Tag: San Francisco Bay Area

Safeway Open: Snedeker maintains lead while Mickelson comes apart

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Photo credit: @NFL_Commentary

By Jeremy Harness

NAPA–In a tournament that has seen a lot of birdies and a lot of movement among the leaders, Brandt Snedeker has been the constant at Silverado this weekend.

After Saturday’s proceedings, Snedeker has the same three-stroke lead that he had a day prior, and he is now 18 holes away from winning for the first time in nearly two months, and it would be his first time winning the Safeway Open, the first PGA Tour event of the 2018-19 season.

Snedeker got things going early with what usually get him there: the putter. He had a long birdie putt at the third hole, and he shook off a bogey at the seventh with a birdie at the par-5 ninth.

He couldn’t get it up and down at the 13th and dropped a shot there, but he responded beautifully with three birdies in a row at holes 16 through 18 to get to 16-under par.

“It was a tough day,” Snedeker said. “The wind kicked up on the last 12, 13 holes and made it hard to hit it close and make birdies.

“I did a great job of staying patient knowing I had 16, 17, 18 for birdie holes left, and I was really proud of the way I stepped up there and hit some quality shots when I needed to. Tomorrow’s supposed to be tougher than today, so every shot is really important coming down the stretch.” One guy who has hung in there is Kevin Tway, who shot a 68 on Saturday, and he will play with Snedeker in the final pairing Sunday afternoon after finishing the third round at 13-under. He played a bogey-free round with back-to-back birdies on the front side – including a hole-out from a greenside bunker 41 feet away at the eighth – as well as two more birdies on the back nine.

“I kept the ball in play nicely, made a nice save on 14 when that was my only real bad shot,” Tway said. “I hung in there and played well.

“I got in contention a few times last year and didn’t do very good, so I’ll use tomorrow to learn from the bad and try to do better tomorrow.”

Phil Mickelson, however, didn’t hang in there as well as the other two. After being in the thick of things the first two days, he came unglued a bit on Saturday, starting with a double bogey at the par-5 eighth. He had two birdies on the back nine, but those were undone by two bogeys on the back side.

Safeway Open: Snedeker takes the lead

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Photo credit: @SwingMasterGolf

By Jeremy Harness

NAPA–A familiar face is on top of the leaderboard now.

Brandt Snedeker grabbed the lead on Friday, as she shot a seven-under round of 65, using a high-powered front nine that featured five birdies to go ahead by three shots at the Safeway Open at Silverado Golf Resort.

He kept the momentum going on the back side, recording three birdies without a single bogey, including back-to-back birdies at the 17th and 18th to close the second round out in grand fashion.

Snedeker, the man with the never-changing, simple putting stroke, has nine wins in his PGA Tour career, the most recent one coming in the Wyndham Championship in August to close out the 2017-18 regular season.

“I’ve played pretty solid golf all the way around,” said Snedeker, who played with Champions Tour regular Fred Couples on Friday. “I only played, really, two poor shots all day today, was able to get up and down on one hole and didn’t get up and down on the other hole.

“We had a great group, we had a fun time out there. Freddie kind of keeps everybody relaxed, and part of the reason why I played so well the first two days is playing with him.” Meanwhile, Phil Mickelson stayed within striking distance in the second round, although his Friday round of 69 was four shots worse than the 65 he shot in Thursday’s opening round.

He got off to a fantastic start to the front nine, recording four birdies without a bogey, but things started to go sideways for him on the back side. He birdied the 10th and was in the lead at that point, he bogeyed the 13th and 14th holes before dropping another shot at the 17th before getting things together with a birdie at the par-5 18th.

Mickelson is tied with Ryan Moore, who is perhaps best known for clinching the Ryder Cup for the United States two years ago at Hazeltine, at 10-under par and three strokes behind Snedeker.

“I’m casually optimistic,” Mickelson said. “It’s certainly turning from pessimistic because I didn’t think I was going to be here on the weekend, and the next things you know, I’m on top of the leaderboard.

“I’ve hit a lot of good shots, I’m really surprised.”

Safeway Open: Straka snatches first-round lead; Mickelson in the hunt

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Photo credit: @golfweek

By Jeremy Harness

NAPA–Exactly a year after a terrible firestorm ripped through this area and damaged a part of Silverado Golf Resort, the PGA Tour has returned to Northern California and is in very good shape.

The players have responded in kind, and it shows in the low scores that were carded on Thursday.

Sepp Straka took the first-round lead by shooting a nine-under 63, carrying a one-shot advantage into Friday’s action. He birdied four holes on the front nine, and then he added five more on the back side, including birdieing the last three holes in a row en route to a bogey-free round.

“I really wasn’t expecting that right out of the gates,” said Straka, who is playing in his first PGA Tour event after graduating from the Web.com Tour after last season. “But I had a good game plan, and I just tried to do it shot by shot.

“My putter was really hot, putted the ball very well. Other than that, I just took advantage of my chances.”

Chase Wright, another Web.Com Tour graduate, is one stroke behind Straka after firing a bogey-free round of 64. He didn’t get off to as good a start as Straka, recording a pair of birdies on the front side. However, he absolutely caught fire on the back nine, as he put four birdies on the board to go along with an eagle at the par-5 16th hole.

“(It was) patience at its finest,” Wright said. “Just tried to stay positive, committed to what I was doing and didn’t really put myself in any crazy spots.”

Less than a week after capping off a disappointing showing by himself as well as the United States team in this year’s Ryder Cup, Phil Mickelson had a nice bounce-back performance at Silverado, and he finds himself only two shots back after the first round.

He fired a seven-under round of 65 on Thursday, which included an eye-popping six birdies in a row on holes nine through 14. Although he hit only half of his fairways (seven of 14), he hit 14 of the 18 greens and was able to get up and down when he missed the other four greens.

However, he certainly didn’t feel like he was going to have a round like he did before he teed off.

“I hit it terrible (on the range),” Mickelson said. “I had one of the worst warmups of the year. I was hitting the fence on the range right, I was hitting the fence left.

“But you throw on one of these shirts and you can dance and you can hit fairways, it’s awesome. So this week, I’m not hitting any balls, I’m not practicing, I’m not hitting chips, I’m not hitting putts. I’ll have a nice 45-minute warmup, and that’s it. I’m trying to just save every ounce of energy and shotmaking and visualization for the course.”

San Jose State announces game times vs. Army West Point and Nevada

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Photo credit: San Jose State Football

By: Ana Kieu

In collaboration with the Mountain West and ESPN, San Jose State now has its game times for its October 13 non-conference contest with Army West Point at Levi’s Stadium, and the November 17 conference encounter with Nevada in CEFCU Stadium.

The first SJSU-Army football game will have a 12:30 pm PT/3:30 pm ET game time on October 13. ESPNU will provide live coverage from Levi’s Stadium, the home of the College Football Playoff National Championship Game on January 7, 2019.

Army (3-2) has its bye weekend for the week ending October 6 while SJSU (0-4, 0-1 MW) hosts Colorado State this Saturday at CFECU Stadium in a 7:30 pm PT contest.

The SJSU-Nevada football game on Saturday, November 17, will have a 2:00 pm PT game time. ESPN3 will provide the broadcast coverage from CEFCU Stadium on the SJSU campus.

Tickets for all SJSU home football games are available through sjsuspartans.com or by calling the SJSU Athletics Ticket Office at (408) 924-7589.

49ers Hang On in Home Opener vs. Lions for First Win of the Year 30-27

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By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — It came down to the wire and with a little help from the officials, but the San Francisco 49ers have their first win of the 2018 season as they beat the Detroit Lions 30-27 in the home opener at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

After going into halftime with a 13-10 lead, San Francisco started the second half with a bang. D.J. Reed Jr. got the half started by bringing the kick back to the house, only to be penalized for grabbing a defender’s face mask along the way. Despite the penalty, the 49ers were set up with excellent field position at the Lions’ 25-yard line to start the third quarter.

“Everyone held their blocks. For me, it was easy, and anybody could have done what I did. My whole special teams unit did a good job blocking. [Special team’s] coach Hightower did a good job setting it up,” added Reed.

Jimmy Garoppolo capped off the drive with his second touchdown pass of the day, finding Garrett Celek underneath. The 30-year-old tight end carried three defenders with him across the goal line to make the score 20-10.

The 49ers extended their lead in the third with a 66-yard Matt Breida rushing score to cap a three-play, 97-yard drive. The longest rush for the 49ers since 2014 made the score 27-13, but they then allowed the Lions to get back in it.

Breida had his coming out party for the 49ers, lighting up the Lions’ defense, carrying the ball 11 times for 138 yards and the score.

Led by Matthew Stafford, the Lions crawled their way back into the game bringing the score within three with 3:33 remaining, putting all the pressure on the 49ers offense to move the ball.

When the pressure came San Francisco’s way, Garoppolo made a mistake with 2:24 left and threw a pick that the Lions returned down to seven-yard-line. However, a crucial defensive holding call saved the day for San Francisco giving an automatic first down. The 49ers ended up punting with 1:08 remaining, but the defense stepped up and shut the door, not letting Lions get past midfield to secure the win.

In the win, Garoppolo improved from last week, throwing 18-of-26 for 206 yards and two touchdowns. However, Garoppolo was sacked five times in the process, with most of them being coverage sacks. The wide receivers didn’t do their job in man coverage as they struggled to get open, which allowed the pass rush to get to Garoppolo.

More importantly, three of the five sacks came within the red zone, which continues to be a pain point in the 49ers’ offense. San Francisco is reportedly exploring the possibility of acquiring wide receiver, Josh Gordon to come in and help in the red zone after the Browns came out and said he would be available come Monday.

The 49ers once again leaned heavily on kicker, Robbie Gould, who was perfect in knocking down all three of his field goals from 45, 42, and 36-yards, respectively. In doing so, he set a new franchise record for consecutive field goals made, passing Phil Dawson with 29 straight.

San Francisco did escape Sunday with a win, but there was no reason for the game to be even close. The 49ers got comfortable with the lead and let the Lions back in the game. Let it be a lesson for a young team learning how to win and don’t let it happen again, or it will cost them against stronger opponents in the future.

“I feel like the energy kind of fell off a little bit, and we needed to build it back up that last defensive stand that we had. I feel like guys kind of woke up during that last drive on defense. We’ve got to keep the pedal down all four quarters,” said defensive lineman DeForest Buckner.

The 49ers will attempt to keep the pedal down all four quarters next week, as they travel to Kansas City to try and stop Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs next Sunday at 10:00 am PDT.

49ers look to bounce back in home opener vs. Lions

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Photo credit: @49ers

By Jeremy Harness

The 49ers will get their season on track on Sunday, as they will host the Detroit Lions in their first home game of the year.

However, as was the case most of last season, the team is dealing with a multitude of injuries at key positions, following an opening-week 24-16 defeat at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings, a game that saw Jimmy Garoppolo throw three interceptions, including one that was returned for a touchdown.

The 49ers got a little thinner at the linebacker position this week, as they placed Brock Coyle on the injured reserve/eligible to return list. According to head coach Kyle Shanahan, he had not only a concussion in the team’s opening week loss to Minnesota, but he also suffered a T-4 compression fracture in his back.

Coyle will be out at least six weeks, and at that point, he is expected to be able to resume football activities. Beyond that, his timetable for return is uncertain.

Meanwhile, fellow linebacker Malcolm Smith did not practice Wednesday due to a hamstring injury he suffered during the preseason. Among the others who did not practice were receiver Marquise Goodwin (quadriceps), guard Joshua Garnett (toe) and safety Adrian Colbert (hamstring).

All of them are listed as questionable to play Sunday against the Lions, whose injury report is not nearly as long as that of the 49ers. Guard T.J Lang (back) and tackle Andrew Donnal (knee) were both held out of practice on Wednesday.

Just like the 49ers, the Lions are still licking their wounds after a tough loss in Week 1. However, the Lions were more decisively beaten at home Monday night against the New York Jets. Just like Garoppolo, Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford had his bouts with interceptions. The veteran threw four to the other team, including one that was returned for a touchdown in a 48-17 rout.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez to be on NBC Bay Area’s Comunidad Del Valle

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By http://www.sportsradioservice.com staff

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez will be featured during the Comunidad del Valle program on NBC Bay Area (KNTV; CH 3) in English as well as its sister station on Telemundo Bay Area (KSTS; CH 48) in Spanish this Sunday.

Damian Trujillo is the host on this popular weekly program with appearances by talented and influential Latino members. Pi-Gonzalez, who writes for this site, is in his 41st season as a MLB announcer and is currently the Spanish voice for the Oakland A’s.

Amaury has been interviewed about the new Mural of The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame, which he is the vice president of a non-profit organization, at the Club Level entrance of the Oakland Coliseum. This exciting 2018 A’s season adds to his distinguished resume as a sports broadcaster.

Pi-Gonzalez has been considered a pioneer in Spanish sports broadcasts in the Bay Area since his first season with the A’s in the late 1970’s. He has also called games for the Giants, Mariners and Angels on radio as well as television for Fox Sports West. In addition, he has called two Caribbean World Series in the early 2000s as a play-by-play announcer in English for Fox Sports International.

Once the Spanish voice for the Golden State Warriors in the 1990’s, Pi-González has talked about his passion and tutored young Latino students throughout his career. He was also a sports anchor for Telemundo (CH 48) in the Bay Area in the 1990s and Trujillo has known him since those good old days.

Comunidad del Valle will be aired on NBC Bay Area (KNTV; CH 3) this Sunday, September 3 at 9:30 am PDT in English. A Spanish version of the program will be aired on Telemundo Bay Area (KSTS; CH 48) at 8 am PDT this Sunday. But, check your local listings for programming, just to be sure.

Ellie Mae Classic: Cone runs away with title

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Photo credit: @TPCStonebrae

By Jeremy Harness

Trevor Cone had not played very much this year and didn’t have much of a chance to make it the next level of professional golf, at least this year.

But all of that changed after Sunday afternoon’s proceedings, and now he’s one solid tournament showing away from setting foot in the major leagues.

He entered Sunday afternoon with a one-shot lead, and he built on it from that point on. Cone executed his game plan to perfection Sunday afternoon, as his bogey-free round of 64 was plenty good enough to take the title at the Ellie Mae Classic, which was held at Hayward’s TPC Stonebrae.

Cone had only played in eight tournaments in his rookie season on the Web.com Tour and started this week way down on the money list, 135th to be exact. He had previously played on the Mackenzie Tour, formerly known as the Canadian Tour. However, this win propelled him all the way to 37th on that list.

He distanced himself on the front nine, running off four birdies, and then adding two more on the back to take the title. He averaged 330 yards off the tee and hit 73 percent of his fairways, which greatly enhances one’s chances to make a good score on a hole. He also 72 percent of his greens in regulation, and when he missed a green, he got up and down for par or better 85 percent of the time, which ranked second in the field.

He also putted extremely well, as he averaged only 1.596 putts per green in regulation, for which he was also second in the field this week.

The top 25 players on the tour’s money list at the end of the season earn the right to play on the PGA Tour next season, and Cone now has a very good chance to do that. There is only one event left in the regular season, and that gets under way on Thursday, and a high finish figures to get him inside that number.

The guys who finished second and third this weekend are now in the top 25. Josh Teater fired a 67 on Sunday to finish four stroked behind the lead and shot up 13 spots to the 13th position on the money list.

Meanwhile, Chris Thompson, a graduate of Kansas University, shot a final-round 64 despite two bogeys to finish in third position at 16-under. With that finish, Thompson also slid into the top 25, jumping 34 spots into the 19th position.

The final tournament of the regular season is the WinCo Foods Portland Open, which will be held at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Course in North Plains, Ore.

Ellie May Classic preview: Large crowds expected to come out for Curry

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Photo credit: @gswdubnation_

By Jeremy Harness

There is a possibility that the PGA Tour could be heading to the Bay Area–closer than Napa or Monterey–soon. In the meantime, however, the Web.com Tour–the minor-league affiliate of the PGA Tour–is here, and it is getting ready to kick off again.

The Ellie Mae Classic will commence play Thursday morning at Hayward’s TPC Stonebrae, and there will be a familiar face on the course, at least for the first two days.

Warriors’ guard Stephen Curry, who is a scratch golfer, will make his second appearance at this event. He is not expected to make the cut, but that will not stop fans from coming out on Thursday and Friday to get an up-close glimpse of the NBA star.

Curry will tee it up alongside Northern California natives Martin Trainer and Cameron Champ, who won the Utah Championship just three weeks ago. The group will begin Thursday’s first round at 9:06 am PST and will start on the 10th hole.

The group will play later on in the day on Friday, as the threesome will go off at 2:26 pm PST, as the tour gives players one morning tee time and one in the afternoon for the first two days, after which the cut line will be established.

Curry did not make the cut last year, but he did give a good account of himself after shooting a pair of 74’s.

He is playing on a sponsor’s exemption, which means that he did not have to go through local qualifying for the event. NFL Hall of Fame receiver Jerry Rice, on the other hand, went through local qualifying, but it did not go very well at all, as he withdrew after only 10 holes in the Monday qualifier.

Last year’s event was won by Martin Piller, who is now on the PGA Tour.

Commentary: Both A’s and Giants looking for “The Bridge” trophy

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By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Friday, July 13, 2018

SAN FRANCISCO – The Swingin’ A’s of Oakland enter this weekend’s interleague series as one of the hottest teams in baseball. The host San Francisco Giants, not so much, making for an interesting dynamic as both teams look for something besides bragging rights in the Bay Area series.

That “something” is “The Bridge,” a trophy created from steel salvaged from the original East Span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

In his pregame comments Friday, Giants manager Bruce Bochy seemed less concerned about The Bridge, as he was about an Oakland team that has won 19 of its last 24 games.

“It’s not so much about the trophy, but the fact you have two teams that are trying to get to the postseason,” Bochy said. “There’s nobody playing better than Oakland right now. They’re playing great, throwing the ball well. They’ve made some great comebacks, scoring runs, winning games late, their bullpen, in general, has really done a great job.”

“You get on a run like they are, that means you’re playing really good baseball. Since they’ve been on their run, I’m sure they feel really good about where they’re at, trying to get to the postseason, and that’s what we’re trying to do – two teams trying to accomplish the same thing.

A couple more things about The Bridge: A list of frequently asked questions was issued. We learned that the idea was the brainchild of NBC Sports reporter Brodie Brazil when he heard White Sox announcers Ken Harrelson and Steve Stone discussing Chicago’s Crosstown Cup. And, if the six-game regular-season series finishes tied, the winner of the last game is awarded the trophy.

The San Francisco skipper said it didn’t make a difference to him if the Giants and Athletics met before or after the All-Star break.

“It doesn’t matter to me when we play them,” Bochy said. “If anything, it keeps both teams at home around the break, so I suppose that’s a good thing.”

The A’s still manage to surprise many observers by hanging around the American League Wild Card race, while the Giants continue their quest to try keeping its key players healthy while trying to a) salvage their season and b) decide on being buyers or sellers at the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.

Oakland is faced with the same trade deadline decision. In recent years, the A’s have predictably been sellers. This year, speculation increases by the day that the Athletics may take the plunge and be buyers. Don’t bet on it, but the thought is intriguing.

The starting pitchers for Friday’s game couldn’t be more contrasting. Madison Bumgarner, despite the injuries that have plagued him the last couple of seasons, is still the ace of the Giants’ staff. Oakland counters with well-traveled Edwin Jackson, recently rescued from baseball’s scrap heap to not only play for his record-tying 13th team–he’s 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA.

A pitching duel ensued over the first three innings before San Francisco manufactured a run in the fourth, aided by a balk committed by Jackson. The A’s answered with a two-out solo home run by Chad Pinder to tie the game at 1-1.

As Bumgarner continued to mow down the A’s, San Francisco surged ahead 2-1 in the sixth on Buster Posey’s run-scoring single. But the Athletics weren’t quite finished.

Oakland loaded the bases and chased Bumgarner in the seventh. But Giants reliever Reyes Moranta retired Chad Pinder, Jonathan Lucroy and pinch-hitter Nick Martini in order to snuff out the rally. A defensive gem by Pablo Sandoval at third helped prevent further damage, when he snared Jonathan Lucroy’s sharp line drive.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Giants loaded the bases against the Oakland bullpen and capitalized with a two-RBI double by Steven Duggar to break the game open. When the dust settled, San Francisco batted around and took a 7-1 lead, which wound up as the final.

Fun stuff. And there’s five more of these. The winner gets a trophy.