Unlucky Sevens…

The number “7” was not lucky for two golfers in The Masters over the weekend. On Thursday, Ernie Els putted “7” times on his first hole in the tournament. On Sunday, Jordan Speith had the lead going into the 12th hole and proceeded to shoot a “7” on the hole and it cost him the tournament. Greg Cote put the Ernie Els “accomplishment” into perspective with this comment in the Miami Herald:

“Ernie Els 7-putted the first green at The Masters. There’s a phrase for that in golf: ‘Greg Cote.’”

The Internet is awash with mockery of the Jordan Speith debacle. One needs only to use Google to find plenty of it if anyone is interested.

While I am at it, here are three more comments from Greg Cote last weekend to bring you up- to speed on happenings in the world of tennis:

“Recently (I’m serious) the No. 75-ranked Hurricanes men’s tennis team hosted No. 41 North Carolina State. Um, is it possible college tennis might wanna tap the brakes on how many teams it ranks?”

And …

“Novak Djokovic won the Miami Open but Serena Williams did not. For once, women’s tennis is less predictable.”

And …

“The 24th-ranked men’s tennis player is an American named Jack Sock. He’s a shoe-in.”

Last week, the NFL organized and ran its “Personal Finance Camp” and 28 players (current and former) participated. This is the second time the league has done this; the “camp” is a 4-day event focusing on financial education. Given the stats that so many retired athletes face bankruptcy within 10 years of retirement, this sort of activity would seem to be very important and that is why I was surprised that only 28 players – along with some wives/significant others – were availing themselves of this opportunity.

The seminar – for lack of a better word – was organized by NFL Player Engagement in conjunction with TD Ameritrade and the University of Miami School of Business. Given that the goal here is to provide players with the knowledge they need to maintain financial security in the long term – after Father Time calls a halt to their playing careers – having access to professionals in academia and in the world of investing seems like a good idea to me.

Earlier this year, there was a Business Academy organized by NFL Player Engagement with cooperation from the University of Michigan. Similarly, the goal there was to educate players with regard to the world of business and business opportunities. Reports said that “more than 40” players and wives took part in those sessions.

Two things surprise me here:

1. NFL Player Engagement is an organization/activity that exists under the banner of the league. I would have thought that this would be an activity high on the priority list for the NFLPA.

2. There were about 1700 active players on rosters at the end of the 2015 NFL season and when you include retired players, the number of folks who might choose to participate swells to several thousand. So, how come there were so few participants?

If you are interested, here is a link to NFL Player Engagement and the various programs that they present. Until about a week ago, I did not know this entity existed.

As the baseball season begins to hit its stride, I guess it is time to take note of a few of the culinary options one might have at various ballparks this year. Here are two beauties you can get at Progressive Field in Cleveland should you choose to take in an Indians game this year:

The Fat Italian: This is a very large sandwich that contains ham, salami, capicola, pepperoni, and hot sausage and then gets topped with provolone cheese, hard-boiled egg, lettuce, tomato, onion, hot peppers and mayo.

The Spaghetti & Meatball Pizza: I guess the folks who concocted this bad boy thought that there were insufficient carbs in an ordinary pizza and to remedy that shortcoming they put pasta on top of the pizza dough.

If you do not have plans to visit Cleveland this summer but you think you might find yourself in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, consider this item offered by the Texas Rangers.

The Wicked Pig: Start with a Hawaiian roll and pile onto it some pulled pork, bacon, split sausages, prosciutto and ham to give you a variety of pig meat products. That is all topped with barbecue sauce and cole slaw. Naturally, it comes with a side of pork rinds.

Finally, here is a note from Brad Dickson in the Omaha World-Herald regarding the local minor league baseball team, the Storm Chasers:

“Auditions to sing the national anthem at Storm Chasers games were held at Oak View Mall in front of 11 judges. There are only nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court, right? Just checking.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………