The past week saw me complete the number one item on my bucket list when I finally made it to The Masters in Augusta, Georgia. The Augusta National Golf Club is even more spectacular than I ever imagined. If you think it’s beautiful on television you should see it in person. Everything is immaculate, and I’m not exaggerating. We arrived a few minutes after 7 AM and didn’t leave the golf course until close to 7 PM. We had a great view of Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player when they walked out for the ceremonial start. For the next several hours I made a point to see as much golf and the course as possible. I got to see several of the big names, including Tiger Woods, and enjoyed all that Augusta National has to offer. I doubt I will ever get back, although I will continue to try for tickets in the annual lottery. Even if I never go again, I will always cherish this incredible experience.
• I can only imagine how much money is spent each day at The Masters. As advertised, concessions are incredibly reasonable. The lines are always long, but they do move quickly and efficiently. Same for the merchandise building. It’s always packed. I read somewhere that they estimate the merchandise building alone generates thirty million dollars during Masters week. I think that number is actually quite more. Most people who enter, myself included, have a list of what they want to buy and don’t even worry about the total until they see their receipt. I spent a lot, but it was worth it.
• You can stick a fork in the Penguins. They’re done. My feeling entering the Stanley Cup playoffs was that they Pens would probably go two rounds, but that’s about it. I thought they would be tested by the young New York Islanders, but I never expected them to be down three games to none. I just don’t see the Pens winning the next four straight, even though I remember the Islanders rallying to beat the Penguins four straight in the 1975 playoffs. There needs to be some serious soul searching in the Pens’ locker room, because this is downright embarrassing.
• It was a 500 week for the Pirates, which isn’t a bad road trip. They were downright awful in the Cubs’ home opener in Chicago, yet won two out of three in Washington. They should have swept the Nationals, but once again reliever Richard Rodriguez blew another save. The Pirates are 8-6 but could easily have three more wins if not for their bullpen. Chris Archer has been great, but has seen two great efforts wasted by the bullpen. If the guys in the pen had done their jobs to date the Pirates would be in first place in the NL Central.
• Last Sunday’s game between the Pirates and Reds got testy when Bucco pitcher Chris Archer threw behind a batter. He was not thrown out of the game. Archer was suspended five games by MLB, however. I admit I was a little surprised he received a suspension. It’s not like he drilled a guy. He was obviously sending the Reds a message, but if he wanted to hit him I’m pretty sure Archer could have done so easily. The five game suspension for a pitcher is also kind of a joke. That’s like missing one start. The Pirates and Reds don’t play again until August. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s payback from Cincinnati during that series. If so, will MLB hand out more suspensions?
• Pirates’ shortstop Kevin Newman had a really bad day in Chicago when he committed three errors in the same inning. The miscues led to six unearned runs, which made the situation even worse. There are a lot of people, myself included, who have serious questions about Newman. I’m just not sure if he can hit at the major league level. I wasn’t worried about his defense coming into the season. Hopefully it was just a really bad day for the young kid. I doubt he’ll ever have a day like that again, at least I hope not.
• Last Monday night’s NCAA Title Game was pretty bad until late in the game when Virginia and Texas Tech both came to life and we had another down to the wire thriller. I still can’t believe Tech didn’t score a basket for the first seven and a half minutes of the game. I’ve never seen a team start so cold. And yet they were there late in the game when it counted. I thought Texas Tech had the Cavs in the final seconds, but once again Virginia found a way to survive. When the game went to overtime I thought Virginia would win it, and they did. It wasn’t one of the greatest NCAA championship games, but the end was pretty good.
• I’ll never understand why teams up three points in the final seconds don’t foul the other team instead of letting them even attempt a three pointer. I’m not saying that Texas Tech would have beaten Virginia in regulation had they fouled them, but I would have liked their chances had they done so. By not doing so, Virginia was able to throw up a three and it went in, which eventually sent the game to overtime. Texas Tech looked shocked and defeated when that happened, and it showed in the OT. Chris Beard is a heck of a coach, but I think he blew it by not fouling. I’d love to know if he thinks he blew it, because I think he did.
• Antonio Brown just can’t go away. Now Mr. Big Chest has ripped former receiver JuJu Smith Schuster, claiming his fumble in New Orleans cost the Steelers their season. I don’t know where to start with this latest cheap shot. The Steelers may not be as good next year at wide receiver with the loss of Brown. They’ll be much better off as a team without that narcissistic idiot in their locker room. Brown hasn’t just burned the many bridges in Pittsburgh, he’s blown them up. I hope he’s not dumb enough to one day ask to retire as a Steeler or be elected to the Steelers Ring of Honor. I know what I’d tell him if he made either request, and it’s not appropriate for this blog. I’m guessing his former teammates feel the same way.
