I Dig Sports
A special tournament for two names on first day duty
Notable names stand out, two in particular; the names of Chinese Taipei’s Chuang Chih-Yuan and China’s Sun Yingsha.
Chuang Chih-Yuan is one of two players who has finished in runners up spot in the men’s singles event at an ITTF World Tour tournament in Japan, the other is the host nation’s Maharu Yoshimura.
Four years ago in Kobe Maharu Yoshimura was beaten in the final by China’s Xu Xin, in 2004 Chuang Chih-Yuan suffered at the hands of Chen Qi, also from China; but it is the result of 2002 that had a major bearing on the career of Chuang Chih-Yuan. He was beaten in the final by Kalinikos Kreanga of Greece, it was a defeat from which he learned, at the end of year Grand Finals in Stockholm he secured the men’s singles title, the player he beat in the final, a certain Kalinikos Kreanga.
At the time the success was quite an upset, Kalinikos Kreanga at nine years the senior being the player with the experience, now 17 years later, 38 years of age, very much Chuang Chih-Yuan is the player with the experience.
Meanwhile, for Sun Yingsha, the 2017 ITTF World Tour Japan Open represented a milestone; it is to this date her one and only such women’s singles success on the ITTF World Tour. She beat colleague Chen Meng to seal the title before the following week reaching the final on home soil in China where Ding Ning halted progress.
For Chuang Chih-Yuan and Sun Yingsha the ITTF World Tour Japan Open has been special; for whom could it be special this year?
HOLLY, Mich. – The Must See Racing Sprint Car Series presented by Engine Pro will be part of a unique double bill this weekend as ‘The World’s Fastest Short Track Cars’ invade Lake Erie Speedway for the first time.
Must See Racing will team up with the Race of Champions Asphalt Modified Tour for co-headlining features at the three-eighths-mile Pennsylvania oval on Saturday, June 15.
Originally slated to be deeper into the series’ championship sojourn, the Lake Erie stop will now be the second Must See Racing event of the year, after weather-related and other scheduling issues shuffled the look of the winged 410ci asphalt sprint car tour’s season calendar.
Saturday’s appearance by Must See Racing marks the first sprint car event at the facility since the mid-2000s, when the Hoosier Outlaw Sprint Series took to Lake Erie for a mid-season stop.
“Jim (Hanks, Must See Racing president) and I worked together for quite a while to make this happen, and we’ve been very eager to get to this point and see this show play out,” said track operations manager A.J. Moore. “All of us with Lake Erie Speedway think this double-bill will definitely bring an extra level of excitement to the summer event that we’ve held with the Race of Champions modifieds which wasn’t there before. It’ll be one heck of a show and a very unique ticket for the fans.
“We’re extremely excited for our inaugural appearance at Lake Erie Speedway and we’re looking forward to adding Lake Erie to the list of venues we’ve competed at over the course of our 10 years,” added Hanks. “Our drivers are eager to compete there, and we hope to be able to put on both a show of speed and wheel-to-wheel racing for our fans.”
Four-time defending Must See Racing champion Jimmy McCune leads the series’ cast of characters into Lake Erie, sitting atop the point standing by six markers over his nephew, Anthony McCune.
Charlie Schultz is chasing the two McCunes, ranked third in points despite a rough opening race at Anderson (Ind.) Speedway in May, with Tom Jewell and Joe Liguori filling out the top five.
All five of those drivers are expected to be in attendance at Lake Erie, as well as National Sprint Car Hall of Famer Jeff Bloom, Michigan Motorsports Hall of Famer Jason Blonde, NASCAR modified ace Bobby Santos III, Canadian title contender Ryan Litt, as well as rookies Bobby Komisarski and Brenden Torok.
In addition to the Must See Racing sprint cars and the Race of Champions modifieds, the Race of Champions Four Cylinder Dash Series and Race of Champions TQ midgets will also be on the racing card.
Pit gates open at Lake Erie on Saturday at 11 a.m., with hot laps kicking off at 3:30 p.m., qualifying at 5 p.m., heat races at 6 p.m. and features rolling off at 7 p.m. following opening ceremonies.
Brittany Force Has Big Plans For Father’s Day Weekend
BRISTOL, Tenn. – It’s Father’s Day Weekend and there’s no place Brittany Force would rather be then Bristol Dragway for this weekend’s 19th annual NHRA Thunder Nationals.
The former Top Fuel world champion has always held the picturesque track in high regard and with her legendary father, 16-time Funny Car world champ John Force, joining her in Thunder Valley, Brittany Force is planning something special during the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series race.
That includes her second victory of the season in her 11,000-horsepower Advance Auto Parts dragster, but Brittany Force also has something else up her sleeve for her father over the course of the weekend at the fan-favorite track. Her first win at Bristol Dragway would certainly be meaningful as well, especially if she can share the winner’s circle with her father for the first time.
“It’s my favorite racetrack on the circuit,” said Brittany Force, who has nine Top Fuel wins. “Thunder Valley, there’s nothing like it and it’s always special because it falls on Father’s Day. My dad doesn’t know, but I have something special for him, just a gift I want to give him to let him know how much I appreciate him and everything he’s done for me and everything he’s taught me. I think he’s going to be blown away by it. It’s going to be pretty cool.”
Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel) and Ron Capps (Funny Car) were last year’s winners of the event. It is the 11th of 24 events this year, and with a Friday night Primetime qualifying session starting at 7:30 p.m., Brittany Force will have a chance to start the weekend in impressive fashion.
She has already recorded three No. 1 qualifiers this season, picking up a win in Houston, advancing to three final rounds and running a race-best 3.690 seconds at 332.67 mph last weekend in Topeka. With Bristol coming in the midst of a rigorous four-race stretch, Brittany Force wants her team to get back on the winning track, and Thunder Valley would be the ideal location. Brittany and John Force both recorded No. 1 qualifiers in Houston to become the first father-daughter combo to do so in NHRA history, and with John Force a win away from 150 in his career, they hope to pull it off the double-win in Bristol.
“I’m excited to get there,” said Brittany Force, who is currently third in Top Fuel points. “I’ve never won the race, but our team is turning the corner. We’ve been struggling the last couple of races, but first round last weekend in Topeka we put a 3.69 on the board. I definitely feel like we’re finding our footing moving to the next few races. I have all the faith in this team and I know we’ll get it figured out and get things turned around.”
Led by crew chief David Grubnic, the team has displayed its potential all season. But to win in Bristol, Brittany Force will likely have to get past points leader and defending world champion Steve Torrence, who has won five straight races heading into Bristol. Stopping his torrid pace won’t be easy, especially as Brittany Force also has to deal with the likes of Doug Kalitta, Leah Pritchett, Antron Brown and Clay Millican, but recent changes paid off last weekend in Topeka and Brittany Force is confident her team can continue moving forward in Thunder Valley.
“David Grubnic has made changes because we’ll be coming into the hot races and need to get this car figured out,” Brittany Force said. “I’m very hopeful. We want to go rounds and get this Advance Auto Parts team in the winner’s circle. Really, it’s working on that tune-up, finding our car in the heat, getting our car down, making consistent runs and going out on race day and winning the thing. We’ve made some big moves, big changes and it’s finally starting to show.”
The 2019 NHL draft class' best at everything: Top skater, shooter, more
In hockey, it is increasingly important for players to be very good at a lot of things. But an elite skill among peers can be a game-changer for a player's draft stock.
There is a large segment of skills I'm looking for in a player, with hockey sense and skating among the most important. Here are my best prospects in the draft class at 33 skill categories, including nine goalie-specific traits.
Hockey sense, forward:
Jack Hughes, C, USA U18 (NTDP)
The biggest difference between Hughes and everyone else is how fast he processes the game. He moves so fast, but there are still plays and teammates he spots that others could only dream of seeing at that speed.
Hockey sense, defenseman:
Victor Soderstrom, D, Brynas (Sweden)
A good all-around defender, Soderstrom is not overly big, so he has to use his smarts and anticipation to get the advantage on opposing forwards. He also makes smart, confident plays with the puck on his stick.
Skating, forward:
Jack Hughes, C, USA U18 (NTDP)
2019 U.S. Open: Plenty of coastal-colored scripting at Pebble Beach
In what is often referred to as the greatest meeting of land and sea, a handful of the game's top players are bringing out coastal-colored outfits this week at Pebble Beach. Here's a look at some of the scripting for the 119th U.S. Open:
Brooks Koepka
Tiger Woods
Dustin Johnson
Rickie Fowler
Sergio Garcia
Justin Thomas
Rory McIlroy
Jordan Spieth
Xander Schauffele
Bryson DeChambeau
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Fueled to the top of the world by various slights and signs of disrespect, Brooks Koepka didn’t need to look far for an extra bit of motivation this week.
Koepka said that a few fans tagged him on social media after watching one of Fox’s U.S. Open promos and noticing something strange – that the two-time defending champion didn’t appear.
“We’re amazed that I wasn’t in it,” Koepka said Tuesday at Pebble Beach, where he’s looking to become the first player in more than a century to capture three consecutive U.S. Open titles.
“Just kind of shocked. They’ve had over a year to put it out. So I don’t know. Somebody probably got fired over it ... or should.”
It wasn’t clear which promo Koepka was referring to; there are Koepka-specific promos that currently appear on Fox Sports’ social channels.
In any case, it’s another example of how Koepka has spent the past few years piling chips onto his muscled shoulders, whether it’s because no reporters wanted to talk to him after a major round, or that he was left off the notables page at the 2018 U.S. Open, or a comment that he hadn’t yet proven that he was “tough enough.”
“There’s a couple of things where it’s just mind-boggling – it’s, like, really? How do you forget that?” he said. “It doesn’t make sense to me.”
Koepka also couldn’t resist a subtle jab at Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee, with whom he has sparred on a few occasions this year. Responding to a question about how often he consumes golf-related news, Koepka intentionally left out Chamblee’s name when he said: “At night when we’re done we’ll flip on the Golf Channel for a little bit and see what they’re talking about at the end of the day, what Frank [Nobilo] and David [Duval] and Rich [Lerner] are talking about.” Then he cracked a wry smile.
Koepka on player complaints: 'They're not playing good enough'
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – There hasn’t been much for Brooks Koepka to complain about over the past few years, but the last thing he’d gripe about is the course setup.
That, of course, puts him in the minority of players at the U.S. Open.
“Everybody’s got to play the same golf course,” he said Tuesday. “So it really doesn’t make a difference. It doesn’t make a difference if you put it in the fairway and you hit every green. There’s really no problem, is there? So obviously they’re not doing what they’re supposed to do. They’re not playing good enough.”
Growing up, Koepka was known to run hot on the course, but his outbursts were always performance related. The way he now handles any on-course adversity or treacherous setup makes him a sports psychologist’s dream.
“I’ve just never been one to complain, make excuses,” he said. “Nobody wants to hear anybody’s excuse. I find it annoying even when I play with guys and they’re dropping clubs or throwing them or complaining, like telling me how bad the golf course is, how bad this is. I don’t want to hear it. I don’t care. It doesn’t matter to me.
“It’s just something we’ve all got to deal with. If you play good enough, you shouldn’t have a problem.”
Fifteen amateurs will tee it up in the 119th U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, including Viktor Hovland and Stewart Hagestad. Here is a closer look at each of them (all tee times local):
Devon Bling
Age: 19
Hometown: Ridgecrest, Calif.
College: UCLA (junior)
How he qualified: U.S. Amateur runner-up
Thursday tee time: 2:58 p.m. (10th tee)
Friday tee time: 9:13 a.m. (1st tee)
Bling, who lost to Viktor Hovland, 6 and 5, in last summer’s U.S. Amateur final at Pebble Beach, makes his second major start this year. He finished 55th at the Masters. When Bling was 13 years old, his mother, Sara, died from a stroke at age 44.
Chandler Eaton
Age: 21
Hometown: Alpharetta, Ga.
College: Duke (senior)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 3:31 p.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 9:46 a.m. (10)
Eaton is making his first start in a pro event. He was an All-ACC selection last season. His parents both also played college golf, his mom at Iowa State and dad at Texas-Arlington.
Austin Eckroat
Age: 20
Hometown: Edmond, Okla.
College: Oklahoma State (junior)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 2:03 p.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 8:18 a.m. (10)
Eckroat posted six top-10s, including one victory, during his sophomore season. He went 2-0 in match play this year at the NCAA Championship. This will be his first pro start. He has Oklahoma State assistant coach Donnie Darr as his caddie this week. Darr is battling colorectal cancer.
Stewart Hagestad
Age: 28
Hometown: Newport Beach, Calif.
College: USC (graduated)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 2:14 p.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 8:29 a.m. (10)
Hagestad is playing in his third straight U.S. Open, the first amateur to do so since Jay Sigel in 1983-85. He missed cuts at Erin Hills and Shinnecock Hills. Hagestad won the 2016 U.S. Mid-Amateur and competed in the 2017 Walker Cup. He was the low amateur at the 2017 Masters, tying for 36th.
Daniel Hillier
Age: 20
Hometown: Wellington, New Zealand
College: None
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 3:31 p.m. (10)
Friday tee time: 9:46 a.m. (1)
Led the U.S. Amateur last summer after one round of stroke play. Lost in the second round of match play at Pebble Beach. He won the New Zealand Amateur in 2015 and ’17.
Viktor Hovland
Age: 21
Hometown: Oslo, Norway
College: Oklahoma State (turning pro this summer)
How he qualified: U.S. Amateur champion
Thursday tee time: 2:47 p.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 9:02 a.m. (10)
Hovland earned his ticket to the U.S. Open by beating Devon Bling, 6 and 5, in the U.S. Amateur final at Pebble Beach. He is coming off being the low amateur at the Masters, where he tied for 32nd. He also tied for 40th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He won the Ben Hogan Award this year and won three times as a sophomore at Oklahoma State, which advanced to the NCAA semifinals last month. He plans to turn pro next week at the Travelers Championship and will be four straight weeks on Tour. He is grouped with Brooks Koepka and Francesco Molinari for the first two rounds at Pebble. He has Oklahoma State head coach Alan Bratton on the bag.
Noah Norton
Age: 20
Hometown: Chico, Calif.
College: Georgia Tech (junior)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 9:57 a.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 2:42 p.m. (10)
Norton had three top-10s last season as a sophomore for the Yellow Jackets. He is a two-time All-ACC selection. He is making his first pro start.
Kevin O’Connell
Age: 30
Hometown: Jacksonville, Fla.
College: North Carolina (graduated)
How he qualified: U.S. Mid-Amateur champion
Thursday tee time: 8:18 a.m. (10)
Friday tee time: 2:03 p.m. (1)
O’Connell beat Brett Boner, 4 and 3, in the 2018 U.S. Mid-Amateur final at Charlotte Country Club to earn his U.S. Open ticket. He missed the cut at the Masters. He turned pro after college but regain his amateur status after failing to get through Q-School several times. He was the 2008 ACC Freshman of the Year.
Matt Parziale
Age: 32
Hometown: Brockton, Mass.
College: Southeastern (Fla.)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 8:18 a.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 2:03 p.m. (10)
Parziale, the 2017 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion, was co-low amateur with Luis Gagne at last year’s U.S. Open, where he was T-48. He works as a firefighter in Brockton. He played two years of pro golf on mini-tours before regaining his amateur status.
Jovan Rebula
Age: 21
Hometown: Johannesburg, South Africa
College: Auburn (senior)
How he qualified: British Amateur champion
Thursday tee time: 8:29 a.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 2:14 p.m. (10)
Rebula is coming off a junior season where he notched five top-10s, including winning the SEC Championship in a playoff. He won the 2018 British Amateur by beating Robin Dawson, 3 and 2. He missed cuts at last year’s Open Championship and this year’s Masters. His uncle is four-time major winner Ernie Els.
Michael Thorbjornsen
Age: 17
Hometown: Wellesley, Mass.
College: Stanford (2020 commit)
How he qualified: U.S. Junior Amateur champion
Thursday tee time: 2:03 p.m. (10)
Friday tee time: 8:18 a.m. (1)
Thorbjornsen punched his ticket to Pebble Beach by beating Akshay Bhatia, 1 up, in the U.S. Junior final at Baltusrol. He attends IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. He is making his first pro start.
Spencer Tibbits
Age: 20
Hometown: Portland, Ore.
College: Oregon State (junior)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 3:42 p.m. (10)
Friday tee time: 9:57 a.m. (1)
Tibbits was an honorable-mention All-Pac 12 selection last season as a sophomore. He won the Oregon State Junior Match Play and Junior Stroke Play in 2016.
Brandon Wu
Age: 22
Hometown: Danville, Calif.
College: Stanford (graduated)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 9:35 a.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 3:20 p.m. (10)
Wu is coming off winning an NCAA team title last month. He went 3-0 in match play. He plans to remain amateur this summer for a chance to make the U.S. Walker Cup team. He won New England championships in golf and swimming at Deerfield (Mass.) Prep.
Cameron Young
Age: 22
Hometown: Scarborough, N.Y.
College: Wake Forest (graduate)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 1:41 p.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 7:56 a.m. (10)
Young won three times as a senior last season at Wake. He medaled at the Purchase, N.Y., sectional. He won the 2017 New York State Open at Bethpage. His dad, David, is the head pro at Sleepy Hollow Country Club. His mom is on the bag this week.
Chun An Yu
Age: 20
Hometown: Taoyuan, Taiwan
College: Arizona State (senior)
How he qualified: Sectional qualifying
Thursday tee time: 7:56 a.m. (1)
Friday tee time: 1:41 p.m. (10)
Yu, also known as Kevin, was a first-team All-American as a junior for the Sun Devils last season. He won the Australian Master of the Amateurs last winter. He is coming off a third-place finish at the NCAA Championship.
Mickelson laser focused on claiming elusive U.S. Open, career Grand Slam
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Phil Mickelson’s Grand Slam quest has reached the Pacific coast.
Mickelson will make his fifth attempt to snag the fourth and final leg this week at the U.S. Open, having finished no better than a T-28 at Pinehurst in 2014 since closing out the career Grand Slam has been on the table. Last year’s T-48 finish at Shinnecock Hills was merely a footnote to the larger story, as Lefty ignited weeks’ worth of controversy when he purposefully hit a moving ball on the 13th green during the third round and was penalized but not disqualified.
Mickelson has finished runner-up at this event a record six times, most recently in 2013, and it was here at Pebble Beach that he made his professional debut en route to a missed cut at the 1992 U.S. Open. His record at Pebble during the PGA Tour’s annual AT&T event is much more decorated, having won the tournament five times including earlier this year.
Renewing the chase for the title that has most eluded him, Mickelson played the front nine in a Tuesday practice session that also included former Arizona State products Jon Rahm and Chun An-Yu, as well as Australian Brett Drewitt. While Mickelson is known for his competitive Tuesday practice sessions, this was a more laid-back affair that featured multiple shots from some tees and fairways and plenty of chipping practice from the thick rough around the greens.
Mickelson is not scheduled to hold a formal pre-tournament interview, and he declined an interview request after completing his practice round. He tees off at 11:13 a.m. ET Thursday alongside two men who have both lifted the trophy he covets the most, Dustin Johnson and Graeme McDowell.
Mickelson turns 49 on Sunday and would likely love nothing more than to celebrate with a sixth major title. In addition to his missed cut in 1992, he also finished T-16 at Pebble in 2000 and tied for fourth in 2010.
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