Hugging Harold Reynolds

Koji Uehara to Shane Victorino: “What did the five fingers say to the face?” (via...

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:25:00 -0400

Koji Uehara to Shane Victorino: “What did the five fingers say to the face?” (via Deadspin)

Andy “Nard Dog” Bernard’s Autotuned “Sit...

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:47:58 -0400

Andy “Nard Dog” Bernard’s Autotuned “Sit Here and Cry” feat. Aaron Rodgers.

Spotted on a High School wall in North Carolina. Which begs the...

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:49:53 -0400

Spotted on a High School wall in North Carolina. Which begs the question, “Who exactly IS ExtenZe’s target market?”

Interview with Author of Caddy-Memoir "Loopers", John Dunn.

Thu, 16 May 2013 10:06:00 -0400

We had the opportunity to chat with John Dunn, the author of the new and lighthearted book ”Loopers.” Loopers chronicles his 20 years as a club-level caddy with a case of advanced wanderlust and the adventures and misadventures of his profession, and its effect on the most important relationships of his life.

HHR: Full Disclosure here - I’ve always had an uncomfortable relationship with caddies. My game isn’t nearly good enough to warrant having someone pace off yardage, clean my ball/clubs, and share the playing details of the wind, the course, etc. I already feel my father-in-law wince when I skull a chipping wedge, and the idea of having another person watching me swing is less than desirable. How do you recommend someone like me (20 handicap) who is just excited when I pick the ball clean - get on the same page with my caddie from the start? What are some of the best ways you’ve seen people break the ice and keep expectations realistic while still having fun?

John Dunn (JD): Try to look at the caddie as an ally and a resource as opposed to an intimidating judge. Remember, we WANT you to succeed, and you are definitely not the first high handicapper your caddie has been out with (and for the record a “twenty” is BELOW the national average.)

Yes, high handicappers can be some of the most challenging jobs in terms of the amount of attention required, but they can also be the most rewarding because they can benefit from a caddie’s knowledge even more than an experienced golfer. For example, instead of just getting a read, they can pay attention to the way the caddie reads the green and learn how to do it themselves - spot putting for example, ie: picking a spot halfway to the hole to roll the ball over… or on the tee - standing behind the ball and picking a spot, say, ten feet away, that is on line with the target. Little tricks like this make the task at hand a lot simpler - its a lot easier to hit a shot over a spot ten feet away than aim at something hundreds of yards away.

If you get a good caddie and get in the “zone”, you might surprise yourself and shoot the round of your life. (And you can always trash talk your father-in-law with your caddie too… we love a little gossip to pass the time between shots :)

HHR: Watching baseball, I see a real time comparison between the actual strike zone and the umpire’s strike zone. How often do caddies work against this with the variety of GPS golf applications on their player’s phones (which will only get better and more precise)? Is this a good thing or a bad thing for caddies? Do you have any apps that you use and/or recommend?

JD: GPS apps are fine… and most caddies use Rangefinders now. Using your analogy a caddie is like a pitching coach or catcher - the distance from the mound to the plate (or golf ball to the target) is a given. It is our job to judge how the elements - wind, moisture, elevation, contour - and attitude, predisposition, strengths, weaknesses of the player will affect the flight and bounce of the ball. Electronics will probably never be able to accurately judge all of those things.

There is that funny line from Caddyshack, “There’s been a lot of complaints - fooling around on the course, bad language, smoking grass, poor caddying. If you guys want to get fired. If you want to be replaced by golf carts, just keep it up.” I had a caddiemaster who used to say that all the time, but caddies will never be replaced by golf carts, nor by GPS devices either. The human element, the companionship, the luxury of being doted upon and advised cannot be electronically or robotically duplicated.

HHR: You seemed at ease with the sense that while you could walk (or often play) these amazing and exclusive courses, work and talk with influential people, and at the end of the day, those gates closed behind you. Some of these clubs sound more like Downton Abbey than anything else; in your view does etiquette become a convenient way of maintaining an antiquated class structure or is there something more honorable to it all that we need more of in today’s society

JD: I think there is definitely something exclusive about golf in our country (as opposed to Scotland where it is completely open and universal) but it is not all exclusive here. There are more public courses than ever before and the USGA is making an effort to host more Opens at public courses too - Bethpage, Chamber’s Bay, Erin Hills, etc.

And as far as etiquette goes, I think it is one of the best things about the game - manners, honesty, graciousness, discipline, character are all essential, and at private clubs these traits tend to be honored more than at public courses…. PACE of play being one of the best examples. Members of a private club will almost never hold up a fellow member, but public players often disregard other players… make them rot back there while they take photos and lean on their putters and line up every shot like it’s the US Open. We have an epidemic of slow play in this country and it is almost entirely a public golf problem.

In short, if American golfers as a whole behaved more like the Scots (who invented the game), the lines between private and public would be much less important… if you could get around your public course in three and a half hours and could play occasionally at the top private courses (as you can in Scotland, where even caddies are often the members of the clubs they work at) the whole concept of “membership” would be less critical.

HHR: The book is fairly light-hearted throughout, but at pages171-173 (of the hardcover version) the whole book takes the turn; you describe a man named Phillips who has two very distinct sides, and reveal what causes his dark side - the notion that golf itself nurtures self-delusion and how easy it is to chase that delusion well into your old age at the expense of your prime years. The irony (to me) is that how you viewed golf in this light is clearly how your dad viewed caddying. At what point in your book research did you realize that your father and your relationship had a bigger part to play in the narrative?

JD: I first decided I was going to write a book about caddying in 1998 - I even came up with the title “Loopers” back then - but my original concept was just a collection of light-hearted, social satires along the lines of PG Wodehouse’s wonderful stories. But as I kept caddying, I realized I was onto a much bigger story - that the “characters” at these clubs - both caddies and members - were much more than just caricatures… that this story could be something bigger - more like Steinbeck than Wodehouse. But seeing a “Steinbeckian” world and writingabout one are two totally different animals. It took me years to develop a “voice” and a deep enough perspective to do it justice and by that time I was one the main characters myself - a “lifer”, so to speak.

And in the end the story was more about my journey than anyone else. I decided to expose more of my own inner demons, doubts, struggles (as well as joys, hopes, lessons, etc.) than others because I didn’t feel the need, nor the authority, to single out anyone else when my story held many of the same ups and downs, feats and foibles. I may not be the most interesting caddie out there, but I certainly know myself better than any of them.

HHR: Loopers is full of great stories. Are there any that you really wanted to share but it didn’t fit the arc of the book? What’s one story that you really wanted to share but didn’t have a spot for it?

JD: There are TONS of stories I left out. A lot of them because they involved scandalous behavior and I didn’t want to embarrass anyone or score points at someone else’s expense.

I caddied a lot for Bernie and Ruth Madoff and then after the scandal broke, I caddied for an older woman who had trusted them and lost everything in the ponzi scheme. That was a very deep moment… hearing this woman’s pain and disbelief at their betrayal and her fear of the future - being suddenly, completely wiped out in her seventies… and looking back myself on the many hours I spent with them and wondering how they could be so relaxed and friendly, so at ease with themselves and so generous, while living this giant lie that would ultimately hurt so many people.

I’m not sure I’m able to draw any conclusions, and many other people are closer to the story than I am.. That is why I chose not to write about it. But it was still one of many incredible “insider” experiences that caddying afforded me.

HHR: Do you ever find yourself watching golf on TV and second-guessing the caddies?

JD: No, because I don’t know the breaks or conditions on those courses, but I do remember sitting in the stands with a fellow caddie on the seventeenth at Augusta during the third round of the Masters and we could clearly see that the caddie and his player had misread the putt to the middle left pin… it sits right on the top of an almost imperceptible ridge and they thought it was still turning towards the front, but we knew it would move ever so slightly towards the back. We said so to the guys sitting next to us and when the ball did just that and the player looked at his caddie in disbelief, they guys next to us laughed out loud. They thought it was the coolest thing that they’d just gotten that “insider” caddie view of the tournament action.

HHR: What are the courses that are still on your list to play? Where in your view is the next undiscovered Bandon Dunes?

JD: There are so many, that it will be a lifetime pursuit - the tops include Merion, Cypress, Fisher’s Island, Muirfield (Scotland), Royal County Down, Ballybunion, etc. I don’t think Bandon was ever “undiscovered”… the first course was only finished in 1999 and received a lot of attention right away.. There are already so many incredible courses that I think the next “gem” is different for everybody… the experience of playing a world class course for the first time always being a “discovery.” But I do have favorite little unknown courses that I’ve played… I’m not sure that these would be everyone else’s faves too, but for whatever reason, they are just special to my heart. I think this is true for everyone… the “greatness” of a course, ultimately being a subjective thing.

HHR: What has the response from former ‘regulars’ and/or fellow loopers to the book?

JD: Honestly, I haven’t really gotten any yet as the book doesn’t come out til Tuesday. But my friend Dawnie who caddied at St Andrews when I was there and lived and worked there for many years (and is featured in my book) loved the chapter. She even teared up and said, “It reminds me of home.” (She now lives and loops in New York.) So that was a very nice confidence booster… if most everyone in the book thinks I have eloquently and accurately described the places they know intimately, I will have succeeded.

HHR: For a long time I have advocated that golf broadcasting should have a caddy as a commentator. After reading Loopers, I’m amending my position in that it should be a local caddy if at all possible. Jim Nantz thinks he’s great at coming up with puns and waiting until just the right moment so that it sounds plausibly un-rehearsed, but I want someone who is going to give me unique detail about the course and strategies to beat it. In your view, who are some current/former caddies that the Golf Channel should be contacting and getting them on TV as commentators?

JD: I think it is a good idea, but you’d have to pull a top caddie off the Tour, like say, Phil Mickelson’s caddie Bones, he’d probably be one of the best. But good luck getting him off of Phil’s bag! I always thought David Feherty brought that funny, sardonic, insider caddie wit and knowledge to the job. So he’s prob as good as its going to get.

Btw, I totally agree with you about Jim Nance [sic]! That guy is like a can of Peaches in that awful syrup… totally artificial and unnatural, but we still love slurping it up! :)

Rumor has it these are turrible. (h/t @steakNstiffarms)

Wed, 15 May 2013 13:54:47 -0400

Rumor has it these are turrible.

(h/t @steakNstiffarms)

After digging Detroit deeper into the abyss, NBA Hall of Famer...

Wed, 15 May 2013 12:01:15 -0400

After digging Detroit deeper into the abyss, NBA Hall of Famer Dave Bing did the most reasonable thing of his administration and resigned as the city’s mayor today. One can only assume a full hostile takeover by the state is imminent. (Photo: Associated Press/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Seen on sale in Waikiki, WT Mother’s Day gift.

Mon, 13 May 2013 21:23:37 -0400

Seen on sale in Waikiki, WT Mother’s Day gift.

usatodaysports: “From my angle, I saw a guy basically flop, and...

Sat, 11 May 2013 15:19:05 -0400

usatodaysports:

“From my angle, I saw a guy basically flop, and … I’m going to leave it at that.” Tom Thibodeau has choice words for the refs.

Buffalo isn’t exactly known for being a hub of fashion....

Fri, 10 May 2013 11:44:52 -0400

Buffalo isn’t exactly known for being a hub of fashion. The Bills’ Wildcat Brad Smith tries to educate Western New Yorkers on looking a little more sharp.

He can run, pass, catch and look fly. What can’t Brad Smith do?

I’m a Freebird, What Was Your Excuse?

Thu, 09 May 2013 14:36:04 -0400

I’m a Freebird, What Was Your Excuse?

Happy Derby Day.

Sat, 04 May 2013 12:43:50 -0400

Happy Derby Day.

The Patterson-Gimlin footage of Tebow’s release was...

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 22:35:59 -0400

The Patterson-Gimlin footage of Tebow’s release was remarkable.

wilsonmorewin: To the 2013 NFL Draft Class, This is the weekend...

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 17:27:29 -0400

wilsonmorewin:

To the 2013 NFL Draft Class,

This is the weekend your life will change forever. You’ve come this far. You’ve finally reached the next step of your journey.

It took dedication, sacrifice, and hard work beyond what you may have ever imagined to get here. Now you’re joining the proud ranks of the NFL. Wilson, as American made as the league itself, will be the only game football you use from here on out.

Wilson has been part of the greatest moments in all of the NFL and now it’s your time.

We’re proud to welcome you to the Wilson family.

#WilsonWelcome

Billionaire T. Boone Pickens Sues His Son, Alleging 'Cyberbullying' - Forbes

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 15:59:47 -0400

Billionaire T. Boone Pickens Sues His Son, Alleging 'Cyberbullying' - Forbes:

One of America’s richest families has become the subject of a dark tell-all blog written by one of their own. They say it is deceitful libel designed to extort millions from patriarch T. Boone Pickens.

Boone really loves his Oklahoma State Cowboys.

His recovering drug-addict son’s Twitter feed? Not so much.

Allen Iverson, NBA icon, struggles with life after basketball

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 09:53:14 -0400

Allen Iverson, NBA icon, struggles with life after basketball:

povia:

Sadly, all the attributes that made him an icon on the court and in pop culture, were the same ones that should have been seen as warning signs that were setting him up for failure off of it. He was idolized for his individuality, whereas both he and those who were doing so were living in an alternate universe where negative personality traits somehow are

The former Hoya and NBA superstar is coping with life after basketball â and finding the adjustment difficult.

"Nailed" (or "Lenny Dykstra is a Horrible Human Being"): Interview with Author Christopher Frankie

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:20:00 -0400

Like any other mulleted Little Leaguer in the late 80’s and early 90’s, there was little I didn’t love about gritty Lenny Dykstra. Over the past few years when he went to being touted as a financial savant and then ultimately a white colar fraud who was munching on Twizzlers and being splattered on Deadspin, it was as amusing as seeing him crashing into the centerfield wall at the Vet. It was just another whimsical thing that the Dude was going to come out on top of and show his doubters how tough and resilient he was.

However, while amusing, the Lenny Dykstra Wall Street sideshow was weird…shoulder shrugging in a “good for him, I guess” kind of way, but weird.

It got weirder when the world learned of his attempted jail break of Doc Gooden from Dr. Drew’s made-for-TV rehab clinic.

With the Mitchell report verified what everyone already knew and what his giant head solidified, well, whatever happened next would be less than shocking.

Probably inevitably, Dykstra was convicted and locked up on, of all things GTA. It’s the lead-up to that incarceration that Nails’ one-time ghostwriter and confidant Chris Frankie outlines in Nailed!: The Improbable Rise and Spectacular Fall of Lenny Dykstra.

I got to speak with Frankie and somehow try to wrap my head around this insane C-F of a downfall of one of my childhood idols. After reading the book, there is no doubt I loath Lenny Dyskstra. He is a selfish, misogynistic, delusional racist. But damn, I can’t get enough of him.

Hugging Harold Reynolds: Does Lenny Dykstra have a single redeemable quality that isn’t negated by his very being?

Christopher Frankie: I write in the book about how Dykstra lost his soul and I think that’s an important point for people to take away from reading Nailed. There was an evolution - or devolution - to Lenny Dykstra. Readers will see some very dark times for Dykstra’s victims - and Dykstra himself — toward the end of the book But, he wasn’t always the raging criminal that is now in jail blaming everyone else for his predicament.

I am certainly not a Dykstra apologist by any means, but I do think it’s important to tell this story as accurately as possible and in a balanced way. When I worked for Dykstra in 2008, I saw manic behavior and a man struggling with serious demons. He could be a total jerk to people, but I also saw some positive qualities - at least early on. As several friends, family, teammates and even some employees I spoke to for the book note, Dykstra could be very decent and kind at times, especially to kids.

In the last few years, I think those qualities got buried beneath out-of-control toxic paranoia, greed and rampant drug and alcohol abuse. That in no way excuses his behavior, but I do think it makes it really difficult to assess who he really is.

HHR: How is it that seemingly intelligent people like Ron Darling and Jim Cramer actually somewhat defend (or defended Dykstra)? How does his reputation reflect on them? I even came away losing respect for former teammates who wished him well or felt sorry for him. Like the fact that they felt pity for Dykstra was somehow a bad thing and that their judgment should be questioned.

CF: There are a bunch of questions/ topics in here, so let me break them up.

First, let’s start with Cramer. Cramer didn’t defend Dykstra once things fell apart. That’s a major storyline in this book. However, Cramer bears a decent amount of responsibility for the rise of Dykstra as a stock picking savant. Even though, as I detail in Nailed, Dykstra made his own stock picks, the way he was promoted was reckless. Cramer gave Dykstra a column on his website and told HBO Real Sports reporter Bernard Goldberg that Lenny was “one of the great ones” in the stock-picking world. He also told Ben McGrath of the New Yorker that if he had still been running his hedge fund in 2008, he would have hired Dykstra to work there. Cramer has taken a lot of heat for these proclamations since Dykstra’s implosion, but has mostly chosen to keep mum on the subject. Cramer ultimately misjudged Dykstra, but because of his platform and influence, he should have known better. He had a duty to be more thorough, more responsible.

As for Ron Darling, I had a very different take than you did. He said this of Dykstra: ”He’s a complicated man who somehow lost his soul. Let’s hope when Lenny pays his debts to society that we judge him hopefully on his future good acts, not his lost years.” Darling has a personal relationship with Dykstra that stretches back more than 25 years, so for him to hope his friend can find redemption doesn’t seem unreasonable. I also hope that when Dykstra gets out of prison he chooses to do good rather than return to his evil ways.

HHR: Throughout the book I was led to wonder what your personal motives were to stick around. Warning signs were abound, no one was immune from the wrath, you weren’t being paid. What made you believe that he had the ability to successfully turn things around given the havoc that was being reeked around you?

CF: When I took the job I had no illusion that Dykstra was an organized guy. However, I thought the chaos would be temporary until we put the proper business infrastructure in place. After all, Dykstra was the media darling at the time.

The day of my first meeting with Dykstra he was being filmed for what turned out to be an overwhelmingly positive HBO Real Sports segment. He was receiving a ton of glowing press at the time. He was living in a mansion he bought from Wayne Gretzky for $18 million and had a private jet. On the business side of things, he had reportedly sold his carwashes for $55 million, had the endorsement of Wall Street heavy hitter Jim Cramer and had been writing for Cramer’s website for three years. So, all these things gave Dykstra credibility that made it easy to believe him when he would explain away a red flag that might have otherwise caused me to hit the road.

As for my motives, they were straightforward. I had quit a good job to work with Dykstra, so I was invested in seeing the stock newsletter and The Players Club succeed. I didn’t want to quit prematurely. My paychecks came in fits and starts, but the newsletter brought in money immediately, making it easier to think success was around the corner.

Of course, I later learned that the chaos introduced by Dykstra masked a lot of deeper problems that had yet to bubble to the surface. By the time I realized I needed to leave I was owed a lot of money, which I knew I would have no chance at recovering if I quit. But more importantly, I had brought a number of freelancers - friends and associates from previous jobs - into the mix and they were owed money. If I left, I knew they wouldn’t get paid and my professional reputation would be ruined.

When writing the book I knew my decision making would be subject to scrutiny and I certainly think its fair for people to decide whether my actions were reasonable. However, one thing to keep in mind is that I made a conscious decision while writing Nailed to delve into Dykstra’s backstory and provide multiple perspectives in order to fill in a number of gaps for readers. It was crucial to providing the balance I was seeking and in fully illustrating the arc of Lenny Dykstra. However, it also allows readers to know Dykstra is undoubtedly a bad dude at a time in the story when I was still trying to figure things out.

HHR: Does Dykstra actually have a track record that can be attributed to his own personal, hands-on know how?

CF: That’s a good question and I’m not sure I have a definitive answer for you. If you’re referring to his stock picking, Dykstra openly admitted that he initially knew nothing about stocks. He reached out to people he saw on TV, such as Jim Cramer and Richard Suttmeier, to get some tutoring in the world of stocks. So, it’s pretty clear he had help learning some metrics and likely in setting up his system. That doesn’t negate his record. He was still making the picks.

HHR: Was the car wash “empire” a fraud - not his own doing, but of those around him and his seizing on favorable opportunities? When he got more steadily involved did he, in fact, drive them into the ground?

CF: I don’t think it’s fair to characterize Dykstra’s success in the carwash business as fraudulent. He saw an opportunity, put some money behind it and knew how to use his name to give it visibility. I’m quite certain that if the carwashes didn’t have the Dykstra name on it, or his star power behind it, they would not have been nearly as successful. As owner, he deserves credit for that investment and those decisions.

The first carwash launched in 1993 when Dykstra was playing for the Phillies, so during the early years of that business, there was some distance between the business’ daily operations and Lenny. He hired his younger brother Kevin Dykstra, who was a minor league umpire at the time, to be the General Manager of the carwash and run the day to day operations. Lenny’s longtime friend and business manager Lindsay Jones ran the business side of things. Lenny was responsible for putting those pieces of the business in place. But, on a practical level, he was more of a figurehead.

That changed in 1998 after Lenny retired from baseball. He became much more involved and there was a lot of tumult during that timeframe. In 2003, Lindsay was either fired by Lenny or quit, depending on whose version of events you believe. The two sued each other. Kevin was subsequently fired. Lenny fired his uncle Wayne, too. Lenny then sold the businesses for $55 million.

Lenny ultimately sold the carwashes for a hefty amount, so I would characterize the carwash business as a business success, although on a personal level, the venture took its toll on his family.

HHR: How was he able to get away with what he got away with for so long?

CF: This is a major part of this story and one of the more astounding aspects of it. In 2008, the positive press - the HBO Real Sports Episode, Jim Cramer’s endorsement and the scores of newspaper and magazine articles- bought Dykstra cover when his finances started to go south.

However, in 2009 and beyond when Dykstra’s criminal behavior kicked into full swing, much of it played out in public. He was very brazen about it. He should have been stopped sooner by the authorities, but wasn’t. He openly defied the courts. He stole credit cards, damaged property, forged documents, threatened a woman with a knife, passed bogus checks, stole identities and took money from employees, etc. Many of his victims went to the police, including multiple women accusing Dykstra of sexual assault. His behavior was known to the authorities.

In fact, a hardworking member of the LAPD - Detective Juan Contreras - investigated, found nearly 20 victims in California alone, and built a wide-ranging case against Dykstra. Most of the victims were average folks. Prosecutors repeatedly declined to take the case until Dykstra stepped on the shoes of a lawyer with ties to the top levels of the LAPD. That’s when he was brought to justice for a few of his crimes.

There are still a bunch of crimes that Dykstra has not been prosecuted for in California - including many against the victims Contreras uncovered. And, to date, and no charges have been brought by authorities in New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania or any other state. Many people have been prosecuted for a lot less.

Well that was awesome. usatodaysports: An emotional scene in...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 23:37:30 -0400

Well that was awesome.

usatodaysports:

An emotional scene in Boston before the Bruins game.

The Spirit Of The Boston Marathon Will Never Be The Same

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 18:55:22 -0400

The Spirit Of The Boston Marathon Will Never Be The Same:

More than a race, the Boston Marathon has long been one of America’s happiest and most welcoming sporting events. After today’s attack, that all changes.

yank: Phillies will take a stand against bullying and honor Bailey O'Neill on May 29th.

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 17:23:20 -0400

yank: Phillies will take a stand against bullying and honor Bailey O'Neill on May 29th.:

philadelphiaphillies:

Twelve year old Bailey O’Neill, a victim of bullying, lost his life after being beaten by a classmate. On January 10th, a fellow student punched Bailey so hard in the face that he started having seizures shortly after. He was placed into a medically-induced coma and…

Shocker are Out, but Cleanthony Early is Nasty

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 21:12:44 -0400

(via)