For years, golf vacationers to the Phoenix-Scottsdale area have benefitted from the Arizona Cardinals hapless, hopeless ways. No matter where you’re from - and no one’s really from Arizona - you could get to see an NFL team you liked while swinging away on some great courses. They didn’t use to give away tickets to Cardinals games - unless you had a pulse. Oh sure, the good seats for the Cowboys game could be a tough ticket. Because there were actually Cowboy fans in the valley - as opposed to Cardinal fans. This year that all was supposed to change. The Cardinals moved ... full post »

I had occasion to make a few quick stay overs in Sacramento during the last several months. (It’s a great portal to Lake Tahoe and some other Northwest golf spots). Of course, anyone who’s ever spent even one night in Sacramento knows there is no such thing as a quick stay here. Not in the dozing armpit of the West Coast. One night here can seem endless. The “hopping” downtown consists of a few blocks around the state capitol with a smattering of ordinary restaurants, a few small movie theaters and a heavily-hyped outdoor shopping center that the people of Akron, Ohio would ... full post »

Kansas City Chiefs coach Herm Edwards won one of those games on Sunday that makes coaches just thank the football gods and run for the locker room as fast as they can. Edwards won when his erratic kicker hit a 53-yard field goal with six seconds left moments after having a 48-yard field goal wiped out by a penalty. The same kicker who managed to clank an extra point earlier in the game. So the Chiefs beat a San Diego team that’s looked like the best team in the NFL at times this season 30-27 and no one’s wondering if KC blundered ... full post »

People love to fight against Donald Trump’s development plans. But the homeowners waging a war with Trump over the mammoth U.S. flags he’s flying over his golf courses in Palm Beach and Los Angeles have lost their minds. Along with any sense. You know what you do if you think Trump’s flags are way too big? You keep your mouth shut and moan about the length of his driveways or all the limo traffic cutting through the neighborhood. For the flag has a way of galvinzaing support for anyone - even Trump. People are funny like that. It’s the flag. You know the ... full post »

St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa has been making all the right moves this postseason. His successful suicide squeeze call against the San Diego Padres in Game 4 of the first round produced near orgasmic reactions from the Cardinal faithful even if it was for a meaningless sixth run against a Padre team that cannot score that in a good week. La Russa’s work in Game 7 on the road against the favored New York Mets was more impressive. All the TV talking heads waxed poetic over La Russa’s decision to move Yadier Molina one spot up in the lineup ... full post »

I’ve long considered looking into a restraining order against WorldGolf.com’s Willie K. Wolfrum. Sure, he looks harmless in that brooding photo that appears to have been taken in a local mall picture booth. But the man does show serious signs of obsession. K. name drops me more than Tori Spelling threw her dad’s name around when she was trying to get a part. Seriously, I’m in the title of one of his blogs every other week. (I am an exceedingly interesting golf personality, but you might want to throw in Tiger Woods now and then too). In his latest, K. tries to ... full post »

Tim McDonald wrote an interesting column this week about Nick Faldo suddenly starting to treat people well because of a new TV job. It’s a great theory. Only problem is it’s completely wrong. At least, in this particular case. Nick Faldo was never a jerk. And I have a completely true Baldwin family story to prove it (when fellow TravelGolf.com blogger Brandon Tucker turns 16, he’ll have his own family tales to share). Around 12-14 years ago my mom was at Oxford taking one of those graduate summer seminars that professionals take as an excuse to hang out in Europe and leave the ... full post »

Paula Creamer couldn’t keep up when Annika Sorenstam made her move at the Samsung World Championship. While Sorenstam was going six under in the third round, Creamer only managed an even par 72. And so Creamer’s sophomore season flatline on the LPGA Tour continues. After four wins worldwide as a rookie, Creamer has gone winless this year. She’ll play well one round, OK another, medicore in others. There is no one tournament where Creamer’s put it all together in 2006. And you know what? Paula Creamer’s still better than Michelle Wie. Today, tomorrow and likely forever. While Creamer has gone through letdown adjustments of ... full post »

Barbara Streisand unleashed the swear word Howard Stern had to go to satellite radio to say at her first overpriced New York concert and she’s largely being praised for it. Why? Because Streisand did it in the midst of George Bush bashing. Otherwise, known as the last accepted harassment in America. It’s all right - whatever it is - as long as you rip W. while doing it. If Tiger Woods would only learn. If Tiger just let loose with a “F… Bush” whenever he hit a shot that upset him on the golf course, all those self righteous nitwits who latch ... full post »

Terrell Owens is certain to get the blame for the Dallas Cowboys’ 38-24 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the He-Hate-Me Bowl. Just like Tiger Woods took a bulk of the criticism for the U.S.’s Ryder Cup embarrassment. Which only shows how simple minded most people are. Terrell Owens shouldn’t be any more responsible for Drew Bledsoe possessing all the mobility of one of those sports statues outside all the new stadiums than Tiger is for the fact Phil Mickelson, Mr. 0-4-1, remembered how to gag at the U.S. Open and hasn’t recovered yet. TO definitely didn’t have an impact game. He dropped ... full post »

Yankees manager Joe Torre surely understands what Tom Lehman went through coaching the Ryder Cup team this evening. Both Torre and Lehman were in charge of teams full of superstars who long ago grew used to having everything handed to them and fell apart when faced with real pressure. Heck, both Torre’s Yankees and Lehman’s U.S. team all but curled up in a corner in a fetal position. Are there two more similar personalities in sports than Phil Mickelson and Alex Rodriguez? Say hello to 0-4-1 in the Ryder Cup and 1-for-14 in a loss to the Detroit Tigers. Not that any of ... full post »

The Fairmont Scottsdale Princess is a nice high end hotel. If you’re going to drop $400 a night in Scottsdale high season - and there’s a good dozen resorts in town where you can do that easily (winter golf paradise isn’t cheap) - it’s hard to find a better option. I wrote about all this in a review last winter. And none of that excuses a $7 glass of orange juice. That’s what Fairmont Scottsdale Princess charges unsuspecting patrons at their casual tapas bar. And this is no fresh-squeezed, exotic glass of OJ. It’s Tropicana from a plastic bottle. I watched the ... full post »

The temperature in Scottsdale today reached 98 degrees. In other words, it was one of the cool ones. And it’s getting downright frigid from here. Not a day over 97 with things dipping into the high 80s by the weekend (as much as you can believe forecasts). Yes, it’s safe to play golf in Phoenix-Scottsdale’s resort wonderland again. I’m still waffling on the dry heat issue. I still sweated plenty in an afternoon round. But I also played 18 holes in about three hours. With groups in front and behind mine all day. That’s one of the joys of this time of ... full post »