Fall Jamboree - 2009

Well, my dad and I just finished playing in the City of Wichita Fall Jamboree.  It was a pretty fun tournament.  It is a two-day, two-man tournament.  The first 6 holes each day were best ball, then 6 holes of alternate shot, and 6 holes of scramble.  I didn't play very good on Saturday, but we managed to shoot a 73.  We were tied for first in our flight.  The alternate shot is a tough format.  There is a lot of pressure on each guy to hit a good shot.  We just didn't hit very many greens.  Sunday, I played a lot better.  I relaxed and tried to have a good time.  I hit my driver a lot better and my irons we much more under control.  We hit a few more greens and I actually played the best ball in 1 or 2 over.  We still struggled to make birdies.  We had a couple of bad bogeys.  We managed to finish strong though.  I hit about a 20 foot birdie on 17.  That was our first birdie all day.  Then one 18, I hit an 8 iron to about 2 feet.  We birdied that as well.  We ended up shooting another 73.  We'll take it.  We didn't hang around to see how we finished.  My guess is probably not good enough to win anything, but you never know.  It was a fun weekend anyhow.

Fantasy Football in the 21st Century

The days of posters and stickers for a fantasy football draft are over. Sunday we had our football draft, which was Season IV of our league. (Roman numerals just look more manly). It was the first time we tried something other the old school draft format. I purchased some draft software from Fandraft.com. It allowed me to hook up my laptop to my TV and project the draft throught a digital format. It came with a draft clock for each pick as well as a scrolling ticker, just like ESPN. Sounds pretty cool, huh? But to top it off, we had theme music playing for each person in the league when it was their turn to pick as well as team logos. There were one or two minor glitches, but it went smooth for the first time. I think next year, we will borrow a projector and put it up on the wall as big as we can get it. I think everybody is already trying to come up with a theme song for next years draft.

About the actual draft itself, I employed the same strategy of the last few seasons. One solid running back early and then a bunch of good receivers. I know this isn't the conventional draft strategy, but it has worked okay for me. I got Steven Jackson, Larry Fitzgerald, Reggie Wayne, Antonio Gates, Donovan McNabb, and a few other good players. I think I did fairly well, I can see a WR for RB trade in the near future. Any takers?

Mini Golf and a 75

My wife and I were alone for a few days with our kids staying at my brothers house for a few days, so we decided to go play some miniature golf. I love mini golf. It's been a long time since we have been out and got to relax like that. There were no hole in ones, but a few close calls. I did manage to escape with a victory. After the mini golf, we went to the arcade for a few minutes. The first game we played was some skee ball. What a weird game, but I guess it was fun. But, Pop-A-Shot is were my true passion lies. At one point I even considered making my own pop-a-shot at home. I think my wife would pack up the kids and leave if I tried. I went to the machine with the best score on it. I love a challenge and I'm pretty damn good at it, so what the heck. The high game was 59. The first game I played I scored a 63. That earned me a free game and I scored 63 again. My arm was sore for about 20 minutes. Hey those weren't mini balls, they were like, almost regulation size. It was a fun night and I can't wait to do it again.

Saturday morning I had a tee time with some good buddies. We had a fivesome, which was pretty entertaining. I wasn't sure how things were going to go after I missed a one foot putt on number one for par and bogeyed number two. I turned it on after that. I went 3 over for the rest of the round and shot a 75. That is three shots better than my career low round. I was crazy. I sank two birdie putts that were each about 30-35 feet and another one from about 8 feet. After a round like that, you just want to keep playing. You don't always play good and when you do, you don't want it to end. I can't wait to play again this week.

Busy Times

Well, you've probably noticed I haven't written any new material in a while. It seems like things have gotten even busier than usual. Wednesday night golf league is still going strong. I did have one good week with a 38. My best 9 of the season. Things have been up and down while I'm still trying to master my driver. Those damn things. I can't figure why its so hard to duplicate your swing when you have a good drive, but when things go bad it's real easy to duplicate a bad swing.

I've started going to the gym a couple times a week, for about a month now. In addition to running and working out, I've taken up racquetball. Sort of. My cousin and I have been working out together and one night there was an open court. We gave it a shot and I loved it. A few days later I was online researching the rules of the game. What a cool game. I still don't really know if I'm playing the right way or not, but its fun. I always thought it was similar to tennis, but it's really a completely different type of game. Very interesting.

On to the British Open. I couldn't bear to watch Tom Watson lose it on 18 and then fall apart in the playoff. I hope I'm still competitive at 59. He sure put on a great show all weekend long though. At least Stewart Cink got the Claret Jug instead of Tiger or some other yahoo. Cink has put in his time and been close in several majors. It was good to see him finally win one.

And lastly, the Kansas City Royals. I think its fitting I choose this topic last, since thats where the Royals have gone lately; into last place. I watched them blow the lead in like 4 straight games. They are pathetic. Their bullpen has look attrocious lately. I thought they would actually be competitive this year, but I guess not. It is becoming increasingly more difficult to stomach watching them in the last 3 innings of a game. I hope they trade off about half of the team, rip it apart, and rebuild it. Sign some quality free agents for a change, instead of washed up bargain free agents way past their prime. I'm about to become a Twins fan or something.

Thats all for this time. I am going to try and keep up so everyone out there knows what I'm thinking. Scary thought isn't it?

2009 Tulsa Golf Championship

Thanks to a good buddy of mine, I got to play 54 holes of golf last weekend. It was a long couple of days but well worth it. It was a 2 man tournament and we played 3 different courses in 2 days. We fought through some pretty soggy conditions. Saturday morning we teed off about 7:30 and the people at the course told us they had rain for 21 straight days prior to our tournament. Needless to say they course played a little longer since we didn't get much roll off the box. I played okay in the morning but not so great in the afternoon. I shot 86 and 94. It was hard to get in a rythm, plus I had never played any of the courses. I can use that excuse right? We had a steak dinner after our round on Saturday night. We found out were starting Sunday in first place in our flight. We had a one shot lead over the second place team. It was going to be a showdown on Sunday. We pulled out our matching green Masters polos. I guess you could say we played pretty good on Sunday. We ended up winning our flight by 30 shots. I shot an 80 on Sunday and it really should have been better than that. I'm not complaining though. It was a fun weekend and now I really have the itch to play more golf. Remember, 3 putts are bad.

NBA Playoffs - 2009

What is up the NBA playoffs? It seems like they keep getting longer and longer. Why not cut the NBA regular season in half and let everybody in the playoffs, that way, the playoffs will last 4 months instead of 2. The NBA playoffs are about the only time I ever watch NBA at all. It's just hard to get into it, with so much time between the first round and the finals, even the conference finals. It seems like each series goes on for about 2 weeks, then you have travel days and rest days and TV days to schedule. It is such a joke. I actually like some of the young players around the league, but the season drags on so long, I just about can't handle it. The problem is, I will still watch. I like the drama and the history and waiting for something special to happen. I'm such a sucker.

Spring Football

I've never been a big fan of football in May. What's the point? You are still 5-6 months away from the start of the real season. With all that being said, I did attend the Kansas State spring football game on Saturday. It wasn't a big turnout that you would expect at a place like Ohio State or LSU, but it was okay. It was pretty tough to get super excited about the game, considering nobody wore names on their jerseys and I don't follow KState football much. That and the fact that half of the players switched sides several times during the game. I realize this is just a public scrimmage for fans to get excited about their teams, but why make it public? Keep us in suspense. Plus, do you really want to watch an organized practice for 3 hours? It was only $5, but I don't see what all the fuss is about. We will still hear plenty about our favorite team between now and September. The media coverage is getting pretty out of control. Next thing you know, players will start blogging about playing in spring football games. Geez, what is the world coming to.

Golf Season

It's that time again. My wife may not be too happy about it, but once the weather warms a little, there is nothing like hitting the links. Sorry honey. What's not to love about golf? The sun, the challenge, the wind(here in Kansas), the constant tinkering with your swing, all of it. There is nothing like nailing a perfect drive off the tee box or sinking a birdie putt. There is something magical about hitting the perfect pitch shot right up to the stick. I'm excited just thinking about it. Too bad its raining right now.

The company I work for has a golf league for employees, customers, friends, just about anybody. I have played in it about 10 years in a row. I was even the commissioner of the league last year. It was a lot of fun. I hadn't planned on playing in the league this year, due to the fact that my kids are growing and l love spending time with them as well as the fact that I am going back to school to get my masters right now. But three days before the league was scheduled to start, I got the call that they were a team short and needed somebody. I took one for the team and told them that I could do it. I got a customer to be my partner and we have played two weeks already. It took me a while to get my mindset right after telling myself I wasn't going to play this year and then all of a sudden playing. Don't worry, I'll be okay. I'll let you know how we do as the season continues. But for now, keep your head down and never lay up.

My Georgia Experience

Well, I don't really know where to start. Last week I had one of the most memorable trips I've ever taken. Last Monday, my best friend and I, along with two of his friends flew into Atlanta. We picked up our rental car across the street from Turner Field. I always love seeing where stadiums are located and how they look in person. It was pretty cool. We drove about an hour and got checked into our hotel in Madison, Georgia. The Super 8 was a dump, but who cares. Then we bundled up and went to play golf at The Creek at Hard Labor. What a cool name for a golf course. It was a classic southern course tucked into the woods. There was some old water wheels and creeks that lined one side of the course. They even had a mini waterfall on one hole. It was cold, about 48 and windy. But it was a lot of fun. We split into two-somes and played a scramble. We won by about 9 shots, but after all the sidebets it ended up about even. We had a great time though. That was just the beginning of the experience.

Tuesday morning, we got up at 5:30 and got ready for our drive to Augusta, Georgia. Thats right, we went to a practice round at the Masters. Wow. What a place. It was so much nicer than I ever could have imagined. We parked by a rear entrance which wasn't too crowded. We walked in and spent some money at the gift shop. Some of us spent more than others. The gates opened up at 8:00 and we were ready to walk around.

We walked through the gates and walked through an area, that looked like some kind of garden. It was beautiful. The next thing we knew, we were on the course and staring down Amen Corner. We were staring at one of the most famous places at any sporting venue in the world. It was incredible. The great thing about the practice rounds, is that you can bring your camera. I took advantage of that with almost 300 pictures and videos. We saw quite a few players, including Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Gary Player, Tom Watson, Fuzzy Zoeller, Fred Couples, Greg Norman, Padraig Harrington, and the eventual champ, Angel Cabrera. The course was immaculate and it didn't disappoint. I would go back anytime. It makes things a little different when you watch on TV. You can understand the course better and see how things are layed out. It was something I will never forget. Hopefully I get the chance to go back.

Worst Week Ever

Okay, its not that bad. But seriously, how boring is this week. We have to wait a week for the Final Four, baseball hasn't started yet, the NFL draft isn't here yet, and the NBA and NHL are playing. Is it just me, or is there no hype for the Final Four this year? Maybe I just haven't watched much TV lately, but I haven't heard much about it. The Final Four is this weekened, right? The only college basketball news I've heard all week is about John Calipari going to Kentucky and Tim Floyd possibly going to Arizona. Why do we choose to cover these guys instead of focusing on the things that matter, like, winning Championships. I get more and more disgusted with the state of college hoops. It seems like such a dirty profession. Don't get me wrong, I always wanted to be a college coach. It has turned into such a business that these guys are willing to win at all costs and practically steal money from the universities and boosters. Not only the coaches, but players these days who have clauses built into their letters of intent that they can jump ship if their coach leaves. I realize this has been going on for decades, but with the media pressure we have now-a-days, things are getting ugly. I'm one of the biggest college basketball fans around, but I am getting pretty tired of the way things have become.

Bowling Night II: Revenge of the 10 Pin

Tuesday afternoon I got the call to sub on the bowling team again. I was ready this time. I had two things on my mind; a 200 game and taking care of the 10 pin. Both were things that eluded me the week before. I was focused and ready this time. It turns out, neither happened. I started okay, with a 178 and 183 in the first two games. The 10 pin still playing tricks with me. It's like the tee shot over 150 yards of water. Its not really a tough shot, but it screws with your brain. It makes you think about crazy things. I let the 10 pin dominate my thoughts the third game. I struggled to the finish with a 144. Ouch. Luckily I didn't lose the series for the team. Oh well, maybe Bowling Night III will be better. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Shocks End 2009 Season

Things didn't finish the way they should have. Monday night the Wichita State Shockers ended their second season on head coach Gregg Marshall with a disappointing loss to the Stanford Cardinal. The Shockers were in the second round of the 16 team CBI tournament. It was tough to watch as they got tore apart. We only shot 34% and couldn't stop a bigger, more athletic team. Johnny Dawkins is going to get that program turned around. The bright spot is that we are so young and Marshall will be entering his 3rd year with WSU next year. Another strong class coming in next year, which will add to the bright young squad. It will be exciting to watch WSU grow over the next few years. Marshall is a great recruiter and gets a lot out of his kids. Can't wait for the future.

Time for a breather

The NCAA Tournament is one of the top sporting events in any sport. No question about it. However, I am getting a little burned out. I'm not burned out on the games, the games are great. The problem is that with only 4 of 34 at large berths going to the little guys, the excitement level for me is not as high as years past. Even if the underdog loses the game, the excitement is still there. How many times in the past have you got really into a game and rooted for the underdog, even if it screws your bracket? I know I have. Cinderella is what makes this tournament special. But a high seed does not a Cinderella make. Example, Arizona this year is not a Cinderella. Don't get me wrong, when the top seeds win, it sure makes for a hell of a Sweet 16 and onward. I just enjoy the special run that we occasionally see, whether thats George Mason, Kent State, Davidson, etc. Maybe because I was always an underdog growing up, I enjoy seeing the favorite win. My big brother is 3 years older and was bigger than me until about high school, when I finally caught up. Not to mention we were not the most physically gifted, but we sure had a competitive side. I've always been known as one of the most competitive guys in the group. I think thats what makes the underdog unique. Physically they should never compete with the big boys, but they've got passion and a special drive to prove everybody wrong. Thats what I love.

It's Time for the Madness

We are about 30 minutes from the start of the Madness. The first real game of the NCAA Tournament is about to begin. I am pretty pumped about it. I am running only in a few small bracket games (like 12). I am running a few games at work. Also, I don't think my wife was too happy when I told her I bought a NCAA bracket fathead. I can't wait to put it on the wall and fill it in. I feel like a kid in a candy store. If this isn't the best time of year, I don't know what is. Well, I am going to keep this short, because I am about to go into shutdown mode for a few days. Enjoy the games and hopefully we will see a cinderella dancing or a #16 finally win a game (we can all dream).

Bowling Night

Well, every once in a while I get the itch to go bowling. Come on, who doesn't like bowling? Its just you, that 14 pound ball, those ten pens 50 feet away, and the challenge. The challenge to throw that ball with pinpoint accuracy and knock down those little white monsters. Not as easy as it sounds.

I was asked to sub on a bowling team Tuesday night. I consider myself a decent bowler. Granted, its been a while since I've bowled on a regular basis (like 8 years). I subbed a few weeks ago and mustered about a 170 average for my three games. Not bad. But i was poised to do bettter on Tuesday. My goal was at least one 200 game. Things didn't go according to plan. At least I had a better series than I did a few weeks ago. But the 200 game eluded me yet again. The best I could manage was a 193, to go along with a 182 and 161. I'm not too ashamed by those numbers, but I was hoping for more. Bowling, like golf is one of those individual sports that can just eat away at you and beg you to come back for more. It takes a lot of patience and practice to be any good at either one. Two things that don't always come easy for me. And just think, if it wasn't for that damn 10 pin, I know I would have been celebrating a 200 game. But alas, thats why we play sports, for the challenge.

The Day After

Seriously, how hard is it to concentrate on work with a stack of empty brackets next to you? It's going to be a long couple of days until basketball starts up again. I am pretty pumped about my Wichita State Shockers making a post season tournament. That's right the CBI, baby. Okay so maybe the College Basketball Invitational isn't the most glorious tournament ever, but we'll take it.

It looks like I dropped the proverbial "we'll" already. Like I have anything to do with the success of our team. I mean "the" team. When you follow your team closely, it's hard not to stake a claim to them. You feel as if you've invested about as much of your time being a fan as they have in being players, coaches, etc. Sports have a way of taking control of our lives and our emotions without us ever really noticing. I was just talking to a friend at work who was telling me about how he got in an argument with his wife about watching a game live vs. taped. Like he said, how are you going to affect the outcome of the game if you don't watch it live? Right on brother. Speaking of that, I can't wait until Thursday. This is a special day for several reasons. First, my wife and I are going to go out and celebrate our 6th anniversary. I can't believe I made it this long. Secondly, the tournament starts. At first I was not willing to give up one of the greatest days of the year for my wife, but then I had to step back and think. Is a game really worth a divorce. That's why they invented DVR anyway, right? Well, hopefully it all goes well.

1st Official Post

Welcome to the average man's sports website. This blog is my contribution to the sports world and what better day to start a sports blog than Selection Sunday. I am a huge hoops fan and for the next few weeks you will hear quite a bit about how my life revolves around college basketball. I'm watching the NIT selection show as we speak. How pathetic am I? For the 12th year in a row, I am taking off Thursday and Friday to watch the NCAA tournament. (At least I don't call in sick.)

I will be posting some of my previous sports road trip photos and stories later on. In addition to that, I have a few exciting sports adventures coming up in the near future. Stay tuned for that. You won't want to miss it. I will also, be posting plenty of stories relating to college hoops. I am going to sign off now (Hey, I've got some brackets to fill out).