Top Ad
I DIG Radio
www.idigradio.com
Listen live to the best music from around the world!
I DIG Style
www.idigstyle.com
Learn about the latest fashion styles and more...
I Dig Sports

I Dig Sports

Busch Stadium to host Blues' Game 7 watch party

Published in Hockey
Monday, 10 June 2019 20:48

Fans in St. Louis looking to watch the Blues in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final with a few thousand friends have another option: Busch Stadium.

The Bruins will host the decisive game in Boston on Wednesday, and tickets to the Blues' watch party at their 18,400-seat Enterprise Center sold out in 31 minutes on Monday, according to St. Louis TV station KSDK.

So to meet the demand, the Blues announced a second party where fans can watch the game on a big screen, this one to be held at the 46,000-seat home of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Tickets for the event at the ballpark will go on sale Tuesday on the Cardinals' website, with proceeds benefiting Cardinals Care and Blues for Kids charities.

The Blues also sold out the watch parties at Enterprise Center to watch the first three Stanley Cup Final games hosted by Boston.

Ideal weather week on tap for U.S. Open at Pebble

Published in Golf
Monday, 10 June 2019 10:18

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – There won’t be any Crosby weather this week at the U.S. Open.

Just brilliant sunshine, comfortable temperatures and moderate winds.

Wind, rain and cold long have plagued the annual PGA Tour stop here, including this past February, when inclement weather pushed the event, eventually won by Phil Mickelson, into a Monday finish.

There’ll be no such issues this week, beginning with a postcard, 80-degree afternoon on Monday for the official start of tournament week.

The near-record warmth will cool over the next few days, with a thicker, lower-level marine layer that could arrive as early as Tuesday or Wednesday.

As for the tournament rounds, the early forecast calls for highs between 63 and 65 degrees, with no more than a 20% chance of precipitation each day. Winds should remain between 8-15 mph, with the highest chance of stronger gusts on Saturday (14-21 mph).   

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – A midseason wrist injury forced Justin Thomas to sit out a major for the first time since 2015, and it was an illuminating experience watching at home.

Bethpage Black could have set up ideally for Thomas’ game, but instead he was on the couch, resting his wrist and watching Brooks Koepka dominate a brawny course and the deepest field in major golf.

“I feel like I learned a lot,” Thomas said.

Koepka had a seven-shot lead entering the final round, but an increasingly difficult setup dwindled his advantage to just a single stroke late on the back nine.

Thomas had experience dealing with a huge lead before – he led by seven heading into the final day at the 2017 Sony Open, and he won by the same margin – and could relate to the front-running pressure.

“It’s still, to this day, the most nervous I’ve been teeing off,” he said. “No offense, but all I heard from you guys was, ‘No one has ever blown a seven-shot lead in the history of the PGA Tour on Sunday.’ Every question I got was led with that ... so that thought is always in your head.

“It was tough at the Sony Open. So I can’t imagine how it was at the PGA Championship.”

And so Thomas was impressed with how Koepka handled the back nine, how he steadied himself after a few mistakes and how he captured his fourth major in his past eight starts.

“Watching how he handled that and the adversity that was thrown at him and just the shots that he hit when he needed to, because I know that I can get a little bit up and down with my emotions,” Thomas said. “I just feel like he handled that really well. So maybe if I got in that scenario, then I hate to say channel my inner BK, to boost his ego, but definitely show some of those characteristics.”

As for the ailment that kept him out of the PGA? Thomas said that his wrist injury now is a “non-issue,” which is good news with thick, juicy rough in play here at Pebble Beach.

Rory's former caddie to loop for NCAA champ Wolff

Published in Golf
Monday, 10 June 2019 12:15

NCAA champion Matthew Wolff will have a familiar face on the bag when he makes his professional debut next week at the Travelers Championship.

Wolff’s management team confirmed Monday that the former Oklahoma State star has initially hired Rory McIlroy’s former caddie, J.P. Fitzgerald, to begin his pro career. Golfweek was the first to report the news.

Fitzgerald hasn’t caddied since McIlroy let him go in July 2017, after nearly a decade together. At the time, McIlroy said that he wanted to take more ownership of his game. Since then he’s employed his best friend, Harry Diamond, and the duo have won The Players and Canadian Open this season.

With his unconventional swing and dynamic personality, Wolff, 20, is one of the most exciting prospects in years. Beginning at next week’s Travelers, he will play six of the next seven weeks as he tries to earn enough FedExCup points to either earn his 2019-20 PGA Tour card or qualify for the Web.com Tour Finals.

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – This week’s U.S. Open will be Rickie Fowler’s 37th start in a major championship – and his 37th major start without a victory. Not that he needs any help remembering.

Toward the end of his press conference on Monday at Pebble Beach, Fowler was asked a familiar question about being considered the best player without a major championship.

“It's a compliment in a way,” Fowler said. “It's not necessarily something I think about or worry about. I know that when the time is right, it's going to happen.”

U.S. Open: Full-field tee times | Full coverage

It’s not as though Fowler hasn’t had his chances. At the 2014 PGA Championship, it was one bad swing on the par-3 14th hole that led to his tie for third place. At last year’s Masters, it was a few missed birdie opportunities on the closing nine.

“Obviously we can play good enough, but it's about getting those 72 holes and getting the job done,” he said.

Despite the dubious title of being the best player without a major, Fowler and those around him are confident his time will come.

“He'll be fine,” Justin Thomas said. “He'll get his when it's his time. It's going to happen how it's meant to be. And he's obviously shown that he's plenty good enough to do it.”

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – The USGA has been scrutinized plenty in recent years for how it sets up golf courses for the U.S. Open, last year’s championship at Shinnecock Hills being the most recent example. But officials are looking to change that narrative this year at Pebble Beach.

One of the concerns following the last U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, in 2010, was how the poa annua greens became particularly difficult in dry conditions, much like those forecast for this week. Perhaps in reaction to that officials have told players that they will syringe greens between the morning and afternoon waves on Thursday and Friday if needed.

Although the USGA has syringed greens between waves and during rounds, including at Shinnecock during the final round in 2004, it is rare.

U.S. Open: Full-field tee times | Full coverage

Players raved Monday about the quality and condition of the greens.

“Jordan [Spieth] said it's the best poa annua greens he's ever seen in his life. And he said that, so that's saying something,” Justin Thomas said.

But many also pointed out that it is Monday, and they expect the course to become firmer and faster as the week progresses. 

Past success could return to haunt Hathurusingha

Published in Cricket
Monday, 10 June 2019 17:38

Whatever else you might say about Chandika Hathurusingha, the man does not do incognito. If you have paid him any attention over the past few years, chances are you have an opinion. More than likely, it is mighty sharp.

"He has great cricket knowledge," is something people say of him. Well that one, almost everybody can agree on. But what about: "He is a great coach"? This is not so universally held.

If you are a Hathurusingha hater, you probably hail from Bangladesh or Sri Lanka. His tenure at New South Wales did not seem to prompt such polarising opinions. In much higher profile roles in South Asia, though, where sports meld with politics, and cricket plays a role in the national wellbeing (more true for some South Asian states than others), he has been an unapologetic ruffler of feathers.

A month into his job, in Bangladesh, the superstar in the team, Shakib Al Hasan, was suspended for some months for "serious misbehaviour" with the coach. In Sri Lanka, Hathurusingha was part of a decision to sack Angelo Mathews as captain, and axe him from the limited-overs sides entirely over fitness issues last September. It was the selection committee, then headed by Graeme Labrooy, that finalised that call, but months later, Mathews' relationship with Hathurusingha had soured to the extent that in the course of batting an entire Test-match day in Wellington, Mathews dropped to the ground, completed a set of press-ups after and gestured pointedly towards the dressing room. It was only a little more polite than flipping the bird.

ALSO READ: Nuwan Pradeep ruled out of Bangladesh game after blow to bowling hand

And yet, can you argue with Hathurusingha's results? On his watch, Bangladesh made the knockouts in a World Cup for the first time, beat India and South Africa in ODI series at home, defeated Sri Lanka in an away Test, and made the semi-final of the 2017 Champions Trophy. In general, they became a serious force in world cricket for the first time. Specific players may have had grouses; Mahmudullah was dropped for the 100th Test - the one they won in Colombo - and Mominul Haque was edged out of the Test side. But if you try to argue that Hathurusingha did not leave Bangladesh (or should that be abandon Bangladesh?) in an immeasurably better place than he found them, then friend, you have let your Hathu-hate get the better of you.

Among the cornerstones to his success in Bangladesh, Hathurusingha felt, was his insistence that he be part of the selection committee. "If I'm responsible for the fortunes of the team, I should be given the power to choose it," has been his reasoning. Sri Lanka Cricket, who had practically pleaded with Hathurusingha to be their coach for three years, had initially allowed him this.

But here's the thing, Hathu: SLC is an untameable beast. He had the SLC board president on-side in his first few months in charge of Sri Lanka, just as he had done practically throughout his Bangladesh stint. But what if the SLC head is himself so plugged into the nation's political machinations, that the moment the governmental weather changed, that SLC president was ousted by judicial writ? Late last year, Hathurusingha lost his allies in administration, and with them the guarantee that he could have his way with the side. In February, following Sri Lanka's modest tour of New Zealand and their woeful Tests in Australia, he was in serious danger of being sacked by the governmental arm that had installed itself in place of a regular board.

And so we come to Bristol at the World Cup, where Hathurusingha is ostensibly head coach of Sri Lanka but, weirdly, it is on the opposition that bears the clearer marks of his influence. Even his critics in Bangladesh would concede that it was under Hathurusingha that this team developed the steel required to win; that it was on his watch that they began to seize key moments, the way they'd done in the victory against South Africa last week. During the Hathu years, Tamim Iqbal had become more consistent, Soumya Sarkar had begun to flourish, Mustafizur Rahman was thrown in and adorned, Mehidy Hasan got a start, and even Mahmudullah hit those back-to-back World Cup tons.

Compare this to the Sri Lanka side, which was in turmoil long before Hathurusingha arrived, and has not ceased to be in flux despite his best efforts. Last year, Hathurusingha had elevated Dinesh Chandimal to leadership, and then the selectors changed, and now Chandimal has barely been heard from for months. Captain, instead, is Dimuth Karunaratne - a man Hathurusingha seems happy to work with especially following the historic Test win in South Africa, but not one he would have ideally chosen for such honours. Save, perhaps, for Thisara Perera, there is no one in this ODI side that appears visibly altered by Hathurusingha's 18-month presence.

A good run at the World Cup could be key to changing all that. The historic Test win in South Africa, to which Hathurusingha did genuinely contribute, bought him goodwill, but it is limited-overs advances that will swing open the door those victories propped ajar. Sri Lanka still have Australia, England and India to play, so the match on Tuesday is virtually must-win. For the coach, a defeat might be a haunting by his own past successes, but nothing no one didn't expect. But if a victory helps light up Sri Lanka's campaign, maybe the team will switch to a smoother track. Perhaps Hathurusingha could still become the kind of transformer for Sri Lanka he once was for Bangladesh.

Source: Vikes extend Rudolph for 4 years, $36M

Published in Breaking News
Monday, 10 June 2019 22:16

MINNEAPOLIS -- After months of uncertainty surrounding the status of his contract for the upcoming season, veteran tight end Kyle Rudolph gained some clarity with regard to his future on Monday evening.

A league source told ESPN that Rudolph agreed to terms of a contract extension with the Minnesota Vikings and will sign his new deal on Tuesday morning, the same day the Vikings begin their three-day mandatory minicamp. Rudolph's new deal is worth $36 million over four years, which will keep him in Minnesota through the 2023 season, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Rudolph relayed the news in a heartfelt message on Twitter in which he reflected upon the major events that have occurred in his life both in and out of football since he was selected 43rd overall in the 2011 draft by Minnesota, where he has spent his entire career to date. The ninth-year tight end married his wife, Jordan, had three children and has been an active member in the Twin Cities community through his philanthropic work with the establishment of Kyle Rudolph's End Zone at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital.

Rudolph's new deal is expected to lower his cap hit of $7.625 million, which would help the Vikings with their current salary-cap situation. Minnesota, according to ESPN's roster management system, had less than $1.3 million in cap space prior to negotiating the terms of Rudolph's new deal.

Earlier this spring, the Vikings drafted Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. with the 50th overall pick. Throughout the spring offseason program, coaches have relayed the importance of the roles both tight ends will play in Minnesota's offense with their complementary skillsets.

TORONTO -- Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant appeared to reinjure the right calf that had kept him out for a month during the second quarter of a 106-105 win in Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors on Monday night.

The Warriors said Durant would have an MRI on Tuesday to further evaluate the injury, which they announced as a right lower-leg injury.

"I'm hurting deep in the soul right now I can't lie," Durant wrote as a part of an Instagram Story post. "But seeing my brothers get this win was like taking a shot of tequilla, I got new life lol."

The play in which Durant was hurt happened with 9 minutes, 51 seconds left in the second quarter as he tried to drive by Raptors big man Serge Ibaka. Durant was just above the 3-point line on the right side, dribbled between his legs and went to drive with his left hand when his leg appeared to give, causing him to lose the ball.

Durant went down in pain after taking a couple of steps, grabbing the lower part of his calf on the sideline. Durant remained on the floor for a few moments as the Raptors came down the floor and made a basket. The Warriors called timeout as Rick Celebrini, the Warriors' director of sports medicine and performance, raced to the floor to check on Durant.

Durant was then escorted straight to the locker room for further evaluation. As he made his way off the floor, both Warriors and Raptors players offered him some well wishes as the crowd inside soldout Scotiabank Arena chanted, "KD! KD!" Warriors teammate Andre Iguodala was by Durant's side with Celebrini as Durant was helped off the floor. Warriors guard Stephen Curry followed Durant into the locker room as well.

Durant walked by the media workroom inside Scotiabank Arena on crutches wearing a walking boot on his right leg on his way to exit the arena. He was accompanied by Celebrini and Warriors general manager Bob Myers.

Meanwhile, the Warriors also lost Kevon Looney, who aggravated his shoulder injury and was also ruled out to return.

Durant had not played since injuring his right calf on May 8 against the Houston Rockets in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals. He went through Sunday's light practice and Monday's shootaround and was initially listed as a game-time decision before Steve Kerr confirmed before the game that Durant would start.

Kerr said Durant would play in "short bursts," but Durant left the game after playing 12 of the first 14 minutes of the game and scoring 11 points.

Kerr acknowledged after Monday's shootaround that the uncertainty surrounding Durant's status has been a tedious process for all involved.

"It's been frustrating," Kerr said. "We talked about it when the injury occurred. Pretty vague. A lot of gray area. One of the first things Rick [Celebrini] told me was, with calves, it could be a couple weeks, it could be a couple months. It's not often you have injuries like that. Usually you kind of get that four-to-six week thing or two-to-three weeks. So, calves, Achilles, muscular stuff is a little tougher to gauge than a joint. When you combine that with the scrutiny and the media coverage of the Finals, you've just been in the spotlight -- he's been in the spotlight -- and it's been tough."

Kerr was asked if he had been told that Durant was also dealing with an Achilles injury. Kerr previously stated initially after Durant's injury in May that he was assured it was not an Achilles injury that Durant was dealing with.

"No," Kerr said. "I just threw out 'Achilles.' I didn't mean Kevin's Achilles. I mean when you get non-joint issues, muscular issues are tougher to input in terms of how long a recovery will be. That's my understanding."

KD's potential return has GSW favored in Game 5

Published in Basketball
Monday, 10 June 2019 15:46

With Kevin Durant reportedly planning to play, the Golden State Warriors have gone from underdogs to favorites at some sportsbooks in the hours leading up to tipoff of Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

The Toronto Raptors, who hold a 3-1 lead in the series, opened as high as 3.5-point favorites in what could be a clinching Game 5. The line started shrinking Sunday, when it was announced Durant would practice with the Warriors. On Monday afternoon, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Durant plans to play, and the point spread continued to drop.

Caesars Sportsbook, as well as other sportsbooks in Las Vegas and New Jersey, have made the Warriors 1-point favorites.

"The money on the Warriors started coming in on Sunday morning," Jeff Stoneback, director of risk for MGM race and sports, told ESPN. "It really hasn't stopped. It's one of those times when the public and the sharp guys are on the same side."

Durant injured his calf on May 9 in Game 5 of the Warriors' playoff series against the Houston Rockets. He has not played in a game since. Without him, Golden State has dropped three of four to the Raptors and is now facing elimination.

As of Monday afternoon, twice as much money had been bet on the Warriors as had been bet on the Raptors at MGM books, Stoneback said. The SuperBook at Westgate Las Vegas reported taking a $50,000 bet on the Warriors at Pick 'em and promptly made Golden State the favorite Monday afternoon.

The action was more evenly distributed at other sportsbooks. At Caesars Sportsbook, for example, 51.1 percent of the point-spread bets were on Toronto.

Durant is 25-1 to win Finals MVP at DraftKings sportsbook in New Jersey. The Raptors' Kawhi Leonard, at -500, is the favorite to win MVP.

Soccer

Ancelotti: Madrid slowly getting 'back to our best'

Ancelotti: Madrid slowly getting 'back to our best'

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsReal Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said his team are improving "litt...

Mbappé, Vini score as Madrid win with late flurry

Mbappé, Vini score as Madrid win with late flurry

Vinícius Júnior came off the bench to score once and set up another goal to steer champions Real Mad...

Martino blames ref as Miami suffers Shield setback

Martino blames ref as Miami suffers Shield setback

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsInter Miami head coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino claimed the match aga...

2026 FIFA


2028 LOS ANGELES OLYMPIC

UEFA

2024 PARIS OLYMPIC


Basketball

McCoy, longtime radio voice of Suns, dies at 91

McCoy, longtime radio voice of Suns, dies at 91

EmailPrintPHOENIX -- Al McCoy, who was the radio voice of the Phoenix Suns for more than a half-cent...

Sources: Griffin, 21, mulls NBA future after buyout

Sources: Griffin, 21, mulls NBA future after buyout

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsThe Houston Rockets reached terms on a buyout with forward AJ Griff...

Baseball

Lindor to miss rest of series; earliest return Tues.

Lindor to miss rest of series; earliest return Tues.

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsNEW YORK -- Francisco Lindor wasn't in the New York Mets' lineup fo...

Rangers scratch Scherzer, give Dunning the start

Rangers scratch Scherzer, give Dunning the start

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsARLINGTON, Texas -- Three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer h...

Sports Leagues

  • FIFA

    Fédération Internationale de Football Association
  • NBA

    National Basketball Association
  • ATP

    Association of Tennis Professionals
  • MLB

    Major League Baseball
  • ITTF

    International Table Tennis Federation
  • NFL

    Nactional Football Leagues
  • FISB

    Federation Internationale de Speedball

About Us

I Dig® is a leading global brand that makes it more enjoyable to surf the internet, conduct transactions and access, share, and create information.  Today I Dig® attracts millions of users every month.r

 

Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: www.idig.com
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Affiliated