Pick of the Week: Fed Ex St. Jude Classic

Hello once again to everyone, and welcome to another edition of Pick of the Week, brought to you by Hack Till We Die. This week, the TOUR heads to Memphis for one final tune up before the 2nd major of the year- the US Open at Congressional. Playing the week before a major championship has been hotly contested by many players. Some prefer to take the week off the rest their games before the big challenge ahead, while others try to get a good tune up right before the important week. Each strategy shows moderate success, and it really just does depend on preference. And it's not like none of the top players buck the trend- some liket o play the week before and others don't. This week I'm going to go with an "elite" player of sorts. I'm choosing the experienced Englishman Lee Westwood. Currently at No. 2 in the world, Lee has been in good form lately and would like to get his game ready for next week and try to regain the #1 spot over Luke Donald sometime soon. This week might help him on his way to both of those goals. Lee doesn't play much in the States anymore because he isn't exempt, so it's always a treat to see him play on the PGA TOUR. He is a extremely good ball striker of the ball, and that is demanded at this tournament. Oh and also- he won this tournament in a play-off last year- no big deal or anything. Hopefully he can repeat as a champion and help me tie the year long competition with fellow blogger Bernardo G. Alright, until next time, I will see you all later.

Here is Lee's interview before action gets underway:

Already used- Phil Mickelson, Geoff Ogilvy, Rickie Fowler, Aaron Baddeley, Hunter Mahan, Ricky Barnes, Luke Donald, Justin Rose, Anthony Kim, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Steve Stricker

photo courtesy of: uk.reuters

Refined with Age.

Steve and Jack 

Hello everyone. This week the PGA Tour played out for an exciting finish at the  Memorial  Tournament, hosted by none other than the legend Jack Nicklaus. For those loyal golfers out there, you can understand the great feeling of observing a fellow golfer win after experiencing extreme low points in their career, as a golf professional. That was the story for Steve Stricker, Stricker has been back on the scene for a few years now, but once only relied on sponsor’s exemptions. Stricker was certainly firing on all cylinders this week, the only player in the field to produce four rounds in the 60s, including a hole-in-one during the 2nd round, on the par 3 #8. Stricker was tied for first in eagles, tied for third in driving accuracy, and tied for third in putts per round. Revealing that it was no surprise, that Stricker would come out a champion on Sunday. Stricker started his final round with a 3 shot lead and an impressive front nine 30, 6-under par for nine holes,  nearly perfect golf if not better. Clutch par saves on #12 from the bunker and mid-range putt on #16, displaying the great talent and urge to win his 10th professional title. Jack Nicklaus was there to greet Sticker on the 18th hole, memorable moment. Tied for 2nd was Matt Kuchar, also firing a hot front nine 31, Kuchar would produce a bogey free 65, allowing to obtain the T2. Brandt Jobe played well this week, searching for his first win on tour. Jobe  fired a final round 65 leaving him one shot behind Stricker. Overall this was a great event, with many great players like world #1 Luke Donald. 

Besides the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance, this was a sports filled weekend. Rafael Nadal, king of the clay, defeating Roger Federer in four sets, for his sixth French Open title. Mexico defeating El Salvador 5-0, in the first round of matches for the Gold Cup.  

Round 4 Recap:


French Open Final:


Mexico Vs. El Salvador: Gold Cup 2011

Gearing Up

Hello there golf fans, and welcome to a special blog from us. In this blog, I won't be talking about golf or anything related to it really; I'm going to write about a different sport. More specifically, soccer (or what the rest of the world calls football). I'm gonna be profiling the team you see in the photo above- the United States Men's National Team, or the USMNT for short. Since their memorable run in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa last year which included a Hollywood-style ending in their game against Algeria, a win in a group that included soccer powerhouses England, and a near run to the quarterfinals, the hype for this team has begun to snowball. They followed up that World Cup performance with a solid tie against a strong Argentinian team that included the likes of the World's best footballer in Leo Messi. This upcoming Saturday, they host World Cup champions spain in Massachusetts and then begin their 2011 Gold Cup prospects on Tuesday against Canada. In this post I'm gonna talk about their chances against the WC champs, and how they might be able to do in the Gold Cup. (Slight Warning: I have only been seriously watching soccer for a little over a year now, and I mean serious as watching it as much as I watch golf or football when I have the chance. So, my knowledge of this game is still growing and I might not be as fluid in my writing as if I were to write about golf or the NFL. Oh well, here goes...)

On Saturday, June 4, 2011 in Foxborough, Massachusetts (where the New England Patriots play) the USMNT hosts "La Roja"for a high profile international friendly. It will be a good tune up and test for the Yanks, as they see where they stack up against them this year. The last time they faced was in the 2009 Confederations Cup, and quite a shocker went down there. Many people were surprised by the result, and it showed how the USA does show the grit to be able to compete with the best out there. They are set for kick off at about 1:30 PST, with the US wearing their new Red kits and the Spaniards wearing white kits with red trim on them. The weather is set to be at about a nice 70 degrees and sunny, which should make for excellent conditions. As far as the line-ups go, both teams look to be fielding their "A" squads (Spain will be without Carles Puyol to injury, and their midfield madman Xavi is not listed for this game as well). All in all, I believe this game will come down to how the US can crack the amount possession Spain usually has. They will also need to create scoring opportunities and not start slow like they have shown for the past year now. If they can salvage at least a tie against the best team in the world, then I believe they can ride this confidence into the Gold Cup. If not, then at least they'll know their true weaknesses.

After this encounter things become a bit more high-stakes, as the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup begins. The US starts off things with 2000 Gold Cup champion Canada on June 7th. Canada, Panama, and Guadeloupe are all in the same "Group C" with the US. And although these teams aren't necessarily considered big time threats, you never know what may happen. For the Yanks to have a successful Group stage, they have to do as Clint Dempsey said, which was "start fast and score a lot of goals". This theme is going to have to stick with them if they want to go far in this tournament this is because besides the hybrid midfielders/forwards that Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan are, the attacking options are pretty slim for the States. Jozy Altidore is talented, but hasn't shown much for the national team lately. Juan Agudelo has been shining, but is still very young. Freddy Adu has been out of the spotlight for many years now, and its a question as to whether how he'll be able to contribute or not. So, although the defense can get a bit shaky at times, big time goalkeeper Tim Howard usually can hold down the fort pretty well. It will just come down to the ability to score goals from the forwards/strikers. If they can score, then the United States should be able to make it far into the tournament, setting up a possible showdown with border rival Mexico.

The Memorial

Justin Rose at the 2011 Masters 

Its that time of the week, HTWD pick of the week face-off. This week the PGA Tour visits Murifield Village Golf Club for the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. My pick of the week is none other than  Justin Rose, the defending champion this week. Rose has had three top 10s, eight top 25s, and currently within the top 30 in the FedEX Cup. Murifeild Golf club tends to fit well with Rose’s game, producing a win and multiple top 10 finishes. The buzz this week, Luke Donald is World #1. Before his win at the WGC, Donald was ranked 10th in the World , surprising since he has less than 10 wins combined on both the PGA Tour and European Tour. The key to the Donald’s success is his consistent play, holding a top 10 position  in the World Rankings, for over a 100 weeks at one point. The englishmen would become the new face of golf with his biggest win  in February, defeating Martin Kaymer, during the final round of matchplay. After his win at the WGC- Accenture Match Play Championship, Donald has been on a hot streak, never finishing outside the top 10 on the PGA Tour. 

       The Honda Classic                       T10

WGC-Cadillac Championship            T6

Masters Tournament                       T4

The Heritage                                   2

Zurich Classic                                T8

The PLAYERS                               T4

Now this weekend defeating Lee Westwood in a playoff at the European Tours’s premier event, BMW Championship. Westwood came in as World #1. Some have commented on Donald being a selective player, lacking distance hinders the englishmen to over power long courses. Donald is only the third englishman to achieve this #1 ranking. Interesting that only three europeans have obtained the #1 position within this year. Who do you believe will have the longest streak as #1? He certainly deserves the top spot with such great play, revealing that anyone within  the top 10 world ranking, can reach the #1 position with a great season. 

World #1 Bag

Note: So far the golfers I have used this year are-  Bubba Watson, Martin Kaymer, Tiger Woods, Matt Kuchar, Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Luke Donald, Rory Mcllroy, Stewart Cink, and Dustin Johnson   

Pick of the Week: The Memorial

Hello all, and welcome to another edition of Pick of the Week. This week the PGA TOUR heads to Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio for The Memorial tournament. This tournament is one of the more well known events on tour; as it's hosted by the greatest golfer that's ever played- Jack Nicklaus. Stop and think about this- the last 3 weeks we've had the Crowne Plaza Invitational (a tribute to Ben Hogan), the HP Byron Nelson (a tribute to Byron Nelson himself), and we have The Memorial this week (the Golden Bear's event). Some of the greatest golfers to ever play, in back to back to back weeks. That is just plain awesome. Many high profile golfers come here to compete and try to win his event. This tournament, besides the majors, is usually one of the more interesting ones to watch because of the high profile names that come over to play. It also usually requires a lot of experience to win at this course. That's why I'm choosing Steve Stricker this week to grab me another point. When you think of consistent golfers, this guy has to come to mind. In fact, in 9 events this year, he's only finished out of the top 20 two times. He also had a tie for 17th here last year, so he knows this course fairly well. Hopefully he can snatch me a point and get me to 1 within Bernardo, I need to keep riding my momentum from last week. This is because my pick of Jason Day had 2 subpar days in the beginning of the HP Byron Nelson Championship last week, but finshed on the weekend extremely well for a top 5 finish, which allowed him to catch and overpass Bernardo's choice of American Dustin Johnson.

Here is a video, courtesy of pgatour.com on what to expect this week:



Already used- Phil Mickelson, Geoff Ogilvy, Rickie Fowler, Aaron Baddeley, Hunter Mahan, Ricky Barnes, Luke Donald, Justin Rose, Anthony Kim, Adam Scott, Jason Day


photo courtesy: sportinglife