Weekly Sporties

-Last week I told you about Phil Mickelson withdrawing from the Memorial Tournament after a bad first round, citing mental fatigue. Well, now there are reports that Mickelson's bad round was due to less to be mentally fried and more to do with being mentally annoyed. Apparently the crowd control at the Memorial wasn't particularly diligent and Phil kept getting distracted by people taking pictures on their cellphones. (Ironically, Phil pulled out his own cellphone to text his complaint to Commissioner Tim Finchem from the middle of the 6th fairway.) You see, while people are allowed to bring cellphones onto the course during play, they are only supposed to use them in specific areas and keep them on silent at all time. According to reports, a lot of people were ignoring those rules. Now, having been at a pro tournament and discovering that you could hear a pin drop I can understand why Phil is annoyed but, frankly, he's just going to have to learn to live with it. These days you can't expect people to turn off their phones for hours just to attend a sporting event. Attendance at tournaments is up ever since the policy was enacted, so the PGA isn't about to revert back to the old ways. Not to mention complaining about noise is one of those things which really makes golf seem uncool. I was fine with Mickelson withdrawing, even if it was just to try and make his displeasure known, but he's simply going to have to get used to playing with noise or find another way to earn a living.

-Fortunately there was a good story out of golf this week as Casey Martin qualified for the US Open. For those of you who may not remember his story, Martin was born with a severe problem in his leg which makes standing, let alone walking, very painful. Despite that ailment he became a very good golfer and qualified for the US Open the last time it was played in Olympic Park (where it will be played this year). But, he never would have made around the course is he had to walk and petitioned the PGA to let him use a cart. Many pros came out against Martin being able to use a cart, which was pretty horrible PR for golf and seemed to reinforce the stereotype that the sport is elitist. Even if you agree that walking and endurance are part of the game it just made them look like they were picking on a disabled kid. Eventually, the case went all the way to the Supreme Court where they ruled Martin could use a cart. However, this attention also created a media storm and with all that swirling around him Martin never really had a chance to concentrate on golf, making the fact that he finished tied for 23rd place at the US Open all the more amazing. He tried to play on the Tour after that but his leg continued to get so bad he eventually had to give up playing or doctors told him he would lose his leg, so he started coaching at the University of Oregon. After not playing a competitive round in years, he made it through qualifying on Monday. Now, I don't think he'll be able to contend but I'm really interested to see how he does next week. If nothing else I hope this time around everyone will leave him alone and he'll just be another golfer, even if he is the only one using a cart.

-On Thursday, the Patriots officially released wide receiver Chad Ochocino after one season with the organization. Given that Ocho only had 15 catches and one touchdown this year as well as having a fairly large salary, the move is not surprising. Still, I can't believe how wrong everyone got this one, including me. Tom Brady has a knack for making average receivers look great, so turning a very good wide receiver into a great one should have been a snap. I thought Ocho would be a solid addition to the team and help fill the void left when Randy Moss was traded. But Brady and Ocho could never get on the same page, reportedly because Chad never could wrap his brain around the playbook. (Maybe if he spent less time Tweeting...) But, never one to let an opportunity pass them by, the Patriots quickly spent their new-found cap room signing stud tight end Rob Gronkowski to a new deal, which is great for them. The question now is what happens with OchoCinco. I mean, if you can't make it work in New England where you have a first-ballot Hall of Famer throwing you the ball, what is going to make anyone think you will be able to produce for another team? Reportedly the early suitors for Chad include the Cowboys and Dolphins, but even their interest could best be described as lukewarm. (My money in on Miami.) But wherever he eventually lands, for his sake I hope Chad doesn't try and get the most money and just focuses on what is important - whichever team has the easiest playbook.

-After talks between the NFL and the union representing NFL referees broke down early in the week the NFL sent out word that they were looking into hiring replacement refs for the upcoming season. To me this was a terribly under-reported story. I know we all like to jump on refs but that is because the only time we notice them is when they screw up. Very few people seem to be willing to praise them when they get the call right or see how hard their job is. Of course every call is easy to make when you are looking at the replay in super slo-mo and from 10 different angles, but try making it at full speed while trying to keep up with world-class athletes who would just as soon run you over to make a tackle. Now, the NFL has said it will look at non-BCS college and recently retired refs to fill out the ranks. Oh, so what they want to do is bring in the old and the under-qualified - sounds like a winning plan. You think fans complain about the officiating now? Replacement refs would be an unmitigated disaster. Look, I know the NFL is an incredibly powerful league and with several appeals courts saying Commissioner Roger Goodell has the authority to act as judge and jury, they are feeling pretty full of themselves right about now. But, that doesn't mean they don't have to occasionally compromise. The only way the NFL will get less popular is if the product on the field is diminished and having replacement refs would open the door to that happening. The league is still going to get 95% of its demands met, so just go back to the bargaining table and get this done.

-A couple weeks after it was reported that he was not interested in taking their head coaching job, the Orlando Magic are reportedly still in the running to hire Phil Jackson, except this time it would be as an executive. Sources say the team would hire former Jackson assistant Brian Shaw as head coach and Phil would come on in an advisory role with the Magic only asking him to come to Orlando once a month to check in. Look, if I were Orlando I would throw every cent I had to get Phil Jackson to coach my team, but this plan makes far less sense, as Jackson has no experience running a franchise. He'll just command they get the best player in the league and then be unable to fathom why it can't be done easily, because that was the situation he had at every other stop along the way. On top of that I don't know how you think you can run a professional basketball team part-time. (Look how well having Jordan run the Wizards from his home in Chicago worked out.) I understand that Jackson would give the Magic a level of credibility it sorely needs to keep Dwight Howard and stabilize the franchise, but Jackson only provides that as a coach. Players aren't going to care whose is on the payroll as an adviser, especially when they only see that guy once or twice a week. This is just another example of the team trying to show its fans how serious they are about winning, but really just showing the rest of us how desperate they are. At this point you almost can't blame Dwight Howard for wanting to leave.

-Just one day before the running of the Belmont Stakes, I'll Have Another, the horse with a chance to win the first Triple Crown since 1978 and the betting favorite, was scratched with a leg injury. The injury is so touchy that rather than risk it getting worse and having to put the horse down, his trainers have decided I'll Have Another will never race again. While sad, the horse will be just fine, as he will be put out to stud. Plus, as Jerry Seinfeld once joked, I'm pretty sure the horses have no idea they were even racing. What this injury should really put an end to is any future Triple Crown talk. The simple fact is that horses are no longer bred to handle three major races in five weeks and very few trainers even bother to get the horses prepared to run races the length of the Belmont, which is the longest track at a mile and half. Also, it just goes to show you how little the Triple Crown actually means to people when they would rather not risk losing the stud fees just to have their names in the record books. I know that the Triple Crown is pretty much all horse racing has to get people excited but considering no sportswriters under the age of 55 care about it, the sport doesn't have much chance to stay relevant in the long-term anyway. I won't be surprised when in the future it is only shown on obscure channels. With all that in mind I am officially requesting we stop talking about any potential Triple Crowns in the future. It is not likely to ever happen again, so let's agree to just focus on the three races for what they are - an excuse to gamble and wear funny hats.

-Moving from racing with four legs to racing on four wheels, it seems like the only time I mention NASCAR is because one of the Busch Brothers it is getting in to trouble. Well, this week it is Kurt Busch, who was suspended for this week's race after threatening to beat up a reporter while still on probation for the last time he threatened to beat up a different reporter. I have to say, even though NASCAR got its start because of bootlegging, threatening to beat up everyone who annoys you is pushing the old-school ways. This suspension also comes on the heels of a rough offseason for Busch, which saw Kurt and his team "mutually part ways" after his repeated outbursts annoyed sponsors and his pit crew, then he was unable to find a ride with one of the major Cup teams, ultimately landing a one-year deal at a small shop and he has be unable to land any sponsors for that ride. I know that NASCAR sponsor deals aren't what they were a few years ago, but it shouldn't be that tough to find someone to slap a logo on the hood, especially for a former champion like Kurt Busch. These days the sport is all about corporate sponsors and most companies don't want the face of their brand to be a bully. At this point the only person who wants Kurt to drive for them is his brother, Kyle, and I think they both know that deal won't last long-term. After leaving his last ride Kurt said he was going to start taking some anger management classes. Looking at the way this season has been going for him he may want to ask for a refund.