is also a compelling suburban site for this project. There are often some significant issues with putting stadiums way out in the suburbs, as those stadiums often make arriving by transit difficult and lack amenities in the area (see Ottawa's Scotiabank Place for a perfect example), but Aldershot has a lot going for it. For one thing, it's right on the main GO Train Lakeshore West line, making it easily accessible from both Toronto and Hamilton by transit. It's also near Highways 403 and 407, allowing access by car. It's barely outside Hamilton (about 20 kilometres), and the team would apparently keep the Hamilton Tiger-Cats name. Hamilton mayor Bob Bratina would still like to see the team stay in his municipality, but he said this is one of the best potential options if they are going to leave thanks to the proximity and accessibility:

"There's an emotional thing, having grown up in the east end where we sort of thought we owned the Tiger-Cats and that hurts to think of the team moving across a boundary into another jurisdiction, but ... this is not the Brooklyn Dodgers moving to Los Angeles," Bratina said. "It's just as easy for me to go from my house to Aldershot as it is to go from my house to Confederation Park and maybe even Ivor Wynne"

That's the important thing to keep in mind here. If this deal comes together, there are significant advantages for the team and the league. The Tiger-Cats get their new stadium, close to the transit routes they wanted, and they stay close to the majority of their fans. At the same time, the CFL doesn't have to deal with any real relocation issues, as the team's only moving a few minutes away across a municipal border, not to Moncton or Quebec City. Tiger-Cats fans in Hamilton proper might have to travel a little farther to go to games, and there probably won't be much around the stadium at first, but at least they don't have to really lose their team. This might even work out for Hamilton city council; although there's some embarrassment in having a team leave town, they don't have to shell out $45 million to keep the Tiger-Cats and they aren't too likely to be on the hook in the future if the team no longer plays within their municipal boundaries.

However, when you consider the way things have changed on this project over the last several months, it would be foolhardy to assume that this is how it's going to be resolved. There's still lots of time for other things to come up, and we might yet see more cliffhangers and dramatic twists. WILL Hamilton council reconsider their opposition to Confederation Park in an attempt to lure the Tiger-Cats back? ARE there other suburban municipalities that will try to horn in on the action? WHAT will the PanAm Games committee eventually decide? WHERE is all the money going to come from? Find out next time on The Days Of The Week!

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Green wins back Aussie fans by cruising past Flores

Danny Green took on villain status for something that was beyond his control. Australia was in an uproar back in July after Green took out Paul Briggs in just 29 seconds. Briggs appeared to give zero effort and went down for the count after getting grazed on the head. Fans alleged the fix and the fight warranted a full-scale investigation. Briggs was eventually fined $75,000.

Green did his part today to erase the memories of that debacle by taking out American B.J. Flores. Green retained his IBO cruiserweight title via unanimous decision, 118-111, 118-110 and 117-112, at Challenge Stadium in Mt. Claremont, Western Australia. 

"This one's for all of you," Green (31-3, 27 KOs) told the 5000-strong crowd after the fight. "Every person that's given me a pat on the back after the last affair I can't thank you enough. You don't know how much it means to me. I love all of you guys."

Before the fight, there was still plenty of doubt swirling around Green. Sports books actually limited betting options for the fight. 

Flores, who also serves as an analyst on ESPN's boxing coverage, is a decent name but isn't very respected in the rankings.

He was only ranked by two-of-four major sanctioning bodies and FightNews.com didn't have Flores (24-1-1, KOs) in its top 16 at cruiserweight. Green is No. 3 on that list. Now it's time for the 37-year-old Aussie to take on some top notch competition.

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Boxing fans get mini-tournaments this weekend on HBO and Showtime

These are the kind of weekends that can bring boxing back. Putting on quality fights and avoiding gaps on the schedule is huge. HBO is going to focus on the 140 pounders while Showtime has the smaller guys down at 118. Four greats fights and no pay-per-view! 

The Showtime bantamweight card (9 p.m. ET/PT) should produce fireworks in Tacoma, Wash., and it features fighters with a combined record of 102-4-3.

Abnes Mares battles Vic Darchinyan while Joseph Agbeko will try to grab Yonny Perez's IBF title. The winners will face off in 2011. 

Darchinyan's promoter almost wishes he could just be a fan for the night.

"Thanks to the fighters. Thanks to Showtime. Actually they should be thanking us for bringing them two great fights and four great fighters," Shaw said. "The television crowd will be rewarded on Saturday. I wish I didn't have any fighters in the ring so I could just watch on my couch and enjoy."

The Amir Khan-Marcos Maidana fight headlines the HBO card (9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. PT), with the strong possibility the victor will face the winner of the undercard fight, Victor Ortiz versus Lamont Peterson. Loser vs. loser would be great too.

But unlike the Showtime set up, this isn't officially tournament. 

Tim Smith of the N.Y. Daily News says the junior welterweight division could be the future of boxing:

For much of this year everybody in boxing has been transfixed on the two boxers at the top of the sport – Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, Jr.  Bubbling underneath the surface has been the action in the 140-pound division – the most competitive and talent-laden in the sport.

With Khan and Maidana fighting on Saturday night and Bradley and Alexander, the two best in the division, fighting a month later, the 140-pound pot is about to reach a boil. And the sport of boxing will be better for it.

Bradley and Alexander square off in Detroit on Jan. 29. Golden Boy Promotion has to be rooting hard for Khan, but he's far from a lock to win the fight. The power-punching Maidana (29-1, 27 KOs) is super confident.

"This is a very important fight for my career," Maidana said through a translator. "But not the hardest."

Khan gives Maidana respect, but thinks people are sleeping on his power.

"Maidana is a big threat in the division and I only want to fight the best," Khan said. "When they put this together, it was said to be a ‘boxer’ vs a ‘fighter’… But I really think that I come into this fight as a puncher. People are taking my power away saying that Maidana is the bigger puncher. We’ll let everyone think that."

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Bengals Fire OC Bob Bratkowski

Filed under: Bengals, AFC North, NFL Coaching

CINCINNATI (AP) -- The Bengals fired longtime offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski on Monday, the first change in their coaching staff following a 4-12 season that is still reverberating through the franchise.

The move came two weeks after quarterback Carson Palmer asked to be traded because of the franchise's futility. The Bengals have only two winning records in the last 20 years.

"I want to thank Bob for his role in helping us win two division championships," coach Marvin Lewis said. "But after reviewing our season in depth, we've decided it's best for the team to make this change at this time."

Bratkowski has been the offensive coordinator since 2001, two years before Lewis took over as coach. The Bengals reached the playoffs in 2005 with a balanced offense that featured Palmer and a core of young receivers. Knee and elbow injuries limited Palmer over the next few years.

 

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Mack Brown: 'I'm Back in the Game'

Filed under: Texas, Big 12, Coaching

Texas coach Mack Brown says he "back in the game" and the entire Longhorns program is re-energized after a dismal 2010 and a tumultuous two months of hiring an almost entirely new staff.

After a 5-7 season and missing a bowl game, Brown hired six new assistant coaches, including new offensive and defensive coordinators. He also did a confidential survey of all his players and what they thought was wrong with the team.

Brown said Monday the most important part was his self-evaluation. He believes he never got over the disappointment of losing the 2009 national championship game and it affected the entire season.

Brown says every player and coach has "clean slate" going forward.

 

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