Watching Golf this Week: The John Deere Classic, and Senior Open

July 12, 2012 by Paul Kapustka

So who needs the big names? If you, like me, watched the end of last weekend’s Greenbrier tourney you saw some top-notch golf from guys I guarantee you never heard of before — and saw Ted Potter Jr. show off some stones, going eagle-birdie to get into a playoff with um, um, with… oh yeah, Troy Kelly, and win.

I love these guys. Tiger who? Phil who? The anonymous-guy PGA could continue this weekend as the pros head to a spot near and dear to my heart — western Illinois, aka Quad Cities territory — for some Midwestern heat, corn bugs, fireflies and the John Deere Classic, where Steve Stricker will be trying to win the thing for the fourth time in a row. And just for good luck, Stricker’s wife will be carrying his bag.

Steve Stricker must be angling for Husband of the Year honors. Letting his wife carry the stand bag this week.

— Jason Sobel (@JasonSobelGC) July 5, 2012

With Zach Johnson as your highest-ranked star, it’s a field that may have you saying “who’s he” a bunch. But as last week showed, maybe that’s not so bad.

So if you need a bunch of birdies before tuning in to the wind and gorse at the British Open next week, head on over to the Golf Channel and CBS (no online video this week) for a taste of the Midwest.

BONUS GOLF COVERAGE: If the John Deere isn’t your cup of tea — or even if it is, don’t forget that the U.S. Senior Open also takes place this week, in Lake Orion, Mich. See below for TV, which is basically ESPN Thursday-Friday and NBC Saturday-Sunday. There may be some online action via WatchESPN, but you need a compatible cable contract if so.

Here’s where to follow the action:

THE JOHN DEERE CLASSIC

(all times Eastern)
TV COVERAGE
Thursday, July 12 — Golf Channel, 3 p.m. — 6 p.m.
Friday, July 13 — Golf Channel, 3 p.m. — 6 p.m.
Saturday, July 14 — CBS, 3 p.m. — 6 p.m.
Sunday, July 15 — CBS, 3 p.m. — 6 p.m.

U.S. SENIOR OPEN TV
Thursday, July 12 — ESPN, 3 p.m. — 7 p.m.
Friday, July 13 — ESPN2, 3 p.m. — 7 p.m.
Saturday, July 14 — NBC, 3 p.m. — 6 p.m.
Sunday, July 15 — NBC, 3 p.m. — 6 p.m.

RADIO
SIRIUS XM (Satellite)
12 p.m. — 6 p.m., Thursday, Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m. — 6 p.m., Sunday

ONLINE
No Live@ video this week — the PGA’s live online video doesn’t return until the Barclays in late August, so you will need to get your online fix from…

PGA SHOT TRACKER
If all you want is shots and distances (which can be addicting) get your fix via Shot Tracker.

FACEBOOK PAGE
Of course the John Deere Classic has a Facebook page. Like it.

And don’t forget the Senior Open Facebook page.

TOP TWITTER FEEDS TO FOLLOW
The John Deere Classic has its own feed.
Geoff Shackelford — well known golf writer. If you’re not following Geoff you are missing the online boat.
Golf Channel — official Golf Channel feed
@PGATOUR — official PGA Twitter feed
@StephanieWei — great golf writer who is a Twitter fiend. Check her Instagram stream for some cool shots of the Homestead, one of our favorite places.
Doug Ferguson is the lead golf writer for AP. Good Twitter insights that often aren’t part of your wire-service lead.

TOURNAMENT APP
This is new — at least to us — but if you are there the John Deere Classic has its own app, which looks like it has all the stuff the regular PGA app has plus some local info. Download away.

WHAT’S THE COURSE LIKE?
The tourney has some fine info on the TPC Deere Run. Here’s the course’s own website.

WHO WON THIS THING LAST YEAR?
Stricker. And the year before. And the year before.

LOCAL FLAVOR
I love that Wikipedia names five cities for the Quad cities. In the old days the hard one to get in trivia answers was East Moline, which if memory serves was bigger than Moline itself. Argue in the comments if you know better. We’ll link to the Quad Cities Times for our local coverage.

FEDEX CUP LEADERS
1. Tiger Woods, 1,952 points
2. Jason Dufner, 1,849
3. Hunter Mahan, 1,654
4. Bubba Watson, 1,617
5. Matt Kuchar, 1,423

See the full standings for the FedEx Cup points list.

WORLD GOLF RANKINGS
1. Luke Donald; 2. Rory McIlroy; 3. Lee Westwood; 4. Tiger Woods; 5. Webb Simpson.
See the official World Golf Ranking list.

Filed Under: Apps, CBS Sports, ESPN, Golf, Golf Channel, NBC Sports, PGA, Tiger Woods, US Open, WatchESPN Tagged With: British Open, ESPN, John Deere Classic, Mobile Sports Report, Paul Kapustka, PGA Tour, Steve Stricker, Tiger Woods, U.S. Senior Open

New York Times Hosts Google+ Hangout with Olympic Athletes — Carmelo and Chris Paul up Tonight

July 11, 2012 by Paul Kapustka

Yes, it’s going to be a social media Olympics — and the fun is starting well before the games kick off later this month. This afternoon the New York Times will hold its first of a series of Google+ hangouts with Olympic athletes, with USA Basketball players Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul interacting live starting at 6 p.m. Eastern time.

While the mainstream golf media gave superstar Tiger Woods a hard time for hosting similar online interactive activities, it will be interesting to see how the Olympic-athlete ones unfold, since (other than the NBA stars) Olympic athletes by and large are removed from our general attention during the time between Olympics. Plus fans of the more obscure sports probably know more than most sportswriters, so maybe there will be some good questions and discussions generated.

Filed Under: Basketball, Google, NBA, Olympics Tagged With: Google, Mobile Sports Report, New York Times, Paul Kapustka

Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen Leading the NBC Tour de France Broadcast, Teammates Need Rest

July 10, 2012 by Paul Kapustka

The first rest day of the Tour de France is good for many reasons. The riders and the race’s huge entourage all need rest.

But the one-day break (the event continues July 11 with stage 10) also allows event fans to collectively catch their breath and assess what’s happened in the race to date.

For those watching on television and online in the United States or accessing Twitter and cycling forums, it’s a near 24/7 proposition. And for Tour de France enthusiasts, that’s cycling nirvana.

Phil Liggett (L) and Paul Sherwen , NBC Sports Network broadcasters

But not everything about the constant information flow of Tour de France news is great.

The difference on Twitter between the Tour de France and other sports, I believe, is that as a once-a-year event, there’s too much on Twitter that’s simply play-by-play. Following followers of the Tour de France is often the modern day version of a phonograph stuck in a groove.

Knowing Peter Sagan won a stage is great, knowing it 20 times, isn’t interesting. Sometimes it seems those tweeting from the event or watching a live broadcast think they’re the only one telling the Twitter Nation that Peter Sagan won again.

The NBC Sports Network is broadcasting an unprecedented amount of Tour de France programming, the live content of which is again highlighted by the much-appreciated tandem of Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen.

Like any longstanding broadcasting team, Liggett and Sherwen have detractors. But Liggett, now attending his 40th Tour de France, and Sherwen, who’s been at it a quarter century, are still terrific.

Does Liggett misidentify riders? Yes. Does Sherwen repeat his “go-to” phrases a lot? Yes. But the two broadcasters know each other so well and work together so well, their near limitless knowledge of cycling overshadow the mistakes and repetition.

Sherwen corrects Liggett gently; Liggett gives Sherwen plenty of time to reminisce about his time in the pro peloton, his friendships with team directors and his knowledge of French history. The marriage just works.

The evening broadcast of the race, a condensed rebroadcast of the day’s already concluded stage, isn’t as smooth. Bob Roll, the former pro, is unique. He knows the sport, provides insight and is also refreshing because he’s the antithesis of every pretty boy, slick-haired broadcaster type.

What doesn’t work as well is NBC’s three-broadcaster approach. Scott Moninger, the now-retired long-time rider, is the newcomer and it shows.

If Bob Roll makes a comment about team strategy, for example, Moninger often adds the same information. It’s not that Moninger isn’t trying, but with his quiet persona, Moninger hasn’t figuratively or literally found his voice and where and how it fits best. Wouldn’t another broadcast tandem work better for the network than having three broadcasters working hard just to find a way to share the airtime?

Like the event itself, the NBC broadcast team gets a rest from live stage reporting and quick stage analysis until Wednesday. Sherwen and Liggett still seem eternally fresh, but the night crew needs the time to recoup and re-evaluate its tactics.

Note: To watch live Tour de France video online, you can sign up for the $29.99 package for the entire race, or $4.99 per stage. Plus, you need to sign up for a Map My Ride account.

Filed Under: Cycling, iPhone, NBC Sports, Tour de France Tagged With: James Raia, Mobile Sports Report, NBC Sports, Phil Liggett, Tour de France, Twitter

Timeout Tuesday: X Games Video Clips Overload

July 10, 2012 by Paul Kapustka

If you missed the Summer X Games a week or so ago, don’t fret. Of course it was all captured on video, and thanks to the wonder of YouTube we have a few clips to share with you. I can’t claim to know what the individual events really are (though it’s pretty easy to figure out something called “moto x freestyle”) but you don’t really need to know… just watch.

First up, Taka Higashino’s winning run in Moto X Freestyle:

Then from the folks at GoPro the “day 1 highlights” which are mainly cool for the point-of-view shots:

Not everything lands smoothly at the X Games. Here Toomas Heikkinen doesn’t get enough lift during RallyCross racing practice:

But then when tricks work… if you ever had these cars as a kid, like I did… you know it doesn’t always work. But you gotta love a real-world version of the Hot Wheels double-loop dare:

First, the live shot in real time:

Then, the edited version with in-car cams:

And… I know this isn’t from this year’s X Games but… Shaun White is one crazy skilled dude. Whatever that move is at :56 in… I don’t know its technical description, but… DAMN

(clips courtesy of X Games, ESPN and YouTube. Thanks!)

Filed Under: ESPN, GoPro, Outdoor Activities, Skateboarding, X Games, YouTube Tagged With: Hot Wheels, Mobile Sports Report, Moto X, Paul Kapustka, Shaun White, X Games

GoPro’s X Games Highlight Video: Simply Amazing

July 5, 2012 by Paul Kapustka

Did you miss the X Games last week on ESPN? If so the good folks at GoPro have put together a quick mind-blowing recap video, shot completely with their portable HD HERO2 cameras. Take a quick look here to see what the X Games looks like from the athlete perspective:

Filed Under: ESPN, GoPro, Outdoor Activities, Skateboarding, X Games Tagged With: ESPN, GoPro, HD Hero2, Mobile Sports Report, X Games

Watching Golf this Week: The Greenbrier Classic

July 5, 2012 by Paul Kapustka

With two weeks to go to the next major — the British Open — you can call this weekend’s Greenbrier Classic the last big tune-up for all the big names. And there is no name bigger in golf right now than Tiger Woods, who won last week in D.C. to earn his third win of the season — and if possible, even more conjecture over whether “he’s back” or “he’s not.”

Now No. 2 on the alltime tour win lists, there’s no place better for Woods to keep stalking No. 1, since Slammin’ Sammy called this area his own. And who wore a hat better? Nobody.

The unusual appearance of Woods — and other big names like Phil Mickelson and U.S. Open champ Webb Simpson — at the Greenbrier is also open to commentary, with some folks insinuating that there are some back-door appearance fees being paid here. For the couch surfing golf fan, however, it’s all good since it means there will likely be the drama of a “big name” on the leaderboard come Sunday.

No online video, but Shot Tracker should be back in action after losing a day last weekend due to the big storms that hit Congressional.

Here’s where to follow the action:

THE GREENBRIER CLASSIC

(all times Eastern)
TV COVERAGE
Thursday, July 5 — Golf Channel, 3 p.m. — 7 p.m.
Friday, July 6 — Golf Channel, 3 p.m. — 7 p.m.
Saturday, July 7 — CBS, 3 p.m. — 6 p.m.
Sunday, July 8 — CBS, 3 p.m. — 6:30 p.m.

RADIO
SIRIUS XM (Satellite)
1 p.m. — 7 p.m., Thursday, Friday and Sunday; 12 p.m. — 6 p.m., Saturday

ONLINE
No Live@ video this week — the PGA’s live online video doesn’t return until the Barclays in late August, so you will need to get your online fix from…

PGA SHOT TRACKER
If all you want is shots and distances (which can be addicting) get your fix via Shot Tracker, providing the weather stays nice at the Greenbrier.

FACEBOOK PAGE
Of course the Greenbriar has a Facebook page. Like it.

TOP TWITTER FEEDS TO FOLLOW
The Greenbrier has its own feed.
Geoff Shackelford — well known golf writer. If you’re not following Geoff you are missing the online boat.
Golf Channel — official Golf Channel feed
@PGATOUR — official PGA Twitter feed
@StephanieWei — great golf writer who is a Twitter fiend. Check her Instagram stream for some cool shots of the Homestead, one of our favorite places.
Doug Ferguson is the lead golf writer for AP. Good Twitter insights that often aren’t part of your wire-service lead.

WHAT’S THE COURSE LIKE?
Here’s some history on the Old White TPC. And here’s the PGA’s nuts and bolts description.

WHO WON THIS THING LAST YEAR?
Scott Stallings, for his first win on tour.

LOCAL FLAVOR
The Greenbrier, if you didn’t know it, is America’s Resort and a place with some great waters to take.