Category: Uncategorized

By Jeremy Harness

SAN FRANCISCO – Rory McIlroy said after Friday’s round that he is not giving away any holes. But he ended up throwing away some good money Saturday night.

His quarterfinal match with Paul Casey went into extra holes, and he had a clear advantage at the 20th hole when Casey drove it way right behind a tree. Casey could not get up and down, and when McIlroy missed a six-footer to win it, play was suspended at 8:03pm PST with the match remaining all square.

The two will resume play again at 6:45am PST Sunday morning.

This wouldn’t normally be a big issue, but that McIlroy had planned to be ringside for the mega-fight between Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas later that night, which, due to this prolonged match, he was unable to make it, meaning that he was unable to occupy a seat that cost him about $10,000.

“(The match) was good; it was back and forth,” McIlroy said. “I made a couple key up-and-downs when I needed to coming down the stretch. (But I) had a couple of opportunities to close it out, (and I) couldn’t quite convert.

“But we’ll come back tomorrow morning and do it all over again.”

Jim Furyk had a pair of convincing wins on Saturday, as the technician dispatched grip-it-and-rip-it long-hitter J.B Holmes by a 5-and-3 count in the morning and then taking care of Louis Oosthuizen, 4 and 2, in the afternoon quarterfinal round to make it to the semifinal round of this event for the first time.

After Holmes took the first lead of the match at the fourth hole, Furyk

“I think early on in my career, I was probably more worried about every swing and every shot, and everything being perfect and trying to play the perfect round of golf,” Furyk said about his previous approach to match play. “You realize at the end of the day, you make a bad swing and lose the hole, it doesn’t matter if you make 5 or 12, it’s just a hole.

“You move on and play.”

Meanwhile, 60-seed John Senden kept trucking into the semis, rallying to knock off former Hunter Mahan, who won this event three years ago, in the morning round, but his time ran out in the afternoon, as he was blitzed on the front nine and simply could not recover in a 5-and-3 defeat at the hands of Gary Woodland.

Woodland shot out to a five-hole lead on the front nine before Senden could really get on track. The Australian fought back and won holes 10 and 12, but Woodland also won two more holes on the back nine, and Woodland was able to hold him off until Senden ran out of holes.

Danny Willett moved onto the semis with his Saturday afternoon win over Tommy Fleetwood, 4 and 3, in a match that Willett was never really threatened throughout the course of the match, eventually closing out the match after both made par at the 15th.

The best match of the round of 16 was the battle between Oosthuizen – who himself went extra holes to dispatch Bubba Watson, who had beaten him in a playoff to win the 2012 Masters – and Rickie Fowler.

Oosthuizen got out to a three-hole lead after 10 holes, but Fowler battled back by birdieing three of the next four holes to square things up. It remained that way heading into the 18th, and it looked like Fowler would complete the comeback as his tee shot found the fairway while Oosthuizen’s was significantly right of the short grass.

But his miss was acceptable – as he was able to hit a great second shot that found the green in two while Fowler’s second was far right of the green and into foot-high grass. Fowler took two shots to get it in the green, and when his par attempt missed, Oosthuizen was on to the quarterfinals.

By Jeremy Harness

Rory McIlroy roared back from a late deficit to move on to Saturday’s round of 16. Meanwhile, Keegan Bradley and Miguel Angel Jimenez roared at each other.

The top-seeded McIlroy, who had never had the lead in regulation and was two holes down to defending FedEx Cup champion Billy Horschel heading into the 17th hole, rolled in three straight birdies to extend the match into extra holes.

Down the stretch, the difference was the short game and the putter. After hitting two good shots, Horschel had a chance to close it out at the par-5 18th by getting it up and down for birdie from just off the green. However, he hit a poor chip shot and missed his lengthy birdie putt while McIlroy two-putted for his birdie to extend the match.

Horschel again hit a great drive and hit his second shot just off the green into the rough on the first extra hole while McIlroy wound up 20 yards right of the green after his second shot. However, he hit another bad chip that left him a long putt for birdie, which he missed. However, McIlroy missed his birdie putt as well to extend the match.

The difference in short game skill sealed the deal at the ensuing par-3. McIlroy wound up in the greenside bunker while Horschel left his shot in the thick rough on the left side of the green, with an angle that forced him to hit a difficult flop shot.

While Horschel saw his pitch run far past the hole and failed to get up and down, McIlroy hit a beautiful sand shot that checked up only three feet from the hole, which he easily converted to punch his ticket to the next round.

“I think over the last three days, I’ve only made one bogey,” McIlroy said. “So if guys are wanting to beat me, they’re going to have to make birdies on holes, and (I’m) just not giving holes away. I think that was very important.”

While the best player in the world is moving on, the second-best player is not. Lee Westwood spoiled things for Jordan Spieth on Friday, beating the defending Masters champion and a player who rolled through the first two rounds this week, 2-up.

“I had nothing to lose,” Westwood said. “Jordan’s arguably the best player in the world right now. I’m pleased with the way I played and got through.”

Said Spieth after the round: “No complaints. It’s just a challenging group, and it’s match play. What are you going to do? I’m excited about the way I’m playing.”

Bradley and Jimenez also made things interesting around the course on Friday, but it didn’t have nearly as much to do with golf. In an otherwise-meaningless match between two guys that entered Friday with 0-2 records this week, there was a disagreement regarding the kind of drop that Bradley needed to take after an errant shot at the 18th.

While a rules official was on hand to give a ruling, Jimenez made his way over to the area to give his opinion. He then got into a disagreement with Bradley’s caddie and, at one point, told him to “shut up.”

At that point, Bradley got into Jimenez’s face, and it appeared that there was a strong possibility of a physical confrontation, but the two eventually separated.

Jimenez eventually won the hole – and the match – but that was rendered unimportant.

“It’s very rare when you’re getting a ruling with a rules official standing there to have another person kind of interject and be very over-the-top accusatory,” Bradley said. “He’s a great player out here, but I have to be able to stick up for myself when I feel like something’s wrong.”

Said Jimenez: “I think my intention was to be helpful, that’s it.”

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-Joe Panik sat on the bench for eight and two-thirds innings, but when Bruce Bochy called his name, he was ready.

Panik hit a single into center field, helping the San Francisco Giants defeat the Los Angeles Angels 3-2 before a sellout crowd of 41,507, the 338th consecutive sellout at AT&T Park.

Buster Posey led off the inning with a single, Gregor Blanco was then inserted into the game as a pinch runner for Posey.

Justin Maxwell then sacrificed Blanco to second, Andrew Susac then walked and after Brandon Belt struck out looking for the second out, Mike Scioscia walked Brandon Crawford intentionally.

The plan backfired, as Panik hit a Joe Smith pitch into centerfield to win the game.

Susac hit an opposite field single in the bottom of the seventh inning to score Angel Pagan

Pagan doubled off of C.J. Wilson to leadoff the bottom of the inning for the Giants.

After the Giants took the lead in the bottom of the first inning, all was going well for the defending World Champions until the top of the seventh inning.

The Angels finally got to starter Chris Heston for a run and three hits, as Matt Joyce drove in the tying run, as David Freese scored from third base.

Pagan hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first inning that scored Nori Aoki from third base.

Aoki doubled off of Angels starter C.J. Wilson, went to third on a groundout by Matt Duffy and then scored on the sacrifice fly by Pagan.

Heston was fantastic for the Giants, as he went six and one-third innings, allowing just one run on five hits, while walking one and striking out five.

Despite allowing just that one run in the first inning, Wilson was fantastic, as he scattered four hits on just two runs, walking one and striking out five.

After the Aoki hit, Wilson did not allow another hit until Pagan hit a single off of him in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Pagan was caught stealing to end the inning, after he was originally called safe by second base Adrian Johnson.

Angels manager Mike Scioscia challenged the safe call, and after the review by the umpires, the call was overturned.

Kole Calhoun made the play of the night in the bottom of the fifth inning, as he made a diving catch off the bat of Andrew Susac.

Replay would come up big again in the top of the seventh inning, as Calhoun was called out at second base on a bang-bang play.

Freese hit a ground ball that bounced off the glove of Casey McGehee at third, and right to Brandon Crawford, who in then threw to Duffy at second to nab Calhoun at second base.

Once again, the play came under review and despite the fact that it looked like Calhoun was safe, the play stood.

By: Joe Lami

2nd Round (46th Overall Selection) Jaquiski Tartt, Safety, Samford

The 49ers started the second day of the NFL Draft picking 46th overall in the second round.  With the pick they selected safety Jaquiski Tartt from Samford.  Once again the Niners are looking to bolster up their defense after major setbacks during the offseason, Tartt coming from a smaller school is no slouch.  He was named to the 2013 and 2014 AP All-American Teams in the FCS division.

Tartt ran a 4.47 at his pro day and is a player that will show skill and strength in Santa Clara.  He led Samford in tackles in 2012 with 94.  He also six career interceptions, two of which he returned to the house for scores,  he is more known for his play on the run and can really bring the hammer and attack the ball carrier.

The best part about Tartt is he has the size at 6’1’’ 221lbs to convert into a linebacker, and has that playing style, especially against the run.  He will be a good hybrid for a team that can choose where they want to put him.  He does have history with San Francisco, as he played behind 49ers’ safety Jimmy Ward.

Once again, he is a coachable player that won’t make an immediate impact on the 49ers and might need some help on the coverage side of things.

Draft Grade:B-

3rd Round (79th Overall Selection) Eli Harold, Defensive End, Virginia

The rebuild continues for San Francisco in the third round, as they take defensive end, Eli Harold in the third round with the 79th overall selection.  Harold, out of Virginia, shows tremendous speed off of the block and can become a great pass rusher for the red and gold. He’s had 15.5 sacks in the last two seasons, with seven coming last year.

The down side is his size, as he stands as 6’3” 247lbs, which is on the smaller, lankier side at the position, thus making him more vulnerable to power, which he will definitely see in the NFL.  However, if he is able to use his speed to his advantage, he will be amazing in San Francisco. ESPN’s Todd McShay had him rated early in the second round, making him an absolute steal at 79th.

He feels a need for the 49ers, while having an extremely high ceiling. Once again, the Niners have another player that they need to develop,  but the future looks bright for Harold in Santa Clara.

Draft Grade: A-

By Jeremy Harness

Going into the Cadillac Match Play at TPC Harding Park, the common thought was that things will continue to be interesting throughout.

So far, it has lived up to all of that, as all but two groups will have to be settled on Friday, the final day of pool play before the tournament moves to the single-elimination round of 16, which starts Saturday morning.

Those who have already advanced and will play stress-free rounds on Friday are third-seeded Rickie Fowler and John Senden, the 60-seed.

Fowler, the top player in his group, won his first two matches and sealed his place in the round of 16 by beating Shane Lowry, 1-up, Thursday afternoon. The reason why Fowler has advanced ahead of most groups was that Lowry and Harris English, whom Fowler beat on Wednesday, are the only players in the group that have a chance of going 2-1 if they win their Friday matches.

“(Getting) into the weekend is nice to kind of have a day where (I) kind of continue to see what I need to work on,” Fowler said. “The game hasn’t been perfect the last few days, (but) luckily I’ve been able to get enough out of it to win my matches.

“If we can tighten the swing up, continue to make some putts, it’s going to be a really fun weekend.”

As for Senden, who upset Henrik Stenson in extra holes on Wednesday and took down Bill Haas, 4 and 3, on Thursday, he is also looking forward to the next round and will use Friday’s match to stay sharp.

“(I’ve) just got to go out there and play my game, stay aggressive and, hopefully, knock few birdies in and put the pressure on,” Senden said.

Most of the other groups have different scenarios that will play out on the final day of pool play, but four of them will feature winner-take-all matches, two of them involving the best players in the world.

Rory McIlroy, the world’s No. 1 player, defeated AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am winner Brandt Snedeker on Thursday, will face defending FedEx Cup champion Billy Horschel, who took down Jason Dufner in the second round.

Meanwhile, Jordan Spieth, who has run into no real obstacles in winning his first two matches, figures to have a fight on his hands against Lee Westwood to determine the winner of that group.

In the fourth group, Bubba Watson and Louis Oosthuizen, who battled in a playoff for the 2012 Masters title, will face each other again to decide who advances there. Watson got the better of Oosthuizen to win his first green jacket, and the South African will try to get even on Friday.

Gary Woodland and Webb Simpson, who won the 2012 U.S Open at the Olympic Club, TPC Harding park’s neighbor course, will square off in the 11th group in the final winner-moves-on contest.

By Jeremy Kahn

With an opportunity to take USC defensive tackle Leonard Williams, the Oakland Raiders went an entirely different way with their first round pick.

General Manager Reggie McKenzie took Amari Cooper with the Raiders lone pick in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night.

Cooper, who was the top wide receiver in the 2015 draft class played at the University of Alabama, where he played for Nick Saban and the offensive coordinator last season for the Crimson Tide was none other than former Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin.

During the 2014 season, Cooper led the nation with 124 catches for 1,727 yards and 16 touchdowns, as he helped the a Crimson a Tide to the National Championship game.

In his three years in Tuscaloosa, Cooper caught 228 passes for 3,463 yards and 31 touchdowns.

Cooper is the third wide receiver taken by the Raiders in the top 10 since 1967, after Tim Brown in 1988 and Darrius Heyward-Bey in 2008.

By: Joe Lami

With the 17th pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers select defensive end Arik Armstead.  The 6’7’’ Oregon Junior had been speculated to go to the Niners for a long time by the ESPN experts and they were right.

Armstead helped Oregon advance to the National Championship game where they were eventually defeated by Ohio State.  He was named a 2014 All-Pac 12 honorable mention.  He had ten tackles for loss with four of them being sacks during his 39 game career at Oregon.

Armstead fits a much needed hole on the 49ers, as they had major losses on the defensive side of the ball, with the play of Justin Smith next season still up in the air.  The only real drawback and criticism of Armsted is his consistency hasn’t been there.  He shows amazing potential, but hasn’t been consistent.  If he had been a consistent colligate player, there is no doubt that Armsted would’ve been a top ten selection.

The 49ers were supposed to select 15th overall, but right before they were on the clock they made a trade.  The trade dealt the 15th pick to the San Diego Chargers to fall back to 17th overall.  While doing so, San Francisco picks up an extra 4th round pick on Saturday and a 5th round pick in 2016.  San Diego picked Wisconsin running back Melvin Gordon with the pick.

Draft Grade: B

By Jeremy Harness

SAN FRANCISCO – Most PGA Tour players look forward to this match-play tournament each year, for the simple fact that it’s a break from the monotony that is stroke-play competition all year long.

And now, the way that this tournament is being played has changed, and players were looking forward to the new format.

In years past, the World Golf Championships Cadillac Match Play had been played in the manner of the single-elimination NCAA basketball tournament. However, the one being held this week at San Francisco’s TPC Harding Park, is a lot more like the World Cup of soccer.

The 64-player field is divided into 16 four-player groups and has begun playing round-robin matches with their particular group on Wednesday and will continue to do so on Thursday and Friday. The player with the best record in each group will advance to the round of 16 for single-elimination match play that commences Saturday morning.

When that stage concludes, the quarterfinals will be held Saturday afternoon and be followed by the semifinals on Sunday morning. The third-place match, as well as the one for the title, will take place Sunday afternoon.

With that said, there was no shortage of lower seeds beating higher-ranked players on Wednesday, which was the first day of the competition.

“There were a ton of upsets already from what I’ve seen,” said Jason Day, who himself was knocked off 4 and 3 (Day was down four holes with three left to play) to Charley Hoffmann on Wednesday. “But no one’s a favorite here in formats like this. You really have to go out and still – no matter who it is – win that match and try and get through to the next round.

“It doesn’t matter who you’re playing; you can’t underestimate what they’re playing like leading up to the event.”

Among other higher-ranked players who learned the hard way was Justin Rose, fresh off of his win at last weekend’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, who fell to Marc Leishman, 3 and 2.

John Senden was another surprise winner on Wednesday, as the No. 60 seed took down the third-seeded Henrik Stenson in 19 holes in a match that Senden trailed by one going into the 18th and final hole in regulation.

Meanwhile, the two top players in the world took care of their business, as No.1 Rory McIlroy defeated Jason Dufner by a 5-and-4 count, while Jordan Spieth, this year’s Masters winner, was a 4-and-2 winner over Mikko Ilonen.

“It’s good to get off to a good start,” Spieth said after his round. “It got a little interesting on the back nine, (but) I’m extremely pleased.”

The shot of the day was turned in by Ben Martin, who was all square with Matt Kuchar after 16 holes. Martin pulled out a hybrid club at the par-3 17th hole, and his ball hit the middle of the green and rolled into the hole for an ace that put him ahead by one.

That proved to be the difference, as both men missed their birdie putts at the 18th, and Martin pulled off the minor upset.

“I’d say under the circumstances, (it was) definitely the best shot I’ve ever hit,” Martin said. “I knew it was on a good line, but I looked down, and then it was almost too far to see it go in.”

By Jeremy Kahn

Madison Bumgarner was magnificent on the mound, but his battery mate Buster Posey was big at the plate.

Bumgarner allowed one tun on five hits in eight innings of work, while walking just one and striking out nine and the San Francisco Giants defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 at Dodger Stadium.

It what was the fifth career matchup between Bumgarner and Dodgers’ ace Clayton Kershaw, be NLCS and World Series MVP improved to 3-1 lifetime.

Kershaw gave up two runs on seven hits in seven innings of work, as the reigning NL MVP and Cy Young award winner fell to 1-2 on the season.

Posey drove in both runs for the Giants, as he singled in Angel Pagan in the first inning and then hit a home run leading off the fourth inning, as he ended a 49 at-bat drought.

Santiago Casilla pitched a perfect ninth inning to pickup his sixth save of the season, as he struck out Adrian Gonzalez to end the game.

The Dodgers were without the services of Carl Crawford and Yasiel Puig, who are both on the disabled list.