Happy St. Patty's day everyone, here's my Top 5 for March 17, 2010 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.
1. Quick Hits
* To no one's surprise, Tiger Woods will return to golf at the Masters in 3 weeks.
* In the NCAA tournament play-in game, Arkansas-Pine Bluff beat Winthrop 61-44. They'll play Duke Friday night.
* Andre Agassi apologizes for making fun of Pete Sampras and his lack of tipping generosity, during a charity tennis match. Agassi told ESPN's Rick Reilly (a Top 5 subscriber) that "It was out of line."
* Oh well. So much for that Olympic hockey afterglow. NHL ratings have gone down since the end of the Vancouver games.
2. The Grass Menagerie
Will this be a circus or what? Tiger Woods' return to competitive golf. Well, he had to come back sometime, and I thought from day one the Masters would be that sometime. So let the speculation begin. Fan reaction? Fellow players? TV ratings? It'll be the Greatest Show on Turf. And don't feign apathy. You know you'll be watching.
3. Proof Positive
I knew the NFL's "secret coin toss" to award the Giants the first game at their new stadium wasn't kosher. Subscriber Elliot D. has found the smoking gun. He writes of course it wasn't legitimate:
Do you really think the NFL Network would pass on an opportunity for a Jets/Giants coin toss climaxing a two hour program on the History of NFL Coin Tosses? That would have been followed by an eight hour documentary detailing all the preparation and post toss reactions. That's 10 solid hours of NFL Network programming!
I can't argue with that logic.
4. It's Always Something
Subscriber Karen V. says you "gotta love the Mets." They lowered the price of her ticket plan for 2010 and even improved her seat location. And included with her tickets was a "very special offer from Amtrak." Take 3 round trips on Acela Express between January 7 and March 13, 2010, and get one free. Her Mets tickets arrived March 15.
That ship has sailed, or something to that effect.
5. World Play
I stumbled on an AOL story about anagrams. Did you know if you rearrange the letters in Britney Spears' name you can get Presbyterians? Jennifer Aniston, Fine in Torn Jeans. Woody Allen, A Lewd Loony.
So I tried Tiger Woods and came up with Go Rowdiest and Worst Dogie. Just thought you'd like to know.
Happy Birthday: All time goal scorer in men's or women's international soccer, Mia Hamm. 38.
Bonus Birthday: Actor Danny DeVito. 66.
Today in Sports: So long Cooz. Bob Cousy (a partner of mine on Celtics telecasts in the 70's) plays his final game for the Boston Celtics. 1963.
Bonus Event: St. Patrick died, coincidentally on St. Patrick's Day. 461.