(April 11, 2011) by Hugh Brown

UTES DOWN COLORADO 50-22

Utah’s match versus Colorado this past weekend almost was not played due to the terrible weather in Salt Lake City.  Eventually it was moved from McCarthy Field (covered by snow) to the Murray Stadium.  Played in wet freezing rain, the Utes played a good first half and pounded their way to a 50-22 victory.  As had been the case in the past, a Utah mistake set up a Colorado try just three minutes into the contest and the visitors led 5-0 to start the match. The Utes would go on to dominate the remainder of the first half, however.  Utah’s forwards put pressure on the Buffaloes scrum and Tonata Lauti fell on a loose ball in the end zone, then converted, to take a 7-5 lead.  Mike Kimball scored a try at the seventeen minute mark after some nice passes and five minutes later Cameron Loser scored another with Lauti converting.  Toward the end of the half the ball was swung wide and Kave Lauti juked his way across the try line to make it Utah 26, Colorado 5 at intermission.

A.J. Tuineau opened the second half for the Utes with a try from his wing position and Loser scored his second try (converted) to up the lead to 38-5. After the Buffaloes scored a try, Bryce Jenkins stole a ball and offloaded to Chance Fivas who scored a try down the sidelines.  Colorado never gave up, scoring two more tries, before Shon Curtis (who was making his first start at prop) put in the Utes’ final try, also converted by Tonata Lauti.  Coach Blake Burdette said the terrible weather resulted in a number of handling errors and slipped tackles, but felt good about the win.

UTES HOST AIR FORCE 3:00 SATURDAY

The Air Force Academy rugby team is disciplined and incredibly fit, but they were not considered a contender for the CPL playoffs at the start of the year as a result of a poor fall.  That has changed as the Zoomies have played well this spring.  Air Force is 3-1 (tied with Utah in the CPL West) with victories over Wyoming 52-0, Colorado 36-15, and Colorado State 46-10 (along with a trouncing at the hands of BYU).  This coming Saturday they invade Salt Lake City.  The match has been moved to a 3:00 start on the Ute Soccer Field.  Utah’s seniors will be honored before the match.

UTAH WARRIORS EDGED IN THE SNOW

The Utah Warriors played their match against Old Puget Sound Beach on an inch of snow and a gusting wind on Saturday in Salt Lake City.  The weather conditions kept the Utah backs in check and OPSB kept most of their play in the forward pack.  Puget Sound led 13-10 at the half and then upped the lead to 18-10 before the Warriors scored a converted try at the end of the match to make it close.  OPSB 18, Utah Warriors 17.  These two teams are fighting for second place in the West Conference as San Francisco Golden Gate swamped the Denver Barbarians 52-24.  The Warriors will host San Francisco this Saturday in at 4:00 pm match.

UTAH H.S./U19

The two top U19 rugby teams in the United States met two weekends ago and Highland defeated United 34-15.  The loss dropped United to number three in the April 7 U19 rankings as California’s Belmont Shore slipped into the second position. United had tied number Red Mountain, ranked 9^th out of Arizona, in an earlier match.  Snow Canyon is currently 15^th in the high school rankings.  Reported scores this past weekend:  Desert Hills 32, Las Vegas Aces 3; West Side Warriors 52, Dixie HS 12.

NORTHSIDE TOPS STEELERS

The Northside Tigers handed Provo an 18-15 loss two weekends ago.  It was the Steelers’ first loss to a Utah team in two years.  Provo still leads Utah Division I club play and were to play this past weekend, but no score has been reported.

CPL RUGBY SCORES

The big match of the week, played on Sunday, was California against St. Mary’s.  Both teams were undefeated in CPL play. Cal entered the match 21-0 while St. Mary’s was 10-1 (having split its two games with the University of British Columbia).  The Golden Bears of Berkeley prevailed, but in an exciting and match: Cal 60, St. Mary’s 34.

West:  BYU 70, Arizona 12; Arizona State 29, Wyoming 0; Air Force 46, Colorado State 10.  Pacific:  UCLA 24, Claremont 10; San Diego State 45, Cal Poly 19.  East: Army 40, Delaware 13; Dartmouth 34, Rutgers 31; Navy 24, Kutztown 20; Penn State 22, Ohio State 17.  Mid-South: Arkansas State 70, Tennessee 23; Life 55, Notre Dame 3; LSU 39, Oklahoma 5.

CPL West Standings

TOP EAST CPL – Army & Navy (4-0 20)

TOP MIDSOUTH CPL – Arkansas State (4-0 20); Life (4-1 20)

TOP PACIFIC CPL – Cal (5-0 25); St. Mary’s (4-1 20)

CPL Rankings (Apr 11 – Only college matches are included in the won-lost records)

UTES’ 2011 SPRING SCHEDULE (9-2)

Bolded teams are College Premier League matches

Take Falcon Ridge Road up to Hard Way and take a left. You will see the soccer fields as soon as you turn left. You can change the map to satellite and zoom in and see the fields. I hope this helps.

This is a Hot…Hot…Hot (103 degrees) Hot!

My nephew Ryan Malin…Hot and hard work.

Becoming a Strongman
For the Spectrum & Daily News

What boy wouldn’t like to be strong and look like his heroes? Ryan Malin, of Washington City, was no different while growing up watching body builders.

“When I was a kid, I watched the strongest man competition on television,” Malin said. “They had great strength. I wanted to be like them. They were my heroes, like Arnold Schwarzenegger. I just liked the idea of being big.”

At 15, Ryan was 6-foot-2-inches and weighed 115 pounds and was on the wrestling team at Pine View High School.

“I started out being tall and scrawny,” Malin said. “Being little, I wanted to change that and started working on body building.”

Malin started competing in body building at the age of 17. His coaches, including wrestling coach Vance Casperson at Pine View High School, encouraged him to train.

“(Casperson) taught me something very important, how to feel good about myself,” Malin said.

He placed first in freestyle at state and fifth at state for wrestling. His mentor was Marty Haughton Boding at Gold’s Gym in St. George.

In 2003, at 19, the many hours spent at body building paid off. Malin placed second as Teen Mr. Utah competing in Bountiful.

“It was fun for me,” he said, “but appearance is all part of the body building, whereas the Strongman Competition is strength, so I switched to that sport.”

ow at 25, 6-foot-4-inches and weighing 300 pounds, Malin is competing in the Strongman Competitions.”The Strongman competition is designed around the work industry of pure strength of feats like pulling trucks, flipping cars, keg toss, log lift or throwing the Atlas Stones,” Malin said. “I like doing them all and train to do them.”

Training takes at least 1 1/2 to 2 hours six days a week at home as well as at Gold’s Gym and the Academy, where Malin works.

Working out with the weights on a daily basis helps him keep in good condition. He says it is also good to get a good night’s rest.

“I don’t really have a regular time for bed or when I get up,” he said. “I’m a night owl and not a morning person but it’s important for me to get eight hours straight sleep, which I do. Everyday it is different when I go to bed and when I arise.”

He believes it is also important to have a good attitude and to have confidence.

“My favorite saying is taken from one of my favorite movies ‘The Departed.’ It is this, ‘I don’t want to be a product my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me,’” Malin said. “My parents also taught me that ‘You can do and achieve anything you want to.’ These thoughts are what I try to teach the kids I mentor at the academy.”

Competing in Strongman

This is Ryan’s first year competing in Strongman events. In his first competition in Phoenix, he placed seventh out of 40 heavy weights in the Dead Lift Medley. He lifted in five different events that day dead lifting 700 pounds, the 600 pound bar, and the 700 dead lift weights.

In the Huntington Beach, Calif., competition, Malin placed seventh out of 25, pulling a 40,000 semi-truck. In July, he was also training for the Colorado Strongman Competition.

Switching from body building to strongman competition also had a lot to do with diet.

“I hated the body building diet I had to follow, which was three months of eating a strict diet of protein, rice and broccoli throughout the day,” he said. His diet now includes anything and as much as he wants to get at least 8,000 calories a day.

He attributes his success to his sponsor, Coral Canyon Chiropractic.

“I would not even be able to go to these events without my wonderful sponsor …” Malin said. “When I was injured at one of the meets, the chiropractor adjustments and the supplements helped my healing recovery time in less time.”

Coral Canyon Chiropractic is a partnership with Dr. Kelly Murie, Dr. Joshua Carr and Dr. Adam Murie. They met Malin when he came into their practice because of an injury he incurred while training.

“We work on his body to help him have performance enhancement to avoid injury, hopefully, during competition,” Murie said. “He is a special guy to take the rigors of the competition.”

They use the Active Release Technique, which effectively restores normal function to tissues in the body by breaking down the fibrous adhesions that cause tension and pain through combined pressure and stretching in a specialized manner.

“Through restoring range of motion to the joints and muscles, Ryan is more effectively able to strengthen more of the muscle fibers of a region,” Murie said. “Without it, he could not fully move through a full range of motion. Chiropractic manipulation and ART restore that motion so he can heal faster, but also strengthens better.”

Currently employed at the Abundant Life Academy in Kanab, Malin counsels with youth, ages 18, mentoring, working on self-esteem and teaching them lifting techniques.

“I like to give,” Malin said. “It is a very rewarding position to work with these boys.”

Malin’s future plans include preparing to go to nationals. He plans to start his own business by opening a fitness center in Hurricane. He is also in the process of developing a supplement drink.

Thaya Gilmore
St. George Spectrum News

The hot sports season has begun.

It’s officially hot in St. George, Utah, Mesquite, Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada and surrounding areas.

This season we’ll have Rugby National Championships pics, Strongman (Iron-men) competitors interview, Volleyball defending National Champions review, and an Ironman survivors interviews from St. George’s first Ironman event and much more…as it’s heating up!

Real Salt Lake Soccer

This is the first time that a High School National Championship has been held in Utah. Utah brings four rugby teams out of eight total.

The 19 time national champions Highland from Sugerhouse, Snow Canyon Warriors from St. George (In there second year), Lowland from West Jordan and United from Alphine.

As a fan and player of Rugby it is super awesome to see this come on the heals of Brigham Young University Rugby Club wining the College National Championships for the first time last year.      www.usarugby.org

Invictus…A story about South Africa coming together after apartheid during Nelson Mandela’s Presidency and having their rugby team beat the New Zealand All Blacks…The Best Team in the world.

Last but not least the movie Forever Strong…with a story of growing up and playing rugby at Highland High School.

For those who might say…who plays rugby anyway? Click on USARugby to watch a video of who does play rugby!

Rugby has 2,500 coaches, 85,000 members strong and is one of the fastest growing sports in America.

The World Cup of Rugby is the 3rd largest sporting event in the world.

Talk about a large fraternity…after a rugby game it is tradition for the teams who played to socialize afterwards, with the home team providing refreshments for the traveling team. Do you know of any other sport in the world that even wants to talk to anyone from the other team after a competitive game?

KNOCK KNOCK…Come on in mate!

This is why it is one of the fastest growing sports today.

Coming soon to the Olympic Games near you.

Today I have quest writer:

ISRAEL GUTIERREZ from the Miami Herald… with Just my opinion.

New Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre looks on during NFL football training camp, in Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009 in Eden Prairie, Minn.

The 39-year-old quarterback took a plane to Minnesota on Tuesday, drove to Vikings training camp and was in a helmet and pads less than 90 minutes after arriving.

New Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre looks on during NFL football training camp, in Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009 in Eden Prairie, Minn. The 39-year-old quarterback took a plane to Minnesota on Tuesday, drove to Vikings training camp and was in a helmet and pads less than 90 minutes after arriving.

Favre was for retirement before he was against it

It’s worth remembering one more time that Brett Favre was for retirement before he was against it.

So even if you believe the guy is genuinely conflicted, as opposed to selfish, you’ve got to admit: It’s quite a coincidence that Favre has managed to retire twice in 11 months without missing a single game.

What’s really shocking is not that he’s back, or that the Vikings front office broke nearly every rule in the book about team-building to make it happen. Or that closing in on 40, Favre is willing to risk getting hurt or turning his legacy into a permanent punchline.

Brett Favre is a Viking: That’s all I came back for is to win’

Hundreds of fans flocked to the Vikings’ practice complex late Tuesday morning, awaiting his arrival. Satellite trucks and cameras littered the grass just across the street from Winter Park. Security was stationed in the parking lot and on the roof. A helicopter hovered.

And then at 12:10 p.m., CDT the focus of long flirtation arrived.

Brett Favre was a Viking.

All of this Michael Vick stuff must have worked Brett Favre up into a lather.

After watching from afar as Vick’s jaw-dropping signing by the Philadelphia Eagles was followed by the “Weekend of Vick” on news outlets nationwide, Favre decided he could do us one better.

And just when our jaws were beginning to heal, too.

How does Brett Favre compare with other 40-year-old NFL quarterbacks?

Only one quarterback in NFL history has made the Pro Bowl at age 40 or older, and none has started a playoff game.

Brett Favre and the Vikings hope those things change.

Favre, who turns 40 on Oct. 10, postponed retirement for a second time on Tuesday to play for the Vikings. He will celebrate his birthday a day before the Vikings play at the Rams in St. Louis.

It wasn’t too long ago that any Brett Favre story would draw a roll of the eyes, a sigh and quick click of the remote or mouse.

It was aggravating to watch this grown man waffle, and quite frankly, it was embarrassing for him.

Even the emotional news conference announcing his first retirement (or was it his third — who can remember?) lost all substance when he came back and claimed he was pushed into that choice.

That has long passed, though.

This latest sneak attack from Favre has turned him into — no offense to the Dos Equis guy — the most interesting man in the world.

There’s something about this latest decision to return, just days after saying there was no chance, that makes you want to watch every step that he takes from now on.

This man sucked everyone into his attempt to return from a sad little surgery; made it as mid-America-friendly as possible by working out on a torn-up field with high school students who have gotten more airtime on ESPN than two-thirds of the Dolphins roster; and then made a bold proclamation that he was, officially — again — done.

Now it turns out that was just his way to avoid training camp? That he was, again, deceiving everyone listening just so he can have a few more days off?

It’s impressive in its lack of professionalism. It’s remarkable in its laziness. It’s astounding in its egocentricity.

And what is most extraordinary is that he’s about to get away with all of it because he’s Brett Favre, and he learned long ago that if you break a few records, act like you’re having fun doing it and speak with a charming accent, you’re immediately coated in Teflon.

A SELFISH ACT

Favre apparently was so insistent about skipping training camp that he was willing to risk the health of the locker room he’s about to step in before even introducing himself. There has to be an overwhelming feeling — at least on the offensive side of the team — that they have been duped. And that can only lead to issues as the season progresses.

Thomas Jones and Kerry Rhodes didn’t hold back when it came to questioning Favre after their season together with the New York Jets. So why would any Vikings player choose to when things begin to go wrong in Minnesota?

How could you not want to see how this plays out?

After all the negative publicity he has had to manipulate in recent weeks, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell must be so excited about the attention this will bring to one of his small-market teams he will need a horse tranquilizer just to sit still.

Don’t get confused, though. As interesting as it’s going to be to watch, this still is a despicable act by one of the league’s supposed good guys.

If any player in the league who is held in lower esteem than Favre (and that’s about 99.8 percent of the NFL) was to attempt this, he not only would be ridiculed publicly, he probably would be ostracized by his new teammates.

Favre is doing everything you would advise your 10-year-old son against: putting yourself before the team, not giving yourself every chance to prepare for success, creating tension with teammates. And, yet, he’s welcomed with applause from strangers and helicopters hovering over his first practice.

It’s just another scene, hopefully a closing one, in what has been one of the most dramatic sports stories ever told. Favre’s life isn’t just a movie in waiting. It’s a trilogy that can stand up to the Lord of the Rings epic.

He grew up in a tiny town, where he played five positions for his dad on his high school football team. In college, his exploits included beating Alabama just six weeks after a nasty car accident forced doctors to remove 30 inches of his small intestine. He went from anonymous backup to beloved starter by engineering a game-winning drive in his first real action with Green Bay.

THE LEGEND CONTINUES

He won a Super Bowl. He gifted Michael Strahan a sack record. He had a remarkable passing display one day after his father died — the same father who wouldn’t let him throw even 10 passes a game in high school because they ran a wishbone offense.

His wife fought breast cancer. His family home was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. He broke every significant passing record. He retired. Came back. Retired. Came back. Retired. Came back. And now he’s wearing the colors of one of his career-long rivals as the world cheers him on — except for, perhaps, members of his own team.

Drama, drama, drama. I mean, it’s at least a miniseries that ESPN can run during those slow summer months. Favre is like that show Lost. It would be incredibly annoying if it didn’t keep sucking you in for more.

Even if it’s now for all the wrong reasons, Favre has become must-see QB.

I guess this is a must see…will you be watching as preseason ends and the real season begins to tell…will Farve effect the Vikings chance to get to the big game.

It seems in recent years, the people that watch sports have begun to take the term “sports fanatic” a little too literally.

It seems more and more people will curse at children and the elderly, throw things, and even enter the field of play, all for the love of their team.

It happened again the other night in the so-called “friendly confines” of Wrigley field, when a fan threw a beer on Phillies outfielder Shane Victorino as he attempted to make a catch.

Indeed, going to sporting events and rooting for the visiting team has become a dangerous activity.

But the violent fan base is not the only bad fans out there, there are numerous factors that go into determining the worst fans.

So, with that in mind, here are 10 fan bases in sports to avoid.

10. Chicago Cubs fans

The Shane Victorino thing aside, Cubs fans make this list for their continuous “woe is me” attitude. Nobody likes a sports fan who feels sorry for themselves, and Cubs fans are the best at that. If the Cubs lose three games in a row in April they start thinking about next year. I mean, c’mon.

9. New York Rangers fans

Somebody needs to tell these people that the New York metro area actually has two other hockey teams.

New York Rangers fans act like they own the hockey world, and frown upon anyone who roots for the Devils and Islanders, despite the fact that both clubs have won more Stanley Cups in the past 50 years than the Rangers (Islanders 4, Devils 3, Rangers 1).

8. Boston Red Sox fans

Remember that nerd from high school that developed some computer chip, struck it rich, and now thinks he’s hot stuff? Well, that’s the Red Sox fan in a nutshell.

Only a few years ago they were the AL version of Cubs fans, always down, always pessimistic, always willing to accept failure. They were loveable losers.

Then they win a couple of rings and, BAM, now they’re Yankee fans. Nothing like forgetting your roots. Sickening.

7. St. Louis Cardinals fans

People have referred to them as the best fan base in baseball. They’re always happy and they never boo their own team or players. It’s like having a fan base full of Mr. Rogers clones and kindergarten teachers.

Cheering and saying good job for bad play is OK in youth sports, but not for professionals. I’m sorry, but if somebody on my team strikes out four times I’m not giving him a standing ovation, period.

These fans make the rest of us normal people look bad.

6. New Jersey Nets fans

Do they even exist?

If they do, then this is how pathetic they are…when the Nets were on their way to the Finals against the LA Lakers, I decided to go to a Eastern Conference championship game against the Celtics. I drove to the arena, walked up to the ticket window, and purchased two tickets on the day of the game. Empty seats for a conference title game means you really suck as a fan base.

I bet they’ll be the first to cry fowl when the Nets move to Brooklyn, too.

5. Philadelphia Eagles fans

These are the same fans who hate their quarterback, despite the fact that he’s never in trouble, played with a broken ankle, and lead the Eagles to five NFC title games and one Super Bowl in ten seasons.

And don’t even think about wearing your teams colors in “The Linc,” I once saw them smack a cheese head off a 10 year old kid’s head.

But what do you expect from fans who once threw snowballs at Santa Claus.

4.  Dallas Cowboys fans

Nothing is more pathetic than an elitist fan base who’s team hasn’t even won a playoff game since Clinton was President. Still, Cowboys fans will argue how good they are every year (even when they’re not), how Tony Romo is the best QB in the division (even though he has yet to win a big game, while McNabb has been to five championship games and one Super Bowl, and Eli Manning has won a Super Bowl), and how they’re the Yankees of the NFL (even though the Steelers have won more championships).

And when they have no argument, they just revert to talking about the 1990s.

3. New York Yankee fans

The elitist snobs of the fan world, the Yankees have won more championships than any team in any sport, and their fans will let you know it.

Never mind that the Yankees haven’t won it all in almost 10 years, didn’t make the playoffs last year, and are currently behind the rival Boston Red Sox in championships this decade, the Yankee fan will still walk with his nose in the air, as they make their way to their $2,500 seats, to watch their $200 million team, while still complaining that the Yankees didn’t get Roy Halladay at the trade deadline.

The Yankee fan has a sense of entitlement, and little sense of fiscal responsibility or reality.

2. Oakland Raiders fans

These people are just lunatics, period.

They paint their faces, dress like Tina Turner in Mad Maxx, and actually believe that despite weighing only 150 pounds, wearing face paint, a mohawk, and shoulder pads with foam spikes will strike fear in the hearts of pro football players who are big enough to get tackled by Ray Lewis and live to tell about it.

And their team still sucks.

1. Philadelphia Phillies fans

If Philadelphia had 10 sports teams, than chances are no other city would crack this list.

For years these fans simply used the baseball season to pass the time until it was time to travel to Lehigh University to watch Eagles training camp, but now that the Phillies are champions, there are Phillies jerseys and caps all over the place, more and more McNabb jerseys being replaced by Howard jerseys.

As a Mets fan I have personally had my manhood challenged, my wife and son insulted, food and drinks thrown at me, walked to my seats amid chanting of @$$ hole, and had a grown man tell my children they suck for being Mets fans. I can personally attest to these individuals being vile, bottom feeding, fickle sports fans.

These same people gave the best third baseman ever, their very own Mike Schmidt, a terrible time his entire career, and once threw batteries at JD Drew (come to think of  it, who wouldn’t love to throw batteries at JD Drew).

They are simply the worst fan base in all of sports period.

Honorable Mention: New York Mets fans

These people love to have their hearts broken, wallow in their own misery, and still make signs that say “Ya Gotta Believe,” even when their team is seven games under .500 and 12 games out of first.

The worst type of this fan, is one who is so disgusted with his team that he makes up a list of terrible fan bases just so he can put the Yankees and Phillies in the top five, because he has no other argument against those fans this year other than “you guys suck.”

So there it is, proof that violence isn’t the only factor in determining a terrible fan base. Sometimes it’s something as simple as living in Philadelphia.

Note from the author: This article is a joke meant to poke fun at ourselves for taking our sports so seriously. I even take a shot at myself at the end for even writing this article. If I offended anyone, I appologize.

by Lou Cappetta [HUMOR] Written on August 15, 2009
Lou Cappetta

CHASKA, Minn. — Y.E. Yang shook his fists and shouted with joy over a victory felt around the world. Equally stunning was the sight of Tiger Woods, standing over the final putt of the PGA Championship with nothing at stake.

The final major of the year delivered a pair of shocking developments Sunday.

Yang, a 37-year-old from South Korea who was in PGA Tour qualifying school nine months ago, became the first Asian-born player to capture a major title with a series of spectacular shots on the back nine of Hazeltine.

Fantastic Finish

Y.E. Yang’s final 49 holes illustrated just how good the 37-year-old was down the stretch at Hazeltine. After starting the tournament 5-over par, Yang regrouped to shoot 13-under en route to his first major championship win.

Thru 23 Holes     Final 49 Holes
Yang     +5     -13
Woods     -4     -1

Even more memorable was the guy he beat.

Woods was 14-0 when he was atop the leaderboard going into the final round of a major. He had never lost any tournament on American soil when leading by more than one shot.

Yang showed everyone how to beat him, from the stars who had failed so many times over the last dozen years, and perhaps to an emerging generation of golfers in Asia, the fastest-growing golf market in the world.

“It’s not like you’re in an octagon where you’re fighting against Tiger and he’s going to bite you, or swing at you with his 9-iron,” Yang said through an interpreter. “The worst that I could do was just lose to Tiger. So I really had nothing much at stake.”

When he saw Woods in birdie range at the 14th, Yang chipped in from 60 feet for eagle to take the lead. Clinging to a one-shot lead, a tree slightly blocking his view of the flag on the 18th hole and Woods in the fairway, Yang hit the shot of his life. His 3-iron hybrid cleared a bunker and settled 12 feet away.

And with that, Yang slew golf’s giant.

Gene Wojciechowski with Bob Harig

Gene Wojciechowski and Bob Harig discuss Y.E. Yang’s stunning upset of Tiger Woods on Sunday of the PGA Championship. Is it fair to say Tiger choked?

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Yang made the final birdie to close with a 2-under 70, giving him a three-shot victory when Woods missed yet another short par putt and had a 75, his worst score ever in the final round of the major when he was in the last group.

“All the other 14 major championships I’ve won, I’ve putted well for the entire week,” Woods said. “And today, that didn’t happen.”

Instead, it was Yang posing with the trophy and giving the longest press conference of his life. When he finally left Hazeltine, another celebration awaited. He has been eating every night at the Hoban Korean Restaurant, and the owners kept the doors open.

“They were supposed to be closed,” said Michael Yim, an IMG agent who works with Yang. “All the staff and the owner’s family were outside the store, giving us a standing ovation. They said, ‘If you can come at 3 in the morning, we would have kept it open.’ Their eyes were teary. What just happened is huge.”

For Woods, it was the second time he has finished runner-up in the PGA Championship at Hazeltine, both times to a surprise winner. Seven years ago, he birdied the last four holes and came up one short of Rich Beem.

This time, Woods made one mistake after another over the last four holes, mostly with his putter.

“I did everything I needed to do, except for getting the ball in the hole,” Woods said. “Just didn’t make the putts when I needed to make them.”

Yang’s victory is massive for Asia. Perhaps even more significant is the way he stood up to Woods, the world’s No. 1 player whose heritage is half-Asian through his Thai-born mother.

Yang and K.J. Choi are the only PGA Tour players who learned golf in South Korea before coming to America. South Koreans have had far more success on the LPGA Tour, with seven players combining to win 11 majors.

This might be my last win as a golfer. But it sure is a great day.
PGA Championship winner Y.E. Yang

“Golf in Asia has been growing steadily, so to have the guy who finally found a way to beat Tiger on Sunday is so big for the region,” Geoff Ogilvy said. “It’s hard for us here in the U.S. to imagine the impact this will have.”

His victory came four days after golf was recommended to become part of the Olympics in 2016.

Yang was No. 110 in the world, his only victory on the PGA Tour coming in March at the Honda Classic, on a course across the street from headquarters of the PGA of America. He was best known for holding off Woods at the HSBC Champions in China three years ago.

This stage was far bigger and Yang was even better.

He trailed by two shots going into the final round, caught Woods at the turn, and was tied with five holes to play when Yang chipped in for eagle on the 14th. When it looked as though nerves were getting the best of him on a three-putt bogey at the 17th, he delivered his two most important shots that brought him an unlikely victory.

“This might be my last win as a golfer,” Yang said. “But it sure is a great day.”

Y.E. Yang became the first Asian golfer to win a major championship title, besting Tiger Woods by three strokes at Hazeltine on Sunday.

Yang still had enough strength left to hoist his golf bag over his head, and later the 44-pound Wanamaker Trophy. After a long and tearful embrace with his wife, Young Ju Park, he walked across a bridge saluting thousands of fans who couldn’t believe what they saw.

In a year of spoilers at the majors, this might have been the biggest: Yang topped the mighty Tiger Woods.

Kenny Perry was poised to become the oldest Masters champion at 48 until Angel Cabrera beat him in a playoff. Phil Mickelson, reeling from news that his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, was on the verge of finally winning the U.S. Open until Lucas Glover outplayed him over the final few holes. And just last month, 59-year-old Tom Watson was an 8-foot par putt away from winning the British Open, then lost in a playoff to Stewart Cink.

Woods losing a two-shot lead in the final round of a major? That was unthinkable — until a breezy afternoon at Hazeltine.

Yang finished at 8-under 280 and won $1.35 million, along with a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour and the majors. He became the first player since John Daly in 1991 to win the PGA Championship after going to Q-school the previous year.

One more bonus: His victory put him on the International team for the Presidents Cup in October in San Francisco.

Asian-born players had come close in the majors — Liang-Huan Lu of Taiwan finishing one shot behind Lee Trevino at the 1971 British Open, and T.C. Chen’s famous two-chip gaffe that cost him a chance at the 1985 U.S. Open, where he was runner-up to Andy North.

This could be a big breakthrough for Asian players, especially with a World Golf Championship starting this year in China.

Even South Korea’s president, Lee Myung-bak, got up before sunrise to watch the tournament live. He later phoned Yang to offer his congratulations.

“I woke up at dawn today to watch the broadcast, and you played in a calm manner,” Lee told Yang, according to Lee’s office. “First of all, you enhanced our people’s morale by winning the major title for the first time as an Asian.”

As for the PGA Championship, what remains is whether it will be remembered more for Yang’s victory for Woods losing a 54-hole lead for the first time in a major.

“He went out there and executed his game plan,” Woods said. “He was doing exactly what you have to do, especially in these conditions. I think he played beautifully.”

This was a two-man race throughout the back nine, especially after defending champion Padraig Harrington imploded in the group ahead of them on the par-3 eighth. Harrington was one shot behind when he hit two shots in the water — including a chip from behind the green, just as he did last week at Firestone — and took a quintuple-bogey 8. He shot a 78.

Woods three-putted for bogey at No. 4 for the second straight day and made bogey from the bunker at No. 8, sending the final pairing to the back nine in a tie for the lead.

Woods regained the lead with a 3-wood on the 606-yard 11th hole onto the green, only to give it back with a bogey on the 12th after he hit a wild hook into the trees. He twice missed birdie putts inside 10 feet — at No. 10 and No. 13 — and then momentum shifted to Yang.

With the tees again moved forward to 301 yards, Yang came up just short. He watched Woods play a good bunker shot to 8 feet, then knocked in his chip.

“That’s when I thought, ‘I do have a chance,’” Yang said.

He was steady. Woods was sloppy.

Woods chunked a 3-wood trying to for the green in two at the 15th, then missed another 10-foot birdie putt to tie. Both bogeyed the 17th hole, Woods with a shot he thought was pure until it landed into thick rough over the green.

“Tiger’s good, but he could always have a bad day,” Yang said. “Guess this is one of those days.”

Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press

This years marathon is projected to be even larger. We will have additional runners training for the Ford triathlon this year also.

What for many athletes gathered here will be the highlight of their sporting careers officially got under way Saturday afternoon as Prime Minister Stephen Harper opened the 2009 Canada Summer Games.
The P.E.I. event mark the 40th anniversary of the Summer Games which began in Halifax. Since then, it’s come to evolve into the country’s largest single sporting event, celebrating athletic achievement amongst the country’s youth.
The program has been a breeding ground for some of the country’s best athletes, namely basketball star Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns, baseball stars Russell Martin of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Jeff Francis of the Colorado Rockies and Olympians Bruny Surin, Anne Montminy, Adam Van Koeverden and Alexander Despatie, to name a few.
Though it was a glorious day in Summerside Saturday — 28 degrees and a cloudless sky — the Games’ opening was staged inside — for whatever reason — which didn’t deter close to 3,000 patrons who filled the brand new Credit Union Place as each of the 10 provinces and Nunavut paraded into the multi-purpose facility (it holds a pair of hockey rinks, swimming pool, gym and bowling lanes) to a boistrous applause.
Flagbearer Rebecca Power, a sailor, led the Newfoundland and Labrador contingent into the ceremonies.
Newfoundlaand is represented by 369 athletes, coaches and mission staff — 199 of whom will be involved in the first week of the Games followed by 170 in the second week.
The first half of the Games will be centered mainly in the Summerside area of the province, while Week 2 switches to the Charlottetown region.
Week 1 sports are male and female basketball, cycling, diving, rugby, sailing, female soccer, softball, tennis, triathlon, beach volleyball, wrestling and rowing. The Week 2 sports are athletics, baseball, golf, male soccer, swimming, male and female volleyball, female wrestling and canoe-kayak.
For updates throughout the course of the games check out The Telegram’s website daily.

Could we be in for results like this with the Mesquite Regional Complex, St. George Marathon, Ford Triathlon and the Huntsman World Senior games.

It would seem that we always do it a little different than the Canadian, but the ongoing sporting events that will be held in and around the St. George, Utah and Mesquite, Nevada will definitely affect people all the way to Las Vegas.