As Bryson DeChambeau strolled up the 18th fairway at Bay Hill with a one-shot lead over Lee Westwood, NBC's coverage highlighted a letter the late Arnold Palmer wrote to DeChambeau shortly before he died.
A short letter but one that one of the world's best players says meant so much and something he will never forget. Palmer complimented DeChambeau's game and wished him luck. In the clip played by NBC, Bryson says he has that letter framed at his home and he talked about how much the man we all call "Mr. Palmer" has meant to him,
When the Paul Bunyon of the PGA Tour made a five-foot putt to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational he told NBC's Steve Sands that he was about to cry because winning Mr. Palmer's tournament was something he dreamed about.
DeChambeau is going to win many golf tournaments and some of those wins will be majors, but his win was a reminder that today's younger players know who Arnold Palmer was and still is in many ways today. His legacy lives on. The way he conducted himself. The way he impacted others.
Arnie would have been proud of old Bay Hill on Sunday. Only three players broke par and his well placed bunkers and trees challenged some of the world's best that led to drama on the 72nd hole.
Lee Westwood, age 47, was on the heels of the DeChambeau. While Rory McIlroy and Jordan Speith faded, Westwood, who was the 2020 European Tour Player of the Year, forced DeChambeau to make a tough five-foot putt to close out the win.
DeChambeau wowed the Bay Hill crowd with his blasting drives, including the challenging par-5 6th hole, where humans don't accept the challenge of hitting over the water like Bryson did.
This is his 10th career win. He won the US Open last September and now has won Jack's event at the Memorial and Mr. Palmer's invitational at Bay Hill.
The Tour will never find another Tiger. DeChambeau is fun to watch. He's different. He shows emotion. He's really good and Arnie would be proud to call him champion of his event...
On August 23, 2000 the Brooklyn Nets were eliminated from the NBA Playoffs in the fourth game of the opening round against the Toronto Raptors. They gave up 150 points, 77 in the first half and 73 in the second half.
This was the Nets' starting lineup: Garrett Temple, Caris Levert, Tyler Johnson, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Jarrett Allen.
Jacque Vaughn was the interim coach for the Nets and it would be his last game as coach.
When the Nets return from the all-star break the lineup may look like this: Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden, DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin.
Durant may not be back after the break and Griffin is likely to come off the bench. Griffin gave up $13M in his buyout from the Pistons to become a free agent and bounced to Brooklyn to join the all-star filled roster with a chance to win the title.
I got no problem with Griffin choosing the Nets. He has the right to join any team he wants and he's going to a place where he can win a ring. Just don't tell me these guys want to win for Brooklyn. They want to win for themselves. None of the Big 3, 4 or whatever number the Nets will use actually care about doing it for the city. But it does show you how fast a team can change. It's just a group of guys who need similar clothing to distinguish themselves from other teams...
This just in: Steph Curry can shoot...
It appears Orlando City majority owner Flavio Augusto da Silva is in discussions with the Wilf family to sell, The Wilf family owns the Minnesota Vikings and has a minority share in the MLS franchise in Nashville. A story in the Athletic says the sale could fetch $450M. The Wilf family has deep pockets, much deeper than Flavio and I am in the group that believes a sale would be in the best interests of all parties. Flavio has been rarely seen and Orlando City fans deserve ownership with money and a passion to compete with anyone in MLS. Phil Rawlins did it on a shoestring budget and Flavio talked a big game and took some chances. Now it's time to Orlando City to make the jump in ownership...
Admit it, you see a bus driver with a short-sleeve white button down shirt and a black tie with black pants, you feel safe getting on the bus...Thanks to the many of you who have shared that we have inspired you to order your deli meats by the slice and not by weight. It means so much...Wife and I watched Coming 2 America. Great? No. Fun? Sure. I didn't hate it. I didn't expect to like it. But what I did enjoy was Eddie Murphy being funny. He is one of the greatest comedians ever and has done some great movies. I liked the first movie and didn't need a sequel. And I don't think there is any chance I would have seen this in a movie theatre in a non-pandemic world. But offered via a streaming service, it was easy to click play. Arsenio Hall has aged well, as has Murphy. Yes, the barbershop scenes are great and there are a few good laughs. Don't expect to laugh non-stop and enjoy the cameos and it's a fun hour and a half...
Final thought: Eddie Murphy was originally going to be in Ghostbusters but he was not available because he was shooting Beverly Hills Cop
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