Quality

For those who have neglected to buy a Drive By Truckers CD, their latest show at the 9:30 Club in DC is available on NPR .

Also giving me another chance to see if I can post links.

Gutsy

Jason Whitlock calls 'em as he sees 'em, which I respect. A LOT of predictions that take fortitude to put into print. I agree with 9, 8, 7, 6, 2.

Tagging

From the ages of 22 - now, I've rented a number of different residences, which has led to a number of drycleaners (often more than one per residence). Why do all drycleaners find it necessary to stamp/write/stencil/woodburn my name to the bottom of the inside? I could understand if you were tagging with some sort of low-rent RFID, but the fact my name is written multiple times on the same shirt is ridiculous. It really got out of hand when I found my name written in pen on a pocket in a pair of slacks. Isn't it the point to keep ink as far away from clothes as possible?

When I outgrow/wear out my shirts, do I really want to pass it to goodwill with my name inside?

I am really stoked for the British Open. I say winner is -14.

British Open

Picking the champion of the year for 2006 was been an enjoyable/maddening experience, as contesting the British Open at Hoylake will lead to many surprises and a field where (unlike Augusta, where course changes have shrunk the contenders) a lot of golfers can win. All I know of the course is my review of the card and review of the shaping of the holes.

The unfamiliarity with the course will lead to a scene similar to the 2003 Olympia Fields US Open, where Furyk eventually won the tournament. My picks:

Guys who just missed the cut: Luke Donald, Adam Scott, Zach Johnson, Jim Furyk.

Currently playing the best golf in the world: Johan Edfors

4. - Geoff Ogilvy - Why not? T7 at St. Andrews in 2005, nothing to lose. Who is going to be more relaxed, no pressure and little expectations.

3. Stuart Appleby - Success at Mercedes bodes well on long courses (3 par-5s on back) when the wind is up. He is due for a major.

2. Tim Clark - Potentially the most underrated golfer in the world.

1. Padraig Harrington - US Open meltdown nonwithstanding, game is in good shape, and due for a breakthrough.

British Open

I must have been napping when the ESPYs became a big deal, or as big of a deal an event with no drama, started solely so people have something to yap about occurred. Thanks, I'll pass.

Looking forward to the British Open, easily my favorite tournament to watch. BBC feed beats any ABC announcer, hands down. I always enjoy watching Euro Tournaments on weekend mornings, the Scottish Open being no exception. LL is a great course.

Being the Open is contested at Hoylake, a track few professionals are familiar with, means anything can happen, which makes for good tournament golf. My picks will be forthcoming.

Of Note...

A few things I have seen lately that I like:

- The interviews in Golf Digest. While the remainder of the magazine is a mixture of subscription cards and misshapen advertisements, the interviews are fantastic. Worth the price of the magazine. This months interview with Fuzzy Zoeller is fantastic.

- The Golf Channel replays of the rounds of a major the week following the event. Watching the event after knowing the outcome is a different beast, and give a perspective of the events that led to the finish. TGC also succeeds by editing down the coverage to a manageable level (2-3 hours) and inserting commentary from the winner, which was especially good with both Ogilvy and Sorenstam after their respective Open victorys.

- The compilation shows on CMT. I'll take 'The Top 20 Southern Rock Songs of All Time' over 'I Love the 70's 1974 Volume II' any night.

- 'Runaway' by Bon Jovi. Heard it in middle school, forgot about it. Now it's back. I didn't realize it was the first song off their first album, of the same title.

Canadian Mist

Our neighbors to the north are fired up over one gentleman's mistake.

As heinous as the crime may be, I gotta feel for the perpetrator. His bender became national news and he is the subject of interviews explaining how he got blacked out. Good luck finding a job on this continent. Somewhere the phone of the casting director for The Real World is ringing...

Fired Up

I confirmed and registered for my FY06 Fantasy Football league today (July 5)...and I was a week late, the 14th of 14 to sign up. It is a league I joined three years ago, invited by my neighbor in the apartment I lived at two moves ago. Besides talking bull and the live draft, my interaction with the rest of the guys is purely virtual. It is the best league ever, here's why:

- 14 of 14 guys return every year, given. Married/split/moved, doesn't matter.

- We are in the Rolls Royce Yahoo league, with all the bells and whistles.

- 14 teams in the league. No team has exceptional depth, and at least one position of weakness, which leads to late Sunday/early Monday scrambling to snag someone off the waiver wire or make a lopsided trade to shore up a glaring deficiency.

- 14 teams also mean stocking up on backup RBs, who become quality when someone goes down with injury....or in last years case, rotating 4 Cowboy running backs (Jones, Barber, Thomas, Herschel Walker).

- At least 5 teams with "Balls" in their team name (Balls Deep, Balls in Mouth...).

- Last year I missed the playoffs after being the 5th of 5 teams in a 5-5-1 tie (how does that happen)?

- No partial point BS. 98 yards on the ground = 9 points.

- Complete homerism draft strategy. I fully expect Jeff King to be picked, and I was complimented as a sage last year picking Alvin Pearman in the final round.

- I've been jotting random notes for the draft since May.

The Return to Birdwood

On Saturday I was back in Charlottesville for a wedding and played Birdwood, where I spend approximately 2.5 of my 4 college years. I hadn't played the course in @ two years, so I was playing to both put up a good round and notice the course improvements, since it has been purchased by UVA, along with the Boar's Head complex.

Following the six days of rain at the beginning of the week, the course was in fantastic shape, as good as I've seen it. Granted, it fit the pattern of being really nice for the beginning of the summer, and drying out in mid-July, so I am sure it is coming. It is weird to play a course you've played hundreds of times, but not in a while, and the same anxiety/trepidation from years past comes bubbling to the surface. The 2nd hole, a 520 yd. 5, is potentially reachable, but is bordered entirely on the left side by a lake, so I'll do anything possible to stay right, foregoing a chance at birdie, to work for a par, just to take the high number out of the equation.

All in all, a great round of golf, 82, but played 15 good holes, and three blow-up doubles (one off a bad drive OB, another from a missed flop from heather, the final double being on a 5 par, after blowing 3W from 270 way right, into the neighboring development, getting a miraculous kick to be in play, dumping my 3rd from 30 yards in the bunker, taking two to escape, and two putts). Had no birdies, and can easily attribure 5-6 strokes to a rusty short game, but an enjoyable round. Taking into account technology, I can hit the ball from the back tees to where I would hit from the regular tees while an undergrad. My game certainly hasn't gotten any better.