Happy Trails, Andy Roddick

When I think of Andy Roddick, the first thing that comes to mind is his mind-blowing serve.  At one point, he held the record of a 155mph serve during a Davis Cup match against Vladamir Voltchkov.  Basically, Andy can blast a tennis ball faster than you can drive your car down the freeway.

With 612 wins, a 74% winning record, and 32 titles, he is easily one of the greatest tennis players of this generation.  Unfortunately, he had to be born in the same era as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic.  Because of the aforementioned three tennis greats, Roddick can only claim the 2003 US Open as his own.  Such a shame that he had to run into them so many times, or perhaps we would be speaking of Andy breaking Samparas's record of 14 Grand Slams.

At times, the media would show him as petulant with his notorious outbursts and angry tirades.  But we need to remember this man as one of the good guys of the sport.  His foundation contributes to help at-risk kids by providing them with educational and other opportunities that otherwise would never be given to them.

So to you Mr. Roddick, happy trails and enjoy your retirement.  Spending time with Brooklyn Decker is not such a bad retirement option.  

photos courtesy of showstalker.net, vtennis.co.uk

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Can the U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team Win Gold?

Congratulations to Jordyn Wieber, Gabby Douglas, Aly Raisman, Kyla Ross and McKayla Maroney for making it onto the U.S. Olympic Team! Is this the year that the U.S. women finally get a second team gold in gymnastics at the Olympics? The U.S. has been a dominant force in the women's team competition since Marta Karolyi took over the U.S. coordinator position in 2001, winning either gold or silver in every world or Olympic team competition since 2003. The team, however, has not won team gold at the Olympics under Marta, with the only Olympic team gold coming in 1996 when Shannon Miller, Dominique Dawes, and the rest of the Magnificent Seven won in Atlanta.

I believe that this is the year. If you read my previous article, U.S. Olympic Team Prediction, you can see that we have some very strong gymnasts on our team this year.  Four of the five girls on the team were part of the Gold-medal-winning team at last year's World Championships in Tokyo, which is a very good indication of their ability.

The Olympics, though, represents an entirely different level of pressure, and in gymnastics, the pressure either produces beautiful routines or causes you to fall and destroy your chances. Major mistakes by Carly Patterson on the uneven bars in 2008, Courtney Kupets on the floor exercise in 2004, and Alicia Sacramone on beam and floor in 2008 cost the U.S. the gold at the last two Olympics.

One thing is for sure: the team score needed to win gold at the Olympics is always higher than the score achieved by the gold-medal team at the World Championships the year before. The U.S. won by over 4 points with a score of 179.411, but I think a score of closer to 185 will be needed to pull off the win.

In order to see the team's potential score, I averaged the scores the team members got at the trials and nationals as well as from the 2011 world championships (with the exception of Kyla Ross, where I used her scores from the most recent international competition because she was a junior last year).

[1] Scores in gray are not counted towards total under the assumption that those athletes will not be used in the 3-up 3-count format at the Olympics.

Half of the weight is given to scores from the world championship/international experience, and the other half is given to the scores received at the Nationals and Olympic Trials. I understand that the scores from the World Championships don't account for the increased difficulty in all of their events (like Gabby's uneven bar routine, Jordyn's beam and bars routines, and Aly's floor routine), but at the same time, international judges have always taken more deductions than the U.S. judges, so I believe that averaging the two is a decent, but not perfect, approximation. Most likely, Gabby will score much higher than a 15.173 on bars, but the rest of the scores actually seem pretty reasonable to me. With the obvious team potential of scoring close to 185, I think the U.S. is the favorite going into the Olympics.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves. The Russians, Romanians, and Chinese all have athletes that were either injured, too young, or out of form at the last World Championships. Aliya Mustafina (RUS) is back with a vengeance after tearing her ACL last year, and little Larisa Iordache of Romania performed extremely well at her first big senior international competition at the European Championships, winning the gold in floor exercise and silver on the beam. The Romanian press is dubbing her the new Nadia, so watch out. Lastly, even though China looked frail last year (and the fact that you can't rely on specialists as much because the team only has five members), we still have to expect that they will be able to pull together a competitive team.

Check back for more in-depth analysis of the Russian, Romanian, and Chinese teams!

Photo courtesy of Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

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Party Foul: Nastia Liukin and Rebecca Bross

Violation: US gymnasts Nastia Liukin and Rebecca Bross both fell off of the uneven bars during the Olympic trials and failed to make the 2012 team.

Explanation: Nastia Liukin and Rebecca Bross came into the second day of the Olympic trials with a chance to make the Olympic team. Their chances were slim, and since they were both competing on bars and beam only, there was zero chance that they would both make it. Given all of that though, who would have thought that they would both fall off the bars?

For Nastia, I was expecting her to do the whole routine but just have a couple of form breaks and maybe do an easier dismount instead of the double back. I did not expect her to fall flat on her face so early in the routine.

For Bross, she's been shaky on beam all season but has had solid routines on the uneven bars. I'm still really confused at how she fell off multiple times. I think her knee injury from last year has affected her mentally much more than physically. Maybe Bross can make a comeback in 2016 -- she's still young and was a medalist in the all-around at the world championships twice, so she definitely has the talent.

Although Nastia's legacy won't be tainted by her performance at these Olympic trials, I can't help but wonder why she didn't commit to the comeback earlier. She probably injured her shoulder by not easing enough into training. Oh well, at least Nastia got to perform on balance beam later and performed well. I guess it's just not easy making a comeback in gymnastics.


Punishment: Nastia and Bross will have to cheer on the 2012 US Olympic women's gymnastics team (Jordyn Wieber, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, Kyla Ross, McKayla Maroney) from home.




Photo courtesy of U.S. Presswire

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Standing Ovation: Allyson Felix

Allyson Felix threw down Saturday and ran the fastest 200 meter time in 14 years -- a whopping 21.69 seconds. The only Americans that have run faster are Florence Griffith-Joyner (world record-holder) and Marion Jones.

There was so much pressure going into this race. She had tied for third in the 100 meter with her training partner, Jeneba Tarmoh; which sounds great except that only the three people can compete from one country in any event.  The press surrounding the potential run-off must have been distracting.  Add that to the fact that Carmelita Jeter, who won the 100m race, had beaten her in the 200m at last year's world championships, and Sanya Richards-Ross, who won the 400m race, had run her personal best in the 200m this year.  All the pressure in the world was on Allyson to perform at her best.

Allyson Felix © Gallo Images

I've been a fan of Allyson since I was on my own high school track team. When she ran a 22.11 in the 200m her senior year of high school, I knew this fellow pastor's kid could do great things. Since then, she has won three world championships at 200m and two silver medals at the Olympics at that distance. She has lost to the same woman, Veronica Campbell-Brown (VCB) of Jamaica, at both Olympics, but it is looking like this is the year that she will win an individual gold at the Olympics. Allyson has now run her personal best in both the 100m and 200m this year, so VCB better watch out because Allyson Felix is on fire.

Now, let's see if she wins the first-ever U.S. Track Olympic Trials run-off at 5pm on Monday.

UPDATED: Jeneba Tarmoh conceded the spot to Allyson Felix. Her heart apparently was just not in it to run in a run-off after two weeks of racing. I hope next time she can qualify without all of this drama.

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Standing Ovation: Lukáš Rosol

Normally, when the world #2 is defeated in the 2nd round at Wimbledon by some unknown 26-year-old kid, you would think a Party Foul would be warranted.  However, I am not in the seemingly ever-growing population of people obsessed with Splinter from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Rafael Nadal.  You won't ever hear me saying "vamos Rafa" or anything of the sort because, as my friend Alex so eloquently proclaims, "all-time greats don't lose in the 2nd round during their primes."  Truth.

So today, instead of while criticizing Nadal, let's lift up Lukáš Rosol of the Czech Republic, who won in 5 sets 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.  Since I was at work, I only saw portions of this match, but based on what I witnessed, Rosol definitely deserved to win.  He seemed to do the impossible -- overpower Nadal.  Rosol stayed aggressive and forced his opponent to remain defensive beyond the baseline.  And it also helped that Rosol appeared to be using Thor's hammer as a tennis racket.

My personal favorite part of this major upset is what happened after the match.  Aside from the #Czechmate Twitter hashtags, I loved this quote from Rosol, talking about Rafa: "He's a superstar, I feel sorry for him."  Yes, I know I took that completely out of context, but let me just relish in this moment as I remember back to the days of Sampras/Agassi, when I truly still cared about tennis.  At least this has me talking about the sport again.

Actually, I take back my earlier statement about never saying "vamos Rafa."  Vamos a casa, Rafa!

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U.S. Olympic Trials: Women’s Gymnastics

The U.S. Olympic Trials are taking place this coming weekend, and with only 5 gymnasts allowed on the team that’ll send 3 people up on each event, the competition is as fierce as ever.  The only way to guarantee spot on the team is to win the all-around competition at the trials.  So based on the countless YouTube videos of competitions and training since the last Olympics, these are my thoughts on who will be on the 2012 U.S. team. 

The 15 women that will compete at trials for a spot on the 2012 Olympic team. 

Courtesy of the USA Gymnastics Website.

Shoo-ins

Jordyn Wieber (Strengths: All-Around)
Jordyn is the reigning World All-Around Champion and is one of the most solid gymnasts the U.S. has.  She performs the super difficult Amanar vault (with a max score of 16.5), and she made the event finals for both balance beam and floor exercise.  Her one weakness is the uneven bars, on which she made a big mistake that almost cost her the gold.  She may not be the most elegant gymnast, but her difficulty levels are high, and she almost always hits her routines.  In the team competition, she’ll definitely be used on beam, floor, and vault.  Depending on who else is on the team, she might have to be the third score for bars.

Aly Raisman (Strengths: Beam, Floor, Vault)
At last year’s worlds, Aly won a bronze medal on floor and missed winning a medal on beam by less than .100 points.  She is the U.S.’s best floor worker and is one of the most consistent gymnasts on beam.  Her mental focus is something that Marta Karolyi has been praising since last year.  She can also perform the Amanar vault but not quite as well as some of the other girls.  Like Jordyn, the uneven bars is her nemesis and will definitely not be used in the team competition.  I will say, though, her bars routine at nationals was a lot better than at previous competitions.  She was actually keeping her legs together and feet pointed which will help her in the individual all-around.

Gabby Douglas (Strengths: All-Around)
Gabby’s best event is the uneven bars, which is the apparatus that the U.S. desperately needs better scores on.  She scored a 15.850 on the second day of nationals, which is comparable to what the Russian and Chinese gymnasts can put up on bars.  Gabby can also be great on the rest of the events, but she has fallen off the beam a couple of times in competitions.  She is going to make the team on her bars strength alone, and it doesn’t hurt that when she is on, she has been very competitive with Jordyn Wieber in all-around competitions.

Others
This is where things get tricky.  The team can only have 5 members, so with only two spots left, the U.S. really need bar workers in order to be competitive with the other countries.  My prediction for the fourth spot goes to Nastia Liukin.  She has trained really hard since nationals two weeks ago and will be able to score a high 15 or low 16 on the uneven bars and a low 15 on the balance beam.  She did horribly at nationals but had only barely begun training bars because of a shoulder injury earlier this year.  I bet her dad whips her into shape Russian-style.

The last spot then goes to McKayla Maroney.  She is the reigning world champion on vault and has scored over 16 points.  She’s decent on floor and not great on beam or bars, which makes her a complement to Nastia.  One thing to note is that she suffered a mild concussion at nationals, so let’s just hope she recovers fully because her vaults are seriously amazing to watch.

The one person that I have left off the list who is definitely in contention is Kyla Ross.  She just entered the senior ranks this year and is a good all-arounder with a bars routine that is pretty good.  Nastia needs to be amazing to take the spot away from Kyla Ross.

Team Prediction: Jordyn Wieber, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, Nastia Liukin and McKayla Maroney.

Breakdown:

Balance Beam
Jordyn Wieber
Nastia Liukin
Aly Raisman

Uneven Bars
Nastia Liukin
Gabby Douglas
Jordyn Wieber

Floor Exercise
Aly Raisman
Gabby Douglas
Jordyn Wieber

Vault
McKayla Maroney
Jordyn Wieber
Gabby Douglas or Aly Raisman

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2012 US Open: The Return of Tiger?

An event that is truly open to any player in the United States.  By winning regional sectionals, qualifiers and other rounds, any average Joe Schmo can play in the US Open.

Boo Weekley 20 years ago ... just kidding, just Joe Schmo

Thanks to Mr. Paul Casey Casey Martin (thank you J.Lau) dropping, Andy Zhang, age 14, will be teeing it up with the likes of Bubba Watson, Tiger Woods, and Rory McIlroy.

He gets to play with Bubba on Tuesday.  Welcome to the US Open, kid.

Traditionally, the US Open is one of the toughest events to play.  Average scores are in the black (over par for you non-golf savvy fans), and it is not uncommon to find 4-day scores hovering around even par, with the exception of 2000 and 2011.  The Olympic Club has hosted the US Open four times, with the latest one in 1998 won by Lee Janzen.

Since Tiger's stunning/apocalyptic/meteoric fall from the top, we all have been wondering when he will return to his powerful self.  For the past year, we have seen glimpses of the old Tiger, most recently at the Memorial.  After holing out a 50-foot chip on the 16th green, flashbacks of vintage Tiger in his red Nike shirt, fist pumping his way to the trophy came across my mind.  Tiger is back, right?

At 7:33AM, that question will begin to be answered as Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods begins his quest for a 4th US Open title, inching closer and closer to "The Golden Bear"and his 18 major titles.  Playing with him will be Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelson; probably one of the best threesomes you'll ever get to witness, but Group 8 is not the only threesome to keep an eye on.

Tiger's amazing 50ft hole out on 16

Korea's finest sits at Group 18 with Houston's own KJ Choi, Y.E Yang, and Kyung-Tae Kim.

Team Great Britain at Group 35 is composed of the top 3 players in the world with Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood, and Luke Donald.

I personally will have my eye on Group 44 with Rickie Fowler (America's answer to Ian Poulter), Ryo Ishikawa, and Dustin Johnson -- three of golf's brightest young stars looking to make their mark.

Tiger's pursuit back to the top begins tomorrow.  He won't be alone, but I'd say he looks primed and ready.



Photos courtesy of electronicfarmyard.com, ballerssports.com, golfgymblog.blogspot.com, and www.golfandcourse.com

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Haterade: The State of Boxing - Floyd Mayweather v. Miguel Cotto

When I was growing up, I remember my dad would go on and on about boxing greats such as Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns. He didn’t immigrate to the United States from Vietnam until 1980. So all of the earlier legends like Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Joe Frazier, and Roberto Duran were all mythological names to him because he didn’t watch TV growing up.

And I guess since I had the opportunity to watch TV as a kid, for as long as I can remember, he would make me sit down with him and watch boxing matches even though they frightened me. Plus, I would have rather had basketball or football on. But this is the reason why Mike Tyson, Roy Jones Jr., Felix Trinidad, and, to a lesser degree, Evander Holyfield and Prince resonate with me so much. For me, that was boxing’s “heyday” -- the good ol’ 90s.

So, what the hell happened to the sport of boxing? Even though I was young at the time, I remember those Tyson fights were a really really BIG deal. People would pay large sums of money just to watch a fight that may or may not last one round.

Even after his loss to Buster Douglas in 1990 and having to serve three years in prison for rape charges, his “comeback” fights were on a whole different level in terms of anticipation and buildup.

But today? Most people can’t even name three boxers outside of Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.

The easy thing to do is put the blame on money -- to be honest, money can be blamed for almost anything these days. To me, however, the greatness that was boxing was the fact that if you were a champ, you were the champ of the world. Muhammad Ali, for example, was the heavyweight champion of the world. No questions asked.

Sadly, promoters and television networks have taken control of the sport and have created a new belt for every day of the week it seems. Currently, you have the WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring championships. This means you can potentially have five different middleweight champions at one time. Really? Does this make sense to anyone? The aura that surrounds the champion is no longer one with mystique and reverence.

Add to boxing’s poor management with the arrival of other contact/combat sports coming into the fray, and you ultimately have a dying sport. Dana White has undeniably taken the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) to a level of popularity it has never experienced in the past.

As a result, most of the recreational fans gravitate towards it because A) fights happen more frequently and B) there are a number of UFC shows on TV (The Ultimate Fighter on FX, UFC on FuelTV, Fox, and even Facebook). If boxing were to unify and create a league similar to the NFL, NBA, or UFC, it may have a chance to survive.

But at this rate, once Manny and Floyd retire (which is coming sooner than you think: Manny is 33 and Floyd is 35), there will be no reason for the general public to follow the sport. This, of course, is the fundamental reason why everyone wants to see that fight so badly. I personally don’t see it happening, but that topic is for another day. Therefore, I’m going to be enjoying the sport for as long as I can. I don't know about you guys -- but once boxing dies, a part of me will die as well.

This Saturday, Floyd “Money” Mayweather and Miguel Cotto will be squaring off at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The undercard also includes the exciting Saul Alvarez aka "Canelo" going against the hall of famer, “Sugar” Shane Mosley.

Why you should watch the fight:

• Mayweather is undefeated with a 42-0-0 record and Cotto is 37-2-0 (with one of the losses coming against cheater Antonio Margarito and his loaded gloves). The sheer possibility that Mayweather’s flawless record can be tainted is enough reason to tune in. This is why he is the biggest pay-per-view draw; love or hate him, he is the face of boxing because of that record.
• Floyd Mayweather is going to jail after the fight (domestic violence). In fact, just three weeks after his bout with Cotto, his place of residence for 87 days of his life will be the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas.
• This is only the second time in Mayweather’s career where he’ll be fighting at the 154-pound division. His only other fight at this particular weight came against Oscar De La Hoya in 2007, who many still claim beat Mayweather that night.

Who the sportsbooks predict to win:

• Mayweather is at -800 and Cotto is at +500. The line has actually moved in Mayweather’s favor in the days leading up to the fight. If you’re like me and like taking fliers with your bets, 5:1 odds for Cotto is not bad at all.
• If the fight goes the distance, Mayweather’s technical precision and speed will be too much for Cotto to handle. Mayweather is regarded as the best ever for a reason. But, I think Cotto has the punching power to make it interesting. If he were to win, it’ll be because Mayweather gets rocked, and Cotto’s left hand is as powerful as anyone’s. We saw what Mosley did to Mayweather early in their match, and the power Cotto possesses at this point in their careers is vastly superior to Shane’s.
• Cotto has already fought Manny, so this conceivably could be his last real major payday. He needs to jump on Floyd early and often in order to give himself a chance. If I had to pick a winner, obviously it would be Mayweather in a decision because frankly, he’s never lost. But this fight definitely has much more intrigue than his last few fights (Victor Ortiz, Shane Mosley, and Juan Manuel Marquez).

Being the hater that I am, I want to see Mayweather knocked out for the simple fact that it would shock the boxing world and maybe give it what it needs.


May’s What's Poppin' topic: Video Games and Sports

Photo content courtesy of: www.boxingwallpapers.com, www.ringtalk.com, and www.cagepotato.com

Connect with Albert Nguyen!

Bio: http://www.gymclassallstars.com/p/albert-nguyen_26.html

Email: albertn@gymclassallstars.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/alnguyen84

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Real Life Mario Kart

Let’s just get this out there: I am not an athlete.

At face value, that’s not that unusual of a statement, but what I really mean in that short sentence is that I have the motor control of a toddler suffering from perpetual vertigo, the body awareness of a drunk yak, the speed of a sloth during hibernation, and the strength of a European big man going up for a block. The only activity that registers above average hand-eye coordination is my jungle cat quick cupcake-to-mouth reaction time. And although in my mid-20s I’m in what many people consider the physical prime of their lives, I’m fairly certain that my Zumba class-attending mother could best me in nearly any endurance test.

Heck, I’m even lousy at pseudo-sports. I’ve had friends look on in disbelief when darts I’ve thrown managed to miss not only the target or any one of the board’s twenty sections, but also the entire wall from which the board was hanging. A couple weeks ago I bowled three gutter balls consecutively, or what my house church affectionately called a "snowman." Really, the only thing I excel in is self-deprecation, in which I lead the league in both volume and frequency.

In truth, the reality of my physical ineptitudes has sometimes been a hard pill to swallow. While I can participate in activities that downplay my clumsiness, such as running or hiking, there is a limit to how far I can fight my innate inabilities before I wind up silently writhing in pain because I’ve pulled an armpit muscle buckling my seat belt after attempting to lift weights (true story).

There have been plenty of times when I’ve thought to myself, “If only I could play a sport that didn’t require me to use my body…” But that’s the same as someone wishing to be a musician if he doesn’t own an instrument. I figured it simply isn’t possible.

Enter go-kart racing.

Last month, I went with a group to F1 Boston to celebrate my friend Dru's birthday. Prior to that afternoon, my exposure to racing started and ended with Nintendo's Mario Kart (I'm terrible, for the record) and a classy little film called Talladega Nights. Now that I think about it though, maybe I should have tried go-karting earlier. I've always been a little bit of a speed demon, and, to the excitement/chagrin of some passengers, there are occasional instances when my driving maneuvers veer on the outskirts of legality. Case in point: during a bumper-to-bumper trip between Austin and Dallas in the midst of a Red River Rivalry weekend, I drove my Civic Coupe off the freeway, through a grassy median, and onto the feeder to avoid traffic. Three times. Compound those tendencies with nine months of experience navigating the non-grid labyrinth known as Boston alongside aggressive drivers (trust me, they're not called Massholes for nothin'), and you've got a racer in the making.

We signed up for the package that included three back-to-back 10 to 15 lap races in which we racked up points based on our times to determine our position in the final 18 lap race. After watching a brief safety video and pulling on racing uniforms that included a jumpsuit, neck brace, helmet, and ninja mask, we were turned loose on the track. The cars were a little smaller than I expected: shorter than a twin-size bed in length. I think the highest speed we reached was something like 35 mph, which doesn’t sound all that impressive but felt much much faster because we were so close to the ground and in a door-less, roof-less vehicle. In my adrenaline-overdosed mind, how tightly I held onto the wheel somehow directly correlated to how fast I could make the car go, so the next day, my arms and shoulders were sore (as if I had, you know, worked out or something) from gripping the wheel like it was the last cupcake in the world.

Jumpsuit up

I didn’t have a strong showing in the first race. And what I really mean in that short sentence is that I T-boned my friend Jason when a passing attempt went awry, then slammed into a wall when my too-large helmet slipped over my eyes several laps later. Thankfully, after getting that out-of-control recklessness out of my system, I figured out where to accelerate, brake, and safely pass people so that I could be intentionally reckless.

I posted strong enough times in the next two races to overcome my abysmal initial race and start in the number three spot in the winner-take-all finale. After all was said and done, I finished second. Now, I know Ricky Bobby would say, “If you ain’t first, you’re last,” but for a girl who has almost never placed in any sort of physical event, number 2 felt pretty damn good.

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That Time I Met: Adam Scott

Did I ever tell you about that time I met Adam Scott?

It was the first week of April, and busy season was officially coming to an end for me. One of my audit managers was on some committee related to the Shell Houston Open, so he gave me a few free tickets to check out the tournament. After receiving a day off and picking up a parking pass from my friend Edwin, Albert, Hao, and I were ready to make the Friday trek up to Redstone Golf Club in Humble, Texas.

Since I wanted to watch Phil Mickelson represent my then-employer KPMG, and since Hao had a mancrush on Adam Scott, we decided to follow their group. We watched Phil and Adam play the 215-yard par-3 14th hole. Mickelson bogeyed while Scott saved par. The two of them then started making their way to the 15th tee, and we had a prime spot for the two-man parade. As Adam Scott approached us, I said something to the likes of “nice save, Adam,” and he looked at me and gave me a head nod.

That’s the end of the story. They don’t allow cameras at the SHO, so I don’t have any proof of this incident, but Albert and Hao are witnesses.

So by this point, you’re probably accusing me of false advertisement; does a head nod really qualify as “meeting” someone?

In a word, yes. Yes, it does. We made eye contact, and there was a definite connection during that split second. You lovebirds out there who believe in “love at first sight” can back me up here -- this is the same thing; except that instead of butterflies in my stomach, I got a courteous head nod.

I shared this little anecdote because it is Masters week, and I wanted to talk some golf. Since Albert has spread the Tiger love so rampantly, I would just like to say that his sentiments do not necessarily represent all of Gym Class All Stars. I used to love Tiger Woods. Back in my middle school and high school years, when the only golf equipment to my name was a 7-iron I bought from Academy, an old putter from who knows where, and three stray golf balls I found at Sweetwater Country Club, I would sit mesmerized on Sunday afternoons watching Tiger perpetually find a way to win.

But I just can’t bring myself to cheer for the man anymore. I previously wrote this in a comment to Albert’s Haterade, but it’s hard to believe how far he and his image have fallen since that fateful Thanksgiving night. I respect his work ethic, and he will go down as the greatest to ever play the game, but his life choices and personal problems are too much for me to overcome as a fan.

The problem is that hardly anyone have taken advantage of the situation to win my fanhood. Adam Scott -- despite our moment -- started using a long putter, which no self-respecting man under the age of 60 should ever touch. Anthony Kim stopped performing; the man has missed more cuts this year than a blind point guard. The only pros to step up to the plate? The Golf Boys.

If you’re ever wondering why I’m a Ben Crane fan, you can always refer back to this video for starters. So going into the 2012 Masters, I will be cheering for Ben Crane. But don’t worry, Adam Scott -- your head nod earned you a spot on my fantasy golf team. No, you’re not starting, but it’s better than nothing.

Photo and video courtesy of Andrew Redington/Getty Images and YouTube

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Haterade: Every Golfer Not Named Tiger Woods

With the sport’s biggest tournament just around the corner, the spotlight on Tiger Woods is shining brighter than ever -- even more so this year than in years past because he’s healthy and playing well leading into it. After his 72nd PGA Tour win in the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill a week ago (3rd all-time behind Sam Snead [82] and Jack Nicklaus [73]), the anticipation, the hype, and the swing all look primed for one hell of a ride at Augusta National.

Let me preface by saying that I am arguably the biggest Tiger Woods fan I know, so I apologize beforehand if you do not share the sentiments (ahem, Jonathan Mok).

I’m the guy that told everyone to reserve judgment when news of his infidelities came out, even though deep inside I knew it wasn’t going to end well.

I’m the guy that is so enamored with his mannerisms around the golf course that I imitate them in my daily life. The way he picks up his tee, twirls his club, and fist pumps to the crowd are all unbelievably awesome to me.

You know how people wear jerseys of their favorite teams when watching the big game? I’m the guy that wears my Tiger Woods hat and a victory red golf polo on the Sundays Tiger plays.

And at the end of the day, I just want people to appreciate the type of talent he is. His entire swing has been changed and retooled three different times, he has had four major surgeries on his left knee, and events all around the world have been “Tiger-Proofing” their courses in an attempt to promote better competition throughout his career.

But this isn’t about Tiger Woods -- it’s about the other guys. I admit that my fandom is utterly ridiculous. I realize that my views are biased. And I understand that my hatred for everyone else on the tour is completely unjustified. But I don’t care.

Since Tiger lost his #1 official world golf ranking on October 10, 2010, there’ve been a total of four guys who have held the title: Englishman Lee Westwood, German Martin Kaymer, Englishman Luke Donald, and Irishman Rory McIlroy.

Lee Westwood (Total: 22 weeks)

Lee Westwood is a solid player. He’s a consistent striker of the golf ball, and he spends a lot of time giving back to his fans through outlets such as his twitter.

But in my opinion, you cannot be genuinely viewed as a great player until you win a major championship. When it comes to his performance in majors, he has been the runner-up twice, but he has also missed the cut a total of 14 times. Really? 14? Tiger hasn’t even missed 14 cuts in his entire career, let alone in major championships.

He has two PGA Tour victories, one in 1998 (Freeport-McDermott Classic) and one in 2010 (St. Jude Classic). So what the heck was he doing during the twelve years in between? Well, he was busy “dominating” the European Tour. Not a knock against the European Tour or anything, but that’s like dominating the NBA D-League. Again, I am not discounting it, but there is no question that the events on the PGA Tour consistently are fielded with a higher number of quality players. To be the best, you have to compete against the best. And throughout Westwood’s career, he has chosen not to do this.

Martin Kaymer (Total: 8 weeks)

First off, who?!?

To the surprise of many, Kaymer does have 10 wins on the European Tour, including 3 titles at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, and a PGA Championship from 2010 to his name. So why haven’t we heard more about him? To put it bluntly, the guy exudes boring-ness. Nothing about him is exciting -- his game, his personality, his demeanor.

Maybe that’s the way he likes it. Just quietly go about his business, pick up wins, and rack up official world golf ranking points. But this isn’t 1950. In today’s day and age, you need to market yourself in a way where fans can connect with you. It’s a world that promotes individualism. And considering the fact that Kaymer plays in an individual sport, it’s in his best interest to stick out.

Maybe he should watch this video in his free time.

Luke Donald (Total: 42 weeks)

A very steady player. In the last 12 months, he has picked up five wins on the PGA and European Tours and a bunch of top 10 finishes. However similarly to Westwood, Luke Donald has no major championships to his name. That’s like a consistent team in the NBA who wins 50 games each year, makes the playoffs, but has no championship hardware to confirm all the regular season success. I’m talking to you, Phoenix Suns. And quite honestly, he hasn’t even gotten close.

Arguably in his best year as a professional golfer, 2011, he finished 4th at the Masters, 45th at the US Open, 8th at the PGA Championship, and he missed the cut entirely at the British Open. I mean, wouldn’t you want the #1 ranked golfer in the world to compete in majors on a frequent basis and actually win some of them too?

Until Donald does this, he will always be relegated to the second tier in my book.

Rory McIlroy (Total: 2 weeks)
Widely regarded as “The Next Tiger Woods.” Give me a break. The kid is a nice player, and maybe even a great player. But there’s no such thing as the next Tiger Woods. Remember when pundits would try to find the next Michael Jordan... when Michael Jordan was still playing? It was not only absurd at the time, but it was also fundamentally disrespectful. This is why you have a list of guys that includes Isaiah Rider and Harold Minor.

Furthermore, Tiger doesn’t cave under pressure like Rory does. Yes, I’m talking about the 80 that he posted in the final round at the 2011 Masters. He had a four-stroke lead going into the final day only to end up finishing tied for 15th. Better yet, he had a 1 stroke lead after the first 9 holes then proceeded to triple bogey the 10th and double bogey the 12th. If I was a writer for Gym Class All Stars a year ago, Rory would have undoubtedly been featured on Party Foul.

I’m sure this rant sounds like I hate the guy, but I don’t. All I’m asking is for some patience. I realize golf desperately needs a superstar that potentially can fill Tiger’s shoes once he’s gone. But the truth of the matter is Tiger isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, and it’s unfair to the game and to Rory to put that types of expectations on him. Let’s just wait and see if he can get closer to the 72 wins (he has 3) and 14 majors (he has 1) that Tiger currently holds before we put him on a pedestal.

But hey, if you want to crown him, then crown him.

Its like what Kobe Bryant said when he was referring to James Harden and Kevin Durant after one of the Laker/Thunder games earlier this season: “Maybe one day, they’ll be able to sit at my lunch table.”

Until next time, sip that haterade...

PS: What the heck is the MLB doing starting the regular season in Japan (Seattle v. Oakland) a week before the rest of league actually starts? Freaking Bud Selig.

April’s What’s Poppin’ topic: Hip Hop and Basketball

Photo content courtesy of: heraldsun.com, cnn.com, spox.com, and golfweek.com

Connect with Albert Nguyen!

Bio: http://www.gymclassallstars.com/p/albert-nguyen_26.html

Email: albertn@gymclassallstars.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/alnguyen84

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WrestleMania 28 Live Blog

Today is WrestleMania 28 with the match of The Rock vs. John Cena headlining the event.
I will be posting personal reactions and play-by-play, with consistent updates throughout the night.

Key Matchups:

• John Cena vs. The Rock
• Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk (WWE Championship)
• Daniel Bryan vs Sheamus (World Heavyweight Championship)
• The Undertaker vs Triple H

The Undertaker tries to keep his record perfect at WrestleMania, which currently stands at 19-0. Personal favorite Santino Marella will be leading a seven-man tag team match, which means I will be closely watching that match and expecting some comedic relief from my boy Santino.


7:01 PM
First thought: I hope it rains during the Undertaker match. Second thought: why would you buy nosebleed seats to this; you can't see anything from up there. Hope The Rock and Cena match lives up to the year-long promotion.
7:07 PM
Now we know Sheamus looks even paler in natural light -- didn't think this was possible. First match of the night is the World Heavyweight Championship match between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan. Tons of "Yes!" signs in support of Daniel Bryan today.
7:10 PM
Shortest title match ever, 18 seconds, as Daniel Bryan takes a Brogue Kick from Sheamus to start the match which turned in to a quick count-out. If you paid for this match, you clearly didn't get your money's worth. Hope WWE uses the extra time wisely tonight, since this match took a New York minute.
7:20 PM
Hope this second match between Randy Orton and Cain takes longer than the last match.
7:31 PM
Cain wins; match was pretty uneventful. Filler scene with Santino! Even if it is a shameless plug for another TV show, more face time for Santino is always a win in my book. Up next: Big Show vs Cody Rhodes.
7:41 PM
Big Show plants his @$$ right on Cody's face for some good classic entertainment. Fight has been predictable so far. Big Show starts strong only to let his opponent take shots at his leg to bring him to the ground.
7:53 PM
Celebrity guest Maria Menounos is teaming up with Kelly Kelly to face Eve Torres and Beth Phoenix in a tag team match. Maria is rumored to have a broken rib, but more importantly, how did she fit this into her schedule with Dancing with the Stars currently taking place?
7:58 PM
Celebrities always walk away victorious, but that Kelly Kelly front flip off the top rope was quite amazing and worth watching again. Also quick note: 78,363 is the number they are reporting for attendance at the stadium tonight.
8:08 PM
Here we go! It is finally dark outside, and the stage is set for Triple H and the Undertaker to beat the crap out of each other. If it's anything like last year get ready for a marathon of a match with drastic momentum changes.
8:12 PM
Undertaker at last reveals his shaved head without a wig or hood on. Time to lower the cage for hell in the cell.Out of all the matches tonight, Undertaker is the biggest favorite according to Las Vegas with the odds set at Undertaker (-900) vs. Triple H (+500).
8:28 PM
Its going to take a lot more than stairs and chairs to get me to start believing that the Undertaker is going to lose this one. Friend next to me just commented: "Undertaker can't lose at WrestleMania, I bet it's in his contract." Well here comes the sledgehammer; maybe that will change our opinion.
8:39 PM
How many times will a ref be thrown in this match? It feels like it's been going on for a hour, yet it's only been about 25 minutes. Seems like this fight has just picked up from last year. HBK is now sitting traumatized in the corner after being thrown around by both competitors.
8:46 PM
As entertaining as that was, the fact everyone still knew the outcome just really hurts the appeal of the match. The question now is who the heck will face Undertaker next WrestleMania...
9:06 PM
Did Heath Slater just call Flo Rida Florida, didn't know they would have a musical guest at this event. Now it's my main event: 7 v 7 tag team with team captain Santino!
9:18 PM
SANTINO! Of course team Teddy couldn't win, but Santino put on a great show with splits, jumps, and the cobra. Other highlights from the match: Hornswoggle jumping off the top rope and then getting caught midair and thrown to the ground; Woo Woo Woo failing; and Zack Ryder getting kicked in the balls by Eve after he lost. Only two matches left -- up next is CM Punk vs Chris Jericho, should be fun.
9:28 PM
Might be more lights on Chris Jericho than your average Christmas tree. Also just want to say I am tired of John Laurinaitis, and they really need to kill that storyline soon.
9:42 PM
What kind of man is Jericho? After he almost pulls off CM Punk's pants and shows the world a bit of butt crack... glad Jericho has given up on the idea of trying to win the belt on disqualification. CM Punk rolls out of a "Walls of Jericho" attempt.
9:48 PM
CM Punk pulls off a clean "Go to Sleep" but fails to get the three-count as Jericho get a leg on the rope.
9:52 PM
CM Punk crawls to the rope to escape another "Walls of Jericho" attempt. Tons of jumps in and out of the ring as this is turning out to be a decent match.
9:56 PM
Failed "GTS" leads to another "Walls of Jericho," yet CM Punk twists his way out once again. CM Punk wins with a choke that leads to a tap-out by Jericho.
10:00 PM
Alright now it is time for the main event! Cena vs Rock, two stars from two different decades finally face off -- a true WWE fan's dream matchup. It's like if we could get to see Michael Jordan go one-on-one with Kobe Bryant.
10:03 PM
Looks like we have a small break with a surprise appearance from Funkasaurus! Dancer in old lady fat suits dancing with Funkasaurus is a nice distraction as they get ready for Rock vs Cena.
10:06 PM
G.I. Joe trailer! Get excited. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Bruce Willis join the cast from the first G.I. Joe movie. Hopefully it comes close to being as entertaining as the last movie Dwayne was in, "Fast Five."
10:11 PM
Who is MGK? And how did they end up at this event performing?
10:15 PM
I think it is safe to say that Rock has the better intro artist with Flo Rida, but this guy seriously needs to wear a shirt.
10:20 PM
CAN YOU SMELL WHAT THE ROCK IS COOKING?!??!
10:27 PM
Match is underway, and you can feel the energy of the stadium through the TV. The crowd is already making this event live up to the hype -- it's the first time tonight that I wish I was at the stadium. The match is building up slowly though.
10:36 PM
This announcer is losing credibility after giving so much credit to the bear hug by John Cena. Rock starting to look like the Rock from 10 years ago until Cena counters and finishes off a Five Finger Shuffle. Of course that is not enough to end this match on a night like this.
10:39 PM
Rock mocks John Cena with a "U Can't See Me" which gives Cena the opening for an "Attitude Adjustment." Naturally the pin fails again. We won't be seeing anyone counted out at least til the clock strikes 11:00 PM.
10:46 PM
Two failed "Sharp Shooter" attempts by The Rock. After watching all the failed "Walls of Jerichos" today I think I am done when it comes to submissions. Cena thrown into the stairs but quickly gains momentum with an STF submission. Doubt this match will end with a tap-out, but if it does, I would want my money back had I had paid for this.
10:58 PM
Wow, Rock jumps off the top rope into Cena's arm and somehow ends up in another "Attitude Adjustment." The Rock survives again and acts fallen by just lying there until Cena gives him an opening for a "Rock Bottom!" IT'S OVER -- THE ROCK WINS!
11:00 PM
Goodnight everyone! Now it's time to watch Game of Thrones on the DVR.

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2012 Royal Rumble Results

Here's some quick results from today's Royal Rumble.

Daniel Bryan defeated Mark Henry and Big Show in a Steel Cage Match to retain the Heavyweight Championship

Mark Henry aggravated a knee injury this past week, so his role was kept to a minimum. Every change he got, Bryan tried to escape the ring while Show and Henry went at it. Eventually he was dangling outside the ring hanging on to Big Show's arm. It became too much and Big Show dropped him, letter Bryan get the win. Will this setup more Big Show/Bryan? Or will we move on to Sheamus/Bryan?

Beth Phoenix, Natalya and the Bella Twins defeated Kelly Kelly, Alicia Fox, Eve and Tamina

Filler match that I assume was not very memorable (I was getting dinner). It seemed pretty similar to all the other tag team diva matches from the kitchen window.

John Cena and Kane had a double DQ (countout)

Strangely they didn't seem to follow through with any of the buildup at the beginning and it seemed like any other match. After a while they fought to the back, both getting counted out. Kane attacked Ryder, who was in a wheelchair, brought him into the ring, and gave him the tombstone pile-driver. Cena then came out and was choke-slammed. Kane got the upper hand at the end, and we'll see if Cena really "embraces the hate" on Monday. I thought he was turning already, but that didn't seem to really take. Also will we see Cena really snap while pushing the anti-bullying campaign?

Brodus Clay defeated Drew McIntyre

This was another filler match thrown in to separate the title big singles matches. I actually had to look up whether McIntyre was still in the WWE when writing my predictions, so I guess it isn't surprising that he got squashed. This also protects the Funkasaurus from a Royal Rumble loss.

CM Punk defeated Dolph Zigger to retain the WWE Championship

John Laurinaitis decided to be impartial be just being the outside ref, and called in a regular ref to do the main job. The match was pretty good, eventually leading to a ref bump, where CM Punk got a few pins while there was nobody there to count it. Eventually the ref woke up and saw Punk get a 3 count. Laurinaitis did this weird thing where he slid in and counted along with the ref for the second and third counts - I wonder if this will come into play somewhere, of if it was just a mistake.

Sheamus won the Royal Rumble Match

A few notes, some based on my predictions from earlier in the week:

- Funkasaurus did not even appear in this match, so that prediction was off.

- Santino had a much bigger role than I thought he could. He had a sock-fight with Mick Foley which was the highlight of the night.

- Ricardo Rodriguez was hilarious - he came in with Alberto Del Rio's entrance but with a real beat up car, did the whole entrance with the scarf and had some funny moves in the ring. I hope this isn't the last we see of this character.

- Christian and Mason Ryan did not even appear. With 3 spots wasted on the announcers, a lot of wrestlers did not get a chance to even show up.

- Kharma came back. I thought she just had a baby!

- Road Dogg came back and got a "You still got it" chant. Of course he still has it - he is still an active wrestler! It isn't like Ricky Steamboat where he was retired and we weren't sure if he could still wrestle.

- The final four were Orton, Jericho, Sheamus (I guessed those three) and the Big Show. I wasn't expecting Big Show to do this well.

- Jericho didn't show any of his over-the-top character tonight.

- Sheamus beat Jericho at the end to win the match. I don't see a CM Punk / Sheamus feud going anywhere, so I bet he will be going after Daniel Bryan at Wrestlemania.

Overall this was a pretty good match (though Royal Rumbles almost always are). My favorite section was the Santino / Mick Foley / Ricardo Rodriguez bit. What did you guys think?

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