THE SHERMAN OAKS OPEN
What do writers do when they have a day to kill in sunny Los Angeles between Games 3 and 4 of the NBA Finals? That is, if they cannot hang with Wilbon and Adande?
Inspired, surely, by the U.S. Open taking place just a 150 miles south or so, I gathered a couple friends for 36 holes of golf amidst the verdant beauty of Sherman Oaks Castle Park.
Our threesome consisted of your humble blogger, our Canadian comrade Moose, and the tall, dark and handsome Bill Cusack (cue Movie Tone Newsreel voice: "Sorry, girls, he's taken."). Being that Bill has a speaking role in his less-chiseled older brother's current film, War, Inc., it seems entirely accurate to describe this as a celebrity pro-am round.
Heading over to play, I incessantly bothered Moose by adapting golf bromides to our particular event: "You know what they say, Moose? Putt for show, and putt for dough." Stuff like that.
Highlights of the evening's two rounds included:
-- My tee shot bouncing over the boundary, across another hole and into a thicket of bushes. I never thought I'd lose a ball in the rough playing miniature golf, but it nearly happened. If my ball hadn't been yellow, it might have. My short game needs work, and that's an acute problem in miniature golf.
--Bill appealing to Moose's Canadian roots by playing goalie on a hole that had a right-angle dog leg. This after three of her previous shots had jumped the curb. (Below, Bill and I ardently discuss how to play a nefarious bank shot.)
--Moose and I each shooting a hole-in-one on the final shot of the tournament. I think we have a photo below depicting my unbridled joy. I see now why this game is so addictive.
Catching Up...
A few leftover items...If you turn your blog hymnals to "I Went to A Barber Shop", I'd first like to apologize for not entitling that item Barber-O! Thanks to the ever-witty G.A. for realizing that. How could I be so foolish (pleasure)? Also, if you click the link on the comments, you'll find evidence of the first--and likely last--time I've even been victimized by paparazzi. Or barberazzi...Regarding the Rolling Stone list of "100 Greatest Guitar Songs" and egregious omissions, I'd like to add "When Doves Cry" (unforgettable opening riff, but then that album had at least three songs that belonged on the list), "Rock Lobster" (B-52s), "More Than A Feeling" (Boston) and "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" (BTO). Johntourager Sarah, noting that we'd previously hemmed (as well as hawed) about "You Shook Me All Night Long", opines that that AC/DC tune belongs on every list that involves music, "from 'Top 100 Ballads' to 'Top 100 Love Songs' to 'Top 100 Songs to Play While You're Driving With Your Buddies to T.P. someone's front yard'". I wholeheartedly agree...Don't know if you saw the funny clip of Rick Sutcliffe salivating over Erin Andrews, but our friend Moose found something un-Andrews-related to smile about in the clip. Moose, a cancer survivor herself, was amused that Dave O'Brien, in noting that Sutcliffe would be welcome back after his rectal cancer surgery, said, "This seat will be waiting for you"...cool thing about being in Hollywood is that you may actually run into celebrities while you yourself are with people who know them. After our arduous 36 holes of putt-putt golf yesterday, Bill, his fiancee LaFern, Moose and I went to the Galleria (yes, the "Fer sure fer sure" place) for dinner and ran into a friend of his, Molly Culver. You may not recognize the name, but she was Pam Anderson's sidekick on the not-so-Emmy-winning-and-yet-still-watchable VIP series. This is Molly, and that's not even a publicity still, that was her as we first approached last night.
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NBCSports.com's John Walters goes into the world of college sports and well beyond. From Notre Dame to the latest in pop culture, JDub tackles it all.
Can you call them greens if they're blue? Where were you golfing, Boise?
Thank you for giving “You Shook Me All Night Long” additional accolades … It’s a song that knows no bounds…
Best Song to Crank in a Convertible on a Sunny Day (or sigh, your SUV with a sunroof and car seats and Goldfish crumbs everywhere)…Best ‘Women as Cars’ Analogy Song…Best Stripper Pole-esque I am that Best Damn Woman Watch me Dance in a Club Song…Best Forget your Anger Song when your @#$%* Team Decides Not to Show up for the NBA Playoffs (Yes, Kobe I am talking to you).
The song is genius, I have nothing more to say. ‘Cept after last night’s game, you know what song is blasting through my house today…
Happy Gilmore, I nominate AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" as best tune to get your blood pumping in the heat of competition. And I hope Frampton's guitar riff in "Do You Feel Like We Do?" was on that list? Whose wine, what wine...