Sabalenka was thinking: 'What could go wrong?'

INDIAN WELLS — The man on the microphone, which appeared to be the one piece of electronic equipment working correctly, kept asking for patience and telling us that everything would be fine, making it sound like we were waiting for a BART train and not a tennis match.

The buzzers and horns that let us know a ball might be long or wide, outside the lines were inoperative.

Minutes were clicking away. Five, 10, 15.

Up in the glass-walled media boxes, someone shouted, “They’ve kept score for a hundred years without electricity.”

The first two women’s semifinalists in BNP Paribas Open, Aryna Sabalenka and Maria Sakkari, couldn’t even walk across the court, never mind hitting a few warmup balls.

“For a second I was thinking, oops, something is going to go wrong today,” said Sabalenka. “It’s not going to be the same.”

Very little went wrong, if anything, on Friday for Sabalenka, who beat Sakkari 6-2, 6-3 as the tennis mavens choose to point out, book a place in the final.

In contrast, nothing seemingly went wrong for Iga Swiatek, the one at the top of the heap in women’s tennis. At least until Friday evening, when she was blitzed by Elena Rybackina, 6-2, 6-2.

That left Swiatek a bit bewildered and the writers and announcers understandably asking, how the heck did this happen?

“Well, I don’t know,” was Swiatek’s response. “Honestly, I feel like it’s more me and kind of my mistakes. For sure, Elena played great, and I feel like against her I have to play better.” 

Swiatek certainly did on Friday.

“I’m also not feeling 100 percent physically. I have a little discomfort in my rib, and we’re gonna consult with the medical team. For sure I’m going to use these days off before Miami (the next event), so now I actually have one more day.”

Both of last year’s Indian Well champs failed to get to the last step this time, Taylor Fritz losing in the quarters.

The way Sabalenka has been rolling her victory over Swiatek isn’t quite a shock. She’s 17-1 this year (the loss in Dubai stopped a 13-match win streak) and now is using her head as well as her booming serve.

“I wasn’t going for the lines,” said Sabalenka. “I’m not that good at tennis.”  

Some might argue with that idea. She was fine at keeping her cool after the delay.

“Stuff like that can happen,” said Sabalenka. “And I remind myself that’s OK. So I just have to calm myself and relax until they fix the system.”

Something different. 

“I understand now I can control myself in these situations. I can switch my focus and bring myself back. My goal is to keep winning.”

No matter what goes with the electronic scoring, or what doesn’t.

A day of a lot of tennis is too much for Fritz

INDIAN WELLS — That problem for Taylor Fritz, the town reminding him he was the defending champ in the BNP Paribas Open? It’s no longer around.

Neither is Fritz.  

Jannik Sinner, an Italian who moved from a possible career in skiing to a definite career in tennis, ousted Fritz, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 Thursday in their quarterfinal at Indian Wells Tennis Garden.

You can debate whether it was an upset — Fritz was fifth in the ATP rankings, Sinner, 13th — there is no question for the fans shouting for the guy from southern California, it was a disappointment.

Whether you liked the results from this Thursday when the temperature would reach 72, you had the format and the entertainment.

The term March Madness has been copyrighted by the NCAA for another sport that uses nets and balls, so we’ll just refer to what was almost nine hours of activity as Racquet Revelry.

It began a good time before noon — you hate to describe matches involving the women’s Wimbledon champ and the No. 1 player in the women’s rankings — as warm up competition.

It closed after 8 p.m., not quite closing time around Palm Springs, but you’d better move quickly.

Elena Rybakina, who in July won Wimbledon, defeated Karolina Muchova, 7-6, 2-6, 6-4.

Then the sun set especially on ex-champ, Fritz.

Then, after the lights came on, Carlos Alcaraz, the No. 1 and also the Wimbledon champ, defeated the man who he had never previously beaten, Félix Auger-Aliassime, 6-4, 6-4.

Is that enough for you? It was more than enough for the 25-year-old Fritz, who was knocked out by a kid even younger, Sinner, who’s 21.

Asked if there was anything positive he could take from the match, Fritz said. “Not really. No, it’s a tough match. You know, I found a way to get back in it and into the third and got it back. I don’t know. I put myself in a decent chance to win, but in the end, I just couldn’t make it happen.”

Fritz said the wind, which often blows in the desert, increased in the afternoon which had an effect on the match.

“Obviously I wanted to keep going. I wanted to defend.”

And hear his friends and neighbors remind him he was a champion. 

Which he was.

At Indian Wells Tiafoe feels the vibes

INDIAN WELLS — Tennis is as much a battle against yourself as against the person across the net, a struggle to become a winner while trying to hit winners, to build belief maybe long after building a better backhand.

It’s a sport in which, because of the seeding system, the best prospects, the new kids, if you will, start off with the worst chances. An activity the late Jim Murray wrote in which the young are not pampered. They’re devoured.

Sure there are exceptions, such as Carlos Alcaraz, the Spaniard, who last summer at age 19 won a Grand Slam tournament, the U.S. Open, but for most the climb is exhausting and perhaps unrewarding.

That’s why it was exciting to see (and in post-match comments) hear the delight in Francis Tiafoe on Wednesday after he beat a former champion Britain’s Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-4 in their quarterfinal of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

You probably know the back story. Tiafoe is the son of a laborer who moved from war-torn Sierra Leone to America where Frances was born and through connections on a project building a tennis complex near Baltimore, was able to get lessons for the boy.

Frances’ natural athletic ability came out quickly enough. Yet despite optimistic predictions from the tennis establishment both Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz, each now 25, would be on the world stage immediately. They needed time. They were normal.

They also turned out to live up to expectations, theirs as much as ours. Fritz, a Californian who virtually was born with a silver racquet in his (fore) hand — his mother Kathy May, was in the U.S. Open doubles quarterfinals — took this BNP event a year ago, defeating Rafael Nadal in the final.

That doesn’t mean his longtime friend and rival, Tiafoe, will take it this year. Not with the Russian, Medvedev, a winner Wednesday after whining Tuesday about the speed of the courts at Indian Wells — “freaking slow” — as his next opponent.

Still, after beating Norrie, Tiafoe acted as a man unburdened. And as we have learned, you’re better when you’re not feeling the pressure. And when you are feeling relaxed.

Tiafoe knows fully what he is doing and how he’s doing it with assistance on this day of clouds, rain, sunshine and help from a crowd fully intending to be partial to Tiafoe. “I just think there are vibes all around.” 

Tiafoe again was asked why he has gone farther at Indian Wells than in any previous Masters 1000 event — the most prestigious and prestigious on the ATP Tour. 

“Every win builds more and more confidence. I’m using my speed a lot more to be aggressive, not just to react to balls. I’ve been super happy being here. You know I have a lot left in the tank.” 

Which he will need the next two rounds, daring to think he might get that far.

Indian Wells defending champ plays like one

INDIAN WELLS — The only trouble with being the defending champion is that everyone keeps reminding you that you’re the defending champion. As Taylor Fritz has learned at the BNP Paris Tennis Open where, yes, he is defending champion.

Fritz also is sort of a local, having lived, worked out and competed in this desert community. Which makes it well, worse hardly is the appropriate word when, in fact, you’re adding a footnote to success.

The defending champ — last reference — played like one Monday in the BNP Paribas Open, defeating Sebastian Baez of Argentina, 6-1, 6-2. Since the match was only 1 hour, 10 minutes, you might say, borrowing the cliché, that Fritz hardly raised a sweat. But on a day when the thermometer reached 82 degrees Fahrenheit all you needed to perspire was to blink your eyes.

Which is all Baez had time to do against Fritz, who at No. 5 is the highest American in the men’s rankings, damn impressive for an American who’s 25. Or any age.

Some would provide a disclaimer on the one-sided Fritz victory, pointing out Baez is a clay court specialist, and the courts at Indian Wells are very hard indeed.  No thanks.

Rafael Nadal felt most comfortable (and was most successful) on clay courts. But he also won on the grass at Wimbledon and the hard courts everywhere. 

If you can play, you can play whatever the surface or conditions.

Fritz, the son of two tennis parents (his mother Kathy May reached the quarters at the U.S. Open) can play. He and Francis Tiafoe — and now maybe newbie Ben Shelton — are supposed to be the future of U.S. men’s tennis, part of the so-called “Next Gen.”

Maybe, but Monday, Fritz was magnificent. Then again, Baez was bewildered.

Fritz’s problem would seem to be his own body. Two weeks ago after a match in the humidity of Acapulco, Mexico, Fritz had severe cramps. And throughout his career, he’s had numerous injuries.

“I have no idea why,” said Fritz when asked if he could explain the ailments. “I think I’ve been very lucky, but obviously I do recover from things very quickly. I think a lot of that has to do with my willpower, and like I hate to be out.  I hate to be injured.”

For the time, Fritz is healthy and thinking positively. He’s done his best to avoid the praise from the gang. He appears wise and experienced enough not to fall into the trap of arrogance.

 “Like every hour or so people keep telling me I’m defending here. But I am trying to take it how it is. You know we start over at zero.  I’m trying to have good results, trying to put myself in the best position to end the year at the highest spot.”

A win in a match that barely went two hours would seem Taylor Fritz is headed in the proper direction.

Indian Wells proves tennis is very much alive

INDIAN WELLS — Google the cover of the May 1994 Sports Illustrated with the headline “Is Tennis Dying?” and you get the response, no good matches.

Which is a kick (if not a kick serve) and certainly incorrect. How about Federer-Nadal at Wimbledon? Or any match involving Serena Williams, especially that U.S. Open final against sister Venus.

Indeed, the Google reference was to items that in content were similar or connected to that cover, which showed a tennis ball shaped like a question mark, which some 30 years later is available from Amazon for 4.50. 

Tennis never has been more alive, in part because of the great players. In part, because the promoters, the U.S. Open in the late summer, the BNP Paribas Open now underway as always at Indian Wells just down the road from Palm Springs, understand both the sport and the sporting public.

Tennis no longer is just a game, it’s a part, a moveable feast — literally with the restaurants on the grounds. 

You wonder how many people in the record crowds here have picked up a racquet--probably a great many, he says answering his own question — but unquestionably they have picked up the vibe.

Tennis is constructed on personality, names and fame. All sports are, of course, but tennis — and golf — lack a home team. Thus it better not lack individual stars, new kids on the block as it were, as the recent greats put on years as they pick up trophies.

Indian Wells Tennis Garden — yes, a pretentious label but we’re hardly in the borough of subtlety — was built on a hunk of desert, Larry Ellison’s gift to the pastime as much as to himself.

It was 80 degrees Sunday at Indian Wells, perfect for America’s top-ranked women’s player. Jessica Pegula defeated Anastasia Potapova 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 and the almost-birthday girl, she turns 19 on Monday, CoCo Gauff, won over Linda Noskova, 6-4, 6-3

No surprises there, but an apparent surprise in the men’s when qualifier Cristian Garin of Chile shocked third-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway 6-4, 7-6 (2) at the BNP Paribas Open on Sunday for his first win over a top-five player in nearly two years.

Garin, ranked No. 97, had 39 winners while Ruud, ranked No. 4, managed just 15 winners against 29 unforced errors in a match that lasted 1 hour, 59 minutes.

“Casper is one of the players that I really admire,” Garin said. “I’m so happy to be playing like that, being aggressive, going to the net. That’s the way that I like to play and the only way that I have to beat these kinds of players.”

Just the other day Ruud, a two-time Grand Slam finalist, said he watches golf on television and regrets he is unable to enter a pro-am like the Pebble Beach AT&T because he is preoccupied with tennis. At least until now.

Djokovic absence at Indian Wells; no shot in the arm

Novak Djokovic did it honorably this time. No headlines or deadlines. No warnings or need for deportation.

Just crushed hopes and disappointment for fans and sponsors — and no less important for a group so tied to the sport, The Tennis Channel. 

Djokovic, tops in the world, is not going to play in the BNP Paribas tournament, which begins this week at Indian Wells in the California desert.

No major announcement. No minor one either. Only a paragraph that Djokovic has withdrawn and would be replaced by Nikoloz Basilashvili.

As if Basilashvili, while excellent, was a not quite satisfactory substitute for the world’s No. 1.  As if anyone else would be.

Djokovic is not afraid of Daniil Medvedev, who defeated him a few days ago in the final in Dubai. Or anyone else in the draw.

He’s afraid of receiving a vaccination for COVID-19, which understandably remains a requirement for foreigners, such as Djokovic, a Serbian, to enter the United States.

A year ago Australia had the restriction, and after arriving there for the Australian Open and languishing in a holding area finally was sent out of the country.  This year he was allowed back and — you decide whether it was poetic justice or great forehands, won the event for a 10th time — his 22nd Grand Slam.

Tennis and golf are dependent on individuals. It’s the stars who fill the seats and boost the TV ratings; the people with their names on the marquee for the fame they earned. 

Djokovic has won Indian Wells as almost everything else he’s played everywhere on the globe. It’s a game without borders. He was a welcome entrant along with aces such as Roger Federer, now retired, and Rafael Nadal, now injured.

Before the pandemic. 

The argument is if a person chooses not to be vaccinated, well it’s his or her life and the only person affected is the one who refuses.

Except a tennis player, like other athletes, is both a possible carrier of the disease and of course a symbol.

Questioned about a stand that too many appears as dangerous as it is perplexing — did Rafa or Roger refuse? — Djokovic a year ago spoke to the BBC.

“I was never against vaccinations,” he had insisted, saying he had been vaccinated as a child. “But I’ve always supported the freedom to choose what you put in your body.”

As others have the freedom to choose whether they want to pay attention to Djokovic.

The difficulty is if you care about tennis, about any sport for that matter, because they’re so interconnected, in relationship, in judgment, it’s hard not to care.  

Our lives are engulfed in Television — yes ESPN, Fox, NBC Tennis Channel, The Golf Channel, seems linked.  The moment Steph Curry leaves a court in Boston, there’s Novak Djokovic stepping onto a court somewhere except anywhere in the U.S., including Indian Wells.

Which is too bad for the tournament and the sport.

Sporting changes: Clocks and no cuts

Major League Baseball has changed, apparently for the better. No wasting of time. You’re on a clock

At some tournaments, the PGA Tour is going to change. No cuts meaning everyone plays the full 72 holes. Whether that will be for the better is still uncertain.

And who knows what the next moves might be in NFL and NBA rules? 

Still, three strikes and you’re out and first down and ten. Or were those altered by some committee to keep us guessing?

Adaptation, we’re told, is the only way to survive. Baseball adapted, with time restrictions and — unfortunately — a runner on second to start extra innings.

The issue is our impatience. If something doesn’t appear to be happening, we’ll switch channels. Or walk out of the ballpark. Or off the course.

The wonderful part of sports is the unknown.  There’s no script, only possibilities.  You invest your time and hope for the best, like rolling the dice or turning over the cards.

Sometimes you hit the jackpot. A buzzer-beater by Steph Curry, other times the Warriors are down by 15 going into the fourth quarter. And they keep throwing the ball out of bounds instead of into the basket.

We need every game to be exciting, rewarding and quick; need every match to be for a championship, even a contrived one; need the stars on the ice or fairway or floor, or court. 

What we don’t need are all these injuries. Curry’s out, although almost ready to return. LeBron’s out. Rafael Nadal’s out, missing California (Indian Wells) and Florida. The Dodgers’ Gavin Lux is out for the season, and we’re a month away from the season even starting.

Golf’s problem, if you want to call it that, and the players don’t, is that the only injuries are to egos and bank accounts. Or is that not unique to that competition?  

In the early 1960s a few people with a lot of money wanted to get into pro football and, unable to be accepted by the NFL, formed their own group, the American Football League. They waved bankrolls and promises around, stealing (figuratively) NFL vets and draft picks and forcing a merger. Yes, there was this game that came to be known as the Bowl.

This generation’s AFL is the LIV. The difference is it's golf, not football (LIV is the Roman numeral for 54, the length of tournaments, rather than the PGA Tour’s 72.) The similarity is that some individuals are determined through millions and millions of Saudi Arabian dollars to bring about a merger.

What they have brought about is a decision by the PGA Tour to emulate the LIV and not reduce a tournament field through a halfway cut as has been done seemingly forever. 

Maybe not as momentous a switch as bringing a clock to baseball, until now a timeless game, but nevertheless a change.

Did someone say “Good old days”?

Jon Rahm, golf’s new conquistador

PACIFIC PALISADES — Do we simply add a Roman numeral to the late, great Seve Ballesteros? Call Jon Rahm the Spanish Armada II? The new Conquistador?

The Tour has ended its annual stay in the Golden West (yes, the U.S. Open will be here in June, but that’s a bit different) and Mr. Rahm claimed most of the gold along with a first place in the world rankings.

He earned $3.6 million alone with the victory Sunday in the Genesis Invitational at historic Riviera Country Club, to highlight a two-month stretch that also included wins at the Sentry in Maui (from seven shots back) and American Express in Palm Desert.

Toss in a third at the WM Phoenix Open, and Rahm has earned $9 million hitting a little white ball in two months.

In addition, Rahm won the Farmers Open in 2017 at Torrey Pines in San Diego and the U. S. Open at Torrey in 2021. 

West may be best for Jon, but it’s off to Florida and waypoints. Of course, both areas have beaches and palm trees.

Rahm’s winning total was a 17-under par 267 after a final-round 69. That also was ahead of the 269 by the local, Max Homa, who won the event two years back, and three up on another local, Patrick Cantlay.

Rahm graduated from Arizona State, Homa from Cal, and Cantlay for a while was at UCLA, making the Genesis seem much like a Pac-12 Conference competition.

Rahm was delighted with the way he responded to the back nine, making birdies at 12 and 16 just when the tournament appeared to be getting away.

“I’ve never had three PGA Tour wins in a season and to do it this early on is incredible, and to do it at this golf course,” Rahm said. “Talk about the history of Riviera as a golf course, the history of Tiger Woods as a player, those two combined in this tournament, it’s a pretty big deal. As a historian of the game, to be able to win a tournament hosted by Tiger and the one hosted by Jack [Nicklaus] as well, it’s pretty incredible.”

That word also applies to Rahm’s play quite an ability to adapt to different style courses. Kapalua, in Maui, is hilly and relatedly wide; the courses for the American Express are in the desert, while Riviera is a 100-year classic with narrow fairways and deep bunkers.

The locations will change. Rahm’s thoughts will not.

“Obviously I've been extremely disciplined my whole career, but right now I'm seeing the dividends of a lot of the hard work over the years,” said Rahm. “So just keep doing the small things and keep enjoying it, having fun. Obviously, when you're playing good it's really fun and when you're winning tournaments, extremely fun, but got to enjoy the tough moments as well. Try to take it all in and, like I said, keep doing the little things properly every day and hopefully I can keep putting myself in position to win.”

Sounds easy — when it works.

Tiger, Genesis both winners

PACIFIC PALISADES — Those guys high on the leaderboard three rounds into this very-much-in-doubt Genesis Invitational are some of golf’s current big guns. Jon Rham, Max Homa, and Keith Mitchell.

That guy who made the run on Saturday nobody expected — except him — is arguably the biggest, the top gun if you will, Tiger Woods.

He’s not going to win, not going to gain 12 shots on Rahm, who shot 65 for a 15-under total of 198, or Homa, who had a 69 for 201.

But in a way, Woods already is a winner — and so is the Genesis, which surprisingly, will have the unmatched attraction of Tiger for four rounds.

In virtually his hometown, or at least  40 miles away from his hometown in Orange County.

On a course where in 1992 he played for the first time in a PGA Tour tournament, famed Riviera — Hogan’s Alley — where despite all his success, Woods never has been a champion. 

Surprisingly, because after a 74 Friday that pushed Tiger to the edge of the cut line and had everyone concerned with Woods throwing a Tampon at playing partner Justin Thomas, Tiger on Saturday shot 67 — his lowest since the car accident two years ago.

“The golf has been nice,” Woods’ caddy Joe LaCava, told Barstool’s Dan Rapoport. “But the fact that he’s been holding up, looking healthy, and not tiring at the end of rounds is a good sign.”

That he’s not retiring at the end of the round if it’s a good normal round. Woods was on two as are most Tour pros. He was in the hole-in-one, an eagle, as are some of the pros. The roar rolled down to the coast a half-mile away.

“Yeah, today was better,” said Tiger.

His smile was worth more than words. 

“I felt like I made some nice adjustments with my putting and that was the thing that held me back yesterday. I’ve driven it well the last three days, my iron play has been good. And the firm conditions I like, that's kind of right up my alley with iron play.’’

Homa the Cal grad, as Tiger was a kid from Southern California, Valencia. He said he took up golf as a youngster after watching Woods on TV at the 1997 Masters.

That’s an explanation often heard from many of the Tour’s new stars. Now they’ve moved into territory once claimed by Woods.

That’s the way it’s always been in all sports. New people move in as older stars slip away. Not that Tiger Woods, 47, is ready to take his leave.     

“I was saying earlier, I can hit golf balls,” said Tiger. “Thinking about the future, I can chip and putt back home and I can do all that stuff. It’s taken a bit of time.”

Golf is a sport without a clock. You play until you are not able. Tiger showed he still is able.

A joke turns bad for Tiger and Thomas

PACIFIC PALISADES — So what was supposed to be a joke between a couple of guys named Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas drew more grimaces than laughter.

Then what was supposed to be an affirming round for Tiger — and the Genesis Invitational — turned into a string of missed putts if not a missed cut.

If you thought golf was unpredictable, how about humor?

We’re halfway through the Genesis, the last event before the PGA Tour leaves the West Coast, and the leaderboard has names such as Keith Mitchell, Collin Morikawa, Rory McIlroy, and Jon Rahm up high.

One of the names down low is Tiger’s, who in his first tournament since the British Open last July, seemingly will play all four rounds — the cut not being made until Saturday morning because Friday’s second round was unfinished.

That Woods, now 47 and still rehabbing after that serious car crash two years ago, almost certainly will be around a larger and more boisterous group of spectators. You should have heard the crowd Friday as Woods, finishing on nine at Riviera Country Club, bogeyed the final two holes.

The gasps were inescapable. As was the response to the frat-boy shenanigans Thursday involving Tiger and Justin Thomas. Maybe Tiger had been out of touch for so long that he forgot how much attention someone as famous as he generates over nothing. Or in this case, something.

Tiger and Thomas wondered among themselves whether Woods, away from golf, had lost his power. When his tee shot carried beyond Thomas; Tiger pulled out a Tampon and handed it to Thomas. 

As if you hit like a girl. As if girls, or women, can’t power the ball, which is nonsense. As members of the LPGA prove. 

Thomas, even more than Tiger, should be aware of how the smallest incident, intended or not, can become uncontrollable. Two years ago after a bad tee shot, Thomas berated himself with a phrase that was picked up by a TV microphone. He subsequently was dropped by two endorsing firms.    

Before he started his round Friday, Woods apologized.

“Yeah, it was supposed to be all fun and games and obviously it hasn't turned out that way,” he conceded. “If I offended anybody, it was not the case, it was just friends having fun. As I said, if I offended anybody in any way, shape or form, I'm sorry. It was not intended to be that way. It was just we play pranks on one another all the time and virally I think this did not come across that way, but between us it was — it's different.”

Different, also an appropriate word for his round, 2-under 69 on Thursday, a 3-over 74 on Friday.  

“I did not putt well today,” said Woods.

You might say his round was no laughing matter.

Big odds against Tiger who had a big day

PACIFIC PALISADES — So the odds on Tiger Woods just making the cut at the Genesis Invitational, 10-1, are the same as Scottie Scheffler winning the whole thing.

Why not? It used to be that golfers only gambled on themselves, making sure they got strokes from those willing to give them in friendly games. 

Now as with every other sport, golf is awash in betting.

And as you are aware the oddsmakers merely are trying to establish an even floor. They’re not rooting against Tiger. Or for him. They’re rooting for everyone else to offer their hard-earned cash for the chance to win. 

If you can’t drive or putt — or bring a wedge shot down a couple of feet from the pin, like Thursday’s unsurprising first-round leaders Max Homa, Keith Mitchell or Jon Rahm, then betting on them gets you into the game.

Golf historically is a sport of gambling. When the purses were small back in the late 1930s and early 1940s, a pro could earn more by winning a bet than by winning a tournament.

And even now, when they can get rich by getting a victory, pros bet during practice rounds. So as they say, there’s something at stake.    

What’s at stake in this Genesis is a $20 million total payoff with $3.6 million to the guy who ends up in first Sunday afternoon.

After 18 holes at Riviera Country Club on a cool, overcast Thursday — hey, it’s winter even in Southern California — Homa and Mitchell were tied for first with a 7-under par 64 and Rahm was a shot behind at 65. Yes. Those names have been noticeable in the last few tournaments.  

Homa, the Cal grad who was a winner at Riviera in the past, was just outside the top 10 at Pebble Beach two weeks ago. Mitchell was tied for fourth there. Rahm made a run at Phoenix, where Scheffler won for a second straight year.

Earlier this week in a pre-tournament media session someone asked Homa who he would pick between Rahm and Rory McIlroy. Maybe someone should have asked McIlroy, who opened with a 4-under 67, who he would choose between Rahm and Homa.

On any given day, no matter the odds, the average fan would choose Tiger. And in his first Tour event since missing the cut in the British Open last July, Woods had a 2-under 69. Scheffler had a 1-under 70, and you wonder what that does to the Tiger vs Scheffler bettors. If it does anything. 

The crowd was Tiger-crazy, seemingly as thrilled to have him back as he was thrilled to be back.

 “It was a lot louder than I had remembered-- I haven't played in any tournament in a long time,” said Woods, repeating himself. “I was trying to calm my nerves. I didn't really look up as much. I probably should have, but I didn't. I was trying to calm myself down all day, trying to figure out what the hell I'm doing out here because I haven't played. I had to try and figure out what the chess match is going to be.”

As opposed to what the odds are.

Lights, camera, action: it’s Hollywood golf

The movie industry figured long ago what golf has always recognized: there’s more to being famous than just being talented, although that certainly is an advantage. You need some flash, or a background that puts you in the neighborhood at least.

When club pros from the chill and snow of the East Coast came to California as their courses closed down for the winter, they began playing in the West.

This week’s Tour event, the Genesis, began in 1926 as the Los Angeles Open, and with victories by Ben Hogan — whose statue is alongside the practice putting green — and Sam Snead, it was both an anchor and a prime draw for competitive golf.

In what will be the best field of any tournament this winter are Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and the hottest guy the last 15 months and world No. 1, Scottie Scheffler, who as you know won again last Sunday in Phoenix.

There was a movie about Hogan, “Follow the Sun,” but the main role was portrayed by Glenn Ford. To the contrary, the Netflix series “Full Swing” uses the actual players and their families.

Yes, reality TV with a 3-putt. You might say the pros, sometimes wary of what the media will say, are fascinated and fearless. Tony Finau’s tale is a bit of a fairy tale. Son of a baggage handler at San Francisco International, Finau, a prep basketball star after the family resettled in Salt Lake City, quickly became great at golf.

Asked if he were excited fans would learn his beginnings, Finau said, “Yeah, just going back to the storytelling, my upbringing I think is quite different than most, and I take you back to Salt Lake City a little bit, to where it started. I think with the humble beginnings that I have, that was really a cool part of the story.

“I wanted to be a part of it. I think early, I was one of the first guys to commit to doing this, and I was really just honored that Netflix wanted to do a show on golf. I thought that that was an avenue that needed to be shown and I thought that there were going to be a lot of great stories and I was just happy that they looked at me and said that I could be a part of it.

“Honestly, early on I was just honored that I could be one of the guys, so I committed early. Again, I didn't really know what to expect, but I was more than happy to kind of open my doors to Netflix to just allow them some access to off-course stuff. the storytelling. I think they've done a great job. Time will tell if everyone agrees.”

Everyone does agree that in individual sports, golf and tennis, it’s the names that keep us involved. Max Homa, who grew up in L.A., graduated from Cal and has won six tournaments including the Fortinet at Silverado, pointed out that the names on top change weekly.

He then was asked, “Are you more of a (Rory) McIlroy or more of a (Jon) Rahm guy?”

“You can't pick on me for that,” said Homa. “There's too many good players. I don't know, I just played with Rahm last week and he's pretty fun to watch.”

Which we may find out on Netflix, if not in the galleries. Around here, everyone’s ready for lights, camera and action.

Tiger talks about winning and LeBron

PACIFIC PALISADES — He said he is grateful to be here, surrounded by memories, facing possibilities a sporting hero recalling his own heroes and reminding us that his only reason in playing the game is to win.

That so many of us doubt it’s still possible doesn’t deter Tiger Woods. It’s the way he was raised. It’s the way he always will believe.

The way so many people, especially those captivated by his fist-pumping success at the end of the 20th century and the start of the 21st, believe nobody else in the sport is quite his equal.

Or draws the same attention.

Woods, beginning Thursday will be in the Genesis Open, at Riviera Country Club, where in 1992, an amateur, he first was accepted to play at PGA Tour events.

He was 16, loaded with talent. He would be awed by the number of unstriped balls available on the practice range. We were awed by potential to be realized in 82 Tour wins, record stretches as world No. 1 and in becoming along with Ben Hogan the only man to win three majors in a calendar year.

You are familiar with the subsequent details, the headline grabbing affairs, the back surgery and most significantly the accident two years ago when the car Woods was driving probably too fast, overturned on a hillside road maybe 15 miles from Riviera.

An LA County Sheriff said Tiger was lucky to be alive. A severed foot was reattached. Months of rehab — still ongoing — have enabled him to play. Walking is difficult, however, and to play in a tournament, a golfer must walk.

Still, at age 47, while being asked about LeBron James and Tom Brady, one man who at 37 remains a force in the NBA having just overtaken Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the all-time points leader, the other at 45 hanging up the cleats after hanging up the all-time mark of quarterbacking seven Super Bowl victories.

They kept going. Tiger keeps going.

“As far as the LeBron record,” said Woods, “what he accomplished is absolutely incredible of just the durability, the consistency and the longevity.

“I never thought — I grew up watching Kareem here, never saw him play in Milwaukee, but he was the Cat, that's all I remember, the Showtime Lakers and watching Cat run down there with goggles and hit the sky hook That record we never thought it would be surpassed. But what LeBron is doing — but also the amount of minutes he's playing, no one's ever done that at that age, to be able to play all five positions, that's never been done before at this level for this long. As far as our equivalent to that, I don't know, maybe you look at maybe me and Sam (Snead) at 82? It takes a career to get to those numbers. That's how I think probably best how you look at it.”

To look at Tiger Woods, one must put aside any thoughts of being a ceremonial golfer, content to be in the field when he’s no longer in contention.

“I have not come around to the idea of being — if I'm playing, I play to win. I know that players have played and they are ambassadors of the game and try to grow the game. I can't wrap my mind around that as a competitor. If I'm playing in the event I'm going to try and beat you. I'm there to get a W, OK?

OK. Who are we to disagree with Tiger Woods?

Super Bowl gave us what we needed — an escape from the real world

America needed that, a sporting event dramatic and exciting enough for a few minutes — OK, for four quarters — that we might be taken away from the real world.

A few years ago, when critics whined the Super Bowl had become too overwhelming in our lives with the halftime show and commercials, the late NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle insisted, “All we are is entertainment.”

For proof, you are offered the happenings Sunday in the Arizona desert of Super Bowl LVII, which fulfilled Rozelle’s argument and in the process showed the Kansas City Chiefs to be a franchise of destiny, if not history.

Trailing virtually from the opening minutes against the favored Philadelphia Eagles, the Chiefs first rallied from 10 points down and then, after gaining and losing leads, won 38-35 on a field goal with eight seconds remaining.

The tale of this game was supposed to be the Eagles’ offense, but just as it was three years ago when he rallied a K.C. comeback over the 49ers, the story instead was Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

Earlier in the week Mahomes, so agile and so reliable, had been voted the NFL’s Most Valuable Player. In theory, it was a guarantee his team would not win the championship game. Young Mahomes is not burdened by theories.

“Patrick Mahomes and our offensive line,” was the answer that Chiefs head coach Andy Reid gave when asked how his team took control and took the victory.

That Kansas City defense wasn’t bad either, limiting Philly to only a touchdown in the second half.

This was a game that on the surface didn’t seem that enticing. No 49ers, no Cowboys, no Tom Brady. Who cared other than the people from KC and Philly — and the segment of the population that had bet millions on the outcome?

Let’s amend that last sentence. The game turned out to be a thriller. And a warning that the Chiefs very well could become the replacement for the New England Patriots as the league’s most dominant team.

So many things can get in the way, injuries, fumbles — you’ve heard the litany, but who or what is going to stop the Chiefs, especially after the Eagles, who from game one of the regular season were anointed the No. 1 team?

And early in the Super Bowl it appeared to be the better team, though Philly quarterback Jalen Hurts maybe runs better than he throws — he set a Super Bowl record for quarterbacks by rushing for two touchdowns.

There’s no doubting the NFL can be a harrowing place to earn a living, as the frightening collapse of Damar Hamlin reminded us in early January. But a game like Super Bowl LVII will not allow us to step away.

At the beginning of the week, when there’s more nonsense than sense for the Super Bowl, Andy Reid, who is 64 and whose musical tastes run in a different direction, was asked to name the five greatest rappers ever.

He named two. Big deal.

We’d rather he choose his team for the excitement it gave us in the Super Bowl.

A pebble from Pebble was the key for Rose

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — He had arrived too late for a practice round, so to get the feel for the course, Justin Rose climbed down the bluff to the sand, reached down and picked up — what else could it be at Pebble Beach — a pebble, a gift for his son.

That was a week ago Monday, and then after the nasty weather and his great golf, eight days later on the most recent Monday, Justin Rose grabbed the first-place trophy for the 2023 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

The man has a sense of theater. And as we know, of financial promotion.

For a while, there he was, the spokesman for Morgan Stanley, appearing in commercials while he was struggling to reappear in the winner’s circle.

But the struggle has ended, in a tournament that because of weather delays -- rain hail and high wind, if not all at once -- the sun shined brightly over the final 18 holes.

Pebble looked spectacular. Rose played effectively.

A last round that began Sunday, for him and the others who went the full 72 holes — and you’d be amazed that some who made the 54-hole cut decided to skip out and head to Phoenix — concluded with Rose shooting a 66 for a total of 269, and three shots ahead of Brendan Todd and Brandon Wu 

Rose, 42, has had a career that’s lacked very little. Born in South Africa and moving to England at age 5, Rose was not quite 18 when, still an amateur, he holed out a shot on the 18th at Royal Birkdale and finished fourth in the 1998 British Open, two shots a playoff.

In a land seeking heroes, he became one instantly. It was the best thing to happen, and also the worst. Rose immediately turned pro — and missed 21 straight cuts. But the talent was there. As was the persistence.

“It was something that I felt like I was going to be remembered for, forever more,” Rose said once. “That one shot that I hit there, that’s the one shot that I have had to try to live up to. For a long time that shot became a little bit of a burden to me, because I did have a tough start to my professional career, and you never quite know where things are going to go from there.”

After a time, from a learning period on the British Tour, they went quite well. Rose won the 2013 U.S. Open at Merion, a gold medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics and was the leading money winner. Still no matter what’s been accomplished, a golfer in his 40s has his doubts.

Especially the way things were going, or really not going, whether he would be back at the Masters, where in 2017 he lost a playoff to Sergio Garcia.

“I've been one of the players that's very fortunate to have done very well at the game of golf,” Rose said, reflecting. “Hope to win. Hope to put myself in the situation. My game hasn't produced many of those opportunities of late. But I still have had that belief that it's possible”

A pebble for his thoughts.

Aaron Rodgers grabs the “Am” in Pro-Am

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — It is called a Pro-Am, isn’t it? The people who pay to play, the amateurs, have been as important as the ones who play to get paid.

Maybe considering the tournament grew on the backs of Bing Crosby’s pals from the entertainment industry, at the end of the Great Depression before there was a PGA Tour, made it more important.

So there was something positive about a guy who is famous for what he has accomplished in another endeavor — if pro football could be so listed — as a partner on the successful team.

That would be the quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who grew up about 250 miles north, went to Cal, won a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers and once was overlooked by the 49ers, who now wouldn’t dare sign him. Or would they?

Because of weather that, seemingly as tradition dictates, gave us (and the tournament) hail for a few minutes Sunday morning, rain for a few hours Saturday night and strong wind all day Saturday, the pro part is uncompleted, leading to yet another Monday finish. 

Through 63 holes of the scheduled 72, Justin Rose was in front, 15 under par and two ahead of Peter Malnati, who also had played 63; Brandon Todd and Denny McCarthy were also tied for second. Kurt Kitiyama, who is also from Chico as is Rodgers, had a bad front nine and fell out of contention.

Perhaps it is fitting, if unfortunate, that for a few hours at least the biggest name in the tournament is Rodgers. After he watched the AT&T before in his acquired celebrity status, he was invited to play.

Now a 10-handicap, Rodgers was partnered with Ben Silverman, who until a couple weeks ago was as little known as Rodgers is well known. A 35-year-old from Canada, Silverman missed the pro cut by a shot, but that almost was secondary.

“Well, Silverman just happened to land one of the headliners as a playing partner — Green Bay Packers (for now, at least) quarterback Aaron Rodgers,” reported a story on SportsNet Canada. “Not bad for a guy who lost his PGA Tour card in 2020 and then relinquished full status on the Korn Ferry Tour over the last year.”

No matter what happens this week, Silverman is in great shape to retain his PGA Tour card next year as the top 30 Korn Ferry players at the end of the season graduate.

Rodgers, who has said winning the AT&T was on his bucket list, offered appreciation to Silverman.

“I felt good about the partnership this week,” said Rodgers. “Ben's such a great guy. I knew we were going to have fun. Playing with Darius Rucker, I've known (Ben) for over a decade. He's a fantastic guy. You know it's going to be a great week.

“Then we put together a couple good rounds. The first two (Sunday), especially the last 10 holes, I was in my pocket and my partner picked me up.”

So he could pick up the victory.

At the AT&T, Mother Nature laughs away

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — That howling down by the ninth hole? You think it was the wind? Nah, it was that feisty lady, Mother Nature, cackling away.

“Think you’re going to hold a golf tournament here in February? Won’t you ever learn?”

It’s dog-bites-man stuff. Ancient history. Yes, the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am went, shall we say, head to head against the best (or worst) of climatological conditions

And as so often happens, the tournament was the loser on Saturday. So, in a way, was CBS, which in this dead-of-winter situation, a week before the Super Bowl, gets a ratings boost from celebrities such as Bill Murray and other amateurs who remind us the game still is fun, even if not played well.

It was difficult. That was the Goodyear blimp up there, however, not the Chinese weather satellite. Play was suspended around midday until finally, after a three-hour plus delay, it was stopped.

Peter Malnati, at 12 under par, was two shots ahead of Joseph Bramlett and Keith Mitchell, with Kurt Kitiyama, the one-time basketball star from Chico, both at 9 under.

There’s nothing certain about what should have been the 54-hole mark except the AT&T will not finish until Monday, something that has taken place many times when storms and darkness combine to take a toll.

The amateurs who choose will be allowed Sunday to finish their completed rounds, so whether they make the cut or not they’ll be done. That may not be fair, but who said golf is fair?

What Bramlett said was, “It was just one of those days. You take it as it comes. We got to play Pebble Beach, so it was a blessing in that regard. But the weather was wild. It was fairly calm for maybe our first seven, eight holes. Then when we got to 9 it started blowing and then it's survival mode.”

You have to like a golfer with a movie director’s perspective.
“It's just trying to predict what the ball's going to do. I had 136 yards to the pin on No. 9 and I hit a full 8-iron short of the green. I had 210 yards up the hill on 14 and I airmailed the green with an 8-iron. So it's a guessing game. We're just doing our best.”

Mitchell likes challenges, and he and the others here definitely have one.

“Definitely pleased with how I played,” he said. “We definitely — first couple holes were very benign. Then right when we got on the 6th green is when the wind started picking up. Playing 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, pretty much straight into the wind, 8 was a little off the right, but everything else was straight into the wind.

“We knew going into (Saturday) that those were going to be the tough holes. That was going to be the hardest stretch potentially all week. If I could make it through that stretch in a relatively good score, I would be set up for the weekend.”

And he was. Take that, Mother Nature.

A windy reminder it’s Pebble Beach, not Palm Beach

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — So the wind was up and the temperature down, but that was just a friendly reminder it’s February and we’re in Pebble Beach, not Palm Beach.

Yes, there are golf courses and mansions at both locations, but for this week at least, this is the only one that matters on the PGA Tour.

Where else would you be getting the speed of the wind as well as the speed of the greens, which as tales of poa annua grass remind us are both bumpy and quick? Just joking; the beach out here along Carmel Bay is famed for little rocks. What the golf property is famed for is being a place that produces champions.

Maybe one of those will emerge from a field filled with people other than major winners. Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose and Danny Willett still are trying to break through. The day’s low Monterey’s round was by Seamus Power, a 64. Naturally it was at MPCC, where par is 71, a stroke lower than the other two courses. 

“I grew up in Northern California,” said Kurt Kitiyama, “so I got to play Spyglass quite a bit. Not so much here and Monterey. But I’ve seen it before and definitely feeling a lot more comfortable this time around.´

“It's always nice playing here. It's nice being here. The plan is take what the course and conditions allow.

“I know it's playing a lot tougher there than the other two courses. So I think just kind of staying patient all around and get what is possible.”

The third round, the Saturday round, often is the biggest for TV, and for the fans in attendance when most of celebrities get their chance before missing the cut. They come up with songs and acts and stunts for the non-golfing public, the last remnants of the old Bing Crosby event.

Sport is supposed to be enjoyable, and the Saturday round at the AT&T inevitably is, no matter what the weather is. One year Bill Murray, who’s become the main non-pro attraction, reached into an ice cream cooler near the 18th tee and pulled out a frozen fish.

Maybe the pros attempting to get a victory won’t appreciate something like that, but most everyone else certainly will.

So who's really leading the Pebble Beach AT&T?

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — The game is the same, hitting a little white ball as few times as possible, but the courses are different. Which makes the first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am perhaps as much mystery as history.

Day one of this event — where thanks to Bill Murray there may be as many laughs as putts — gave us a leaderboard with a man named Hank Lebioda ahead of everybody else.

As they say, we will find out in a matter of days, or at least by Sunday evening when every one of the 156, or at least those who have made the cut after three rounds, finish their cycles.

So you are not familiar with any of the names. Well, be patient and persistent. Somewhere a few clicks down are a U.S. Open winner (Justin Rose, 69 at Pebble Beach), a Masters winner (Danny Willett, 71 at Spyglass Hill) and a winner of the Masters, U.S. Open and British Open (Jordan Spieth, 71 at Spyglass Hill).

The weather, often the deciding factor in wintertime on the Monterey Peninsula, wasn’t bad most of Thursday. Then it got semi-brutal, the wind so strong you’re surprised they didn’t post small golfer warnings.

Monterey Peninsula’s Shore Course is mostly tucked in among the pine trees until it swings out toward Monterey Bay.

Coming down the last two hole, said Harry Hall, another of the newer names who shot 64 at MPCC (par is 71), “It started to blow 45 miles an hour. It was crazy. Happy to get in a 7-under.”

Spieth has won this tournament, and last year he missed by a shot. He knows the courses and the conditions, which doesn’t necessarily mean he loves them. Golf is a test of making the best of the worst,

“Spyglass is hard,” said Spieth. “It’s a tough test. Would have liked to have done better on my front nine. That was really forgettable.

“Then I thought I played the back nine really well. It was really bizarre the last four holes or so with the wind. It went from nothing to flipping and then blowing about 25 out of nowhere the other direction than the forecast. That throws us through a big loop when you're prepping for something and you got to make the adjustment.

“But I had a good last three holes and that always kind of puts a smile on your face. I wish I would have shot a few under today. Just a couple early iron shots I hung right.”

Bill Murray has been hanging in at the AT&T seemingly forever. Thursday was the 20th anniversary of the movie “Groundhog Day,” which helped make him the tournament’s primary attraction. Others may come and go, but almost always he’s in the field.

We know his name and his game.

AT&T golf fights for attention

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — The sports headlines dealt with Tom Brady. Of course. And LeBron James, naturally. Virtually nothing about the golf tournament at Pebble Beach.

Although, as a matter of interest, both Brady and his father, Tom Sr., have been entrants as well as longtime fans.

The Super Bowl is only a week and a half away, and isn’t that the biggest event in America? So how does any golf tournament, even one as historic as the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, escape the shadows?

And since we’re in a question mode, if you were starting a golf tournament and needed someone famous to get the attention, who might you choose?

You know this, but the world, including the world of sports, isn’t what it used to be and, glancing around, you suspect isn’t going to be again. All this was brought into focus of late.

It’s not an issue of quality or skill. Every one of those guys or ladies on the tours, golf or tennis, is so excessively talented it’s almost frightening. Even the people who can’t make it are brilliant.

It’s an issue of getting the rest of us to watch them. And ask for autographs. And purchase the products they endorse.

Do you remember when Donald Trump — yes, that Donald Trump — played in the AT&T in 1993, and even made a hole-in-one? Never mind what you think of his politics. He would have people lining the ropes.

Jordan Spieth is in the AT&T, having won it once and also having associated with the sponsor. He’s a great guy as well as a great golfer. He understands the difficulties inherent in building a tournament.

Asked if the tournament would lose too much if the amateurs were dropped (Spieth plays with singer Jake Owen), he answered in the affirmative. “I think it would — I think the ‘Am’ portion of this tournament is obvious. How old is this tournament? 75 years old or something. Back to the Bing Crosby. I mean, that’s what this tournament is.”

Elevated to attract the big boys, the AT&T requires golfers who make the tournament required viewing, on the course or on the tube.

This is not unique. Back in the time where the top players were Sam Snead and Ben Hogan, or Arnie and Jack, the papers frequently reminded us who wasn’t there.

Tournament sponsors would scream, but hey, news is news, negative or positive. Reputations are not invented, they develop. Nothing is promised, but plenty is available.

You have to believe there will be more winners and more celebs, enough to make the Pebble Beach Pro-Am what it used to be. Even without Donald Trump.