Around the Horn

Chad Johnson has just taken the cake and we all must bow to him...He has reportedly legally changed his surname to 'Ocho Cinco'
This may not be "He Hate Me" but it is close. Even Manny being Manny thinks this is over the top.
From Sportsnet.ca (There was a basketball player in the 80’s - World B. Free was an NBA player in the 1970s and 80s who changed his name from Lloyd Bernard Free in 1980. It’s long been considered the benchmark for novelty names.)...until now.

Kicker Jay Feely was cut by the Kansas City Chiefs, the after signing a one-year deal.
Almost as bad as the time that Rob Ducey was essentially traded for himself...not a proud moment for either guy.

When the news came out about Russia and Georgia how many people thought that it was the first out of conference game for the Bulldogs vs the New Red Army?

Michael Phelps had better sign up fast and get in the World Series of Poker if he hopes to keep his streak of SI covers intact. I don’t think that appearances on the VMA’s and SNL are enough to do it.

Michael Strahan decided to stay retired.
$8M to play and get hit and banged up every week or $2M to sit at Fox in a fancy chair, even with his divorce settlement I think he made a smart choice.

Shawne Merriman has decided to play this year with a tear in both his posterior cruciate ligament and lateral collateral ligament.
Is this a case of being: A Warrior? A Great Teammate? Loyal? OR Stupid, Selfish, or just plain not bright? Shut it down and get the surgery.

The LPGA is adopting a policy that players must be able to speak conversational English- at first glance this is just wrong and unjust.
On second glance it comes down to $$$......no English = no schmoozing of sponsors = no sponsors = no tournament= NO TOUR

Which event was more choreographed The Opening and Closing Ceremony at the 2008 Beijing Olympics or Barak Obama’s acceptance speech at Mile High Stadium in Denver last night?

In a report by La Presse Friday, the Montreal Canadiens plan to retire jersey No. 33 of goaltender Patrick Roy in November.
I just hope that his acceptance speech in front of the crowd goes better then the last speech that he had as a Canadien which was one-on-one with then president of the team Ronald Corey during a game which ended with him in Colorado (...stupid Mario Trembley).

LPGA CN Canadian Open

On Thursday I had the opportunity to go to the first round of the CN Canadian Open held at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club an event that was both historic and of great interest to me. It was the 100th anniversary of the course, possibly one of or more likely the last professional tournament that Hall of Fame golfer and probably the greatest women’s golfer of all time Annika Sorenstam, plus just the opportunity to be there in person and see a live golf event firsthand. Though no longer a major many still feel that it is and the is why they managed to get some 48 of the top 50 players on tour into the field.

The event itself was first class all the way, well organized, good course and very accessible, great field and the fact that they managed to raise over $1 million for CHEO was just a great feat.

From a more selfish or perhaps a more personal angle, getting to go that round was awesome. One thing that find very difficult is to get people to go to important events such as this with me which has forced me to miss some things in the past that I would have liked to do and/or taken in but I guess that is out of my control. This time I supposed the stars aligned and I was able to take advantage and I am so glad that I did.
I got to see and follow some great golf from great players and see them all up close and personal.

That is where things hit the pinnacle for me on a personal level. As someone who enjoys acquiring autographs this was the perfect event. From what I hear and what I now know the two best professionals that make themselves the most accessible are NASCAR Drivers and LPGA Players. Big or small those ladies were terrific. I noticed it early with a ton of people walking around with signed hats that had been gotten during the Pro-Am and practice rounds. To make a long story short I managed to get a few ladies autographs some well known and some lower tier but at that point it didn’t matter it was still cool.
The ladies went out of their way to sign as much as they could and when you think of the demand on them it make is all the more impressive with how well they handle it and how good they are.

The two that I would have liked to get but was unable to was World #1 Lorena Ochoa whom I missed just because of bad timing and Michelle Wie who just passed me by but I was unprepared and didn’t get the book and Sharpie out in time…Rookie Mistake.
I was side by side Canadian favourite Lori Kane, Bombshell Natalie Gulbis, and walked with the rising star Paula Creamer. The highlight though for me was the main reason I wanted to go in the first place and that was to see Annika, whom I have loved since I was in high school, before she was the Hall of Fame golfer she is now. I watched her hit puts for maybe 20 minutes after her round. I not only did I manage to get her autograph on the cover of the program but was able to walk with her for a bit.
The beauty of this was there was no velvet rope or fence between us, no imposing police man or bodyguard, just her caddy and maybe 3 other people. She was nice made some small talk and was gracious the full time to all that were there.

So with that, thanks to the Ladies for making my week, month and probably more, and showing how great of people and golfers they truly are!