Congratulations Are Due!

Posted on March 1, 2021 by Jim Tunney Ed.D

Pebble Beach Pro AmOn the TunneySide of Sports March 1, 2021 #837 Up next… Congratulations Are Due

After further review… The Coronavirus Pandemic continues to wreak havoc on our country and the world. While we must maintain our safety by wearing masks (which we all dislike) and maintaining physical distancing (will we ever get back to congratulatory hugs?), we all so desperately desire to resume a normal lifestyle. Those in the world of sports remain determined to schedule games and sporting events. While it is certainly challenging, we do what we can to maintain normalcy.

Such a challenge recently faced the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in that beach-town community. In order to follow state guidelines, the “AM” –meaning “amateur” had to be canceled. For more than 75 years this tournament – started by Bing Crosby and initially held in the southern California community of Rancho Santa Fe — had to be held without amateur partners of professional golfers and without the massive crowds that it usually draws.

The Monterey Peninsula Foundation along with its partner the Pebble Beach Company as well as its corporate sponsor, AT&T, successfully put on a “Celebrity Shootout” with six golfers participating: Bill Murray, a perennial favorite, teamed with Arizona Cardinals Wide-receiver Larry Fitzgerald, competing against Alfonso Ribeiro who partnered with Macklemore (yes, just one name) and Kathryn Newton and Kira K. Dixon (former Miss America) with the latter two as winners for this AT&T “Every Shot Counts Charity” $1.6 million dollar event. Jim Nantz was M/C.

The 2021 Pro-Am champion was Daniel Berger who stood on the 18h tee box tied for the lead needing a birdie on this iconic Par 5 finishing hole. Going through his mind had to be that on Saturday (the day before), Berger had hit his tee-shot out-of-bounds for a double-bogey. Berger not only won that hole and the tournament but sank a 31-foot eagle putt for 65 – 7 under par!

The tournament for the pro golfers and their caddies had good weather. The “Crosby” as it was called for years traditionally drew rainy weather with everything from sprinkles to stormy to blizzard conditions. For the most part, golfers don’t mind what the conditions are –“just get me on the course and I’ll play”. Spectators who are golf-enthusiasts don’t seem to have a concern about weather conditions either. Mostly, they just want to follow their favorite golfer wanting to learn how and which club to use for each shot.

Playing both the Pebble Beach golf links and Spyglass Hill courses this field of 156 pro golfers played four days of challenging golf. The pre-tournament favorite Jordan Spieth, while not the winner this time, had a 62 on the first day (tying the course record at Pebble), but sadly finished in a tie for third. Maverick McNealy, a Stanford graduate who once lived on Pebble’s 16th  fairway finished second.

Will you join me in congratulating the Monterey Peninsula Foundation, the PBC and AT&T?

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Jim’s books “On the TunneySide of Sports” as well as “Chicken Soup for the Sports Fans Soul” are full of baseball stories. Each sells for $20. However, as a 2021-year special if two are bought, a third is included free of charge. All autographed with no tax and free shipping. Mail to: Jim Tunney Youth Foundation (501c3) P.O. Box 1440 Pebble Beach, Ca. 93953  Be well!

See the website for all products.

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We need ‘bes-bawl’

Posted on February 22, 2021 by Jim Tunney Ed.D

field of dreamsOn the TunneySide of Sports February 225, 2021 #836 Up next… We Need “Bes-bawl”

After further review…“Bes-bawl.” Well, that’s the way it sounded to me when Terrance Mann (played by James Earl Jones) said it to Ray Kinsella (played by Kevin Costner) in the movie “Field of Dreams” about why Ray should keep this baseball field in his Iowa cornfield. “Bes-bawl” is America’s game and “surely people will come.”

Mann continued, “people will most definitely will come. They’ll come to Iowa for reasons they can’t even fathom. They’ll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they’re doing it. ‘Of course, we won’t mind if you look around,’ you’ll say. ‘It’s only $20.’ And they’ll pass it over without even thinking about it. They’ll sit in the bleachers in their shirtsleeves on a perfect day and watch the game. This field, this game will remind us of our past. The one constant through the years has been baseball. It reminds us of all that is good and could be good again.”

Normally, February is the month major league players go to spring training — first pitchers and catchers, then the rest of the team. However, Arizona officials requested MLB to delay the start of this year’s Cactus League due to COVID-19. Originally the plan for the 2021 season was to start April 1 (no foolin’) and would feature 10 divisional matchups. It will be only the fourth time all 30 MLB teams would play on opening day. Let’s hope that MLB has a successful season.

With MLB  back this spring, school baseball and softball games, hopefully, resume. The kids — both boys and girls — need physical activity. This will also provide an opportunity for parents and friends to attend games to cheer them on. We need this.

If I may offer a concern about major league baseball. My issue is with the MLB Hall of Fame elections. The hall is located in Cooperstown, New York, and for the 7th time since the hall started (1936) NO player for the 2021 class was selected to be inducted. The 2020 class which included Derek Jeter and two to three others did not have an induction due to the pandemic but will have their 2020 induction ceremonies in 2021 – COVID-19 permitting. The honor of being selected for the Hall of Fame is deserving – yet many are being denied with this slight!

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Jim’s books “On the TunneySide of Sports” as well as “Chicken Soup for the Sports Fans Soul” are full of baseball stories. Each sells for $20. However, as a 2021-year special if two are bought, a third is included free of charge. All autographed with no tax and free shipping. Mail to: Jim Tunney Youth Foundation (501c3) P.O. Box 1440 Pebble Beach, Ca. 93953  Be well!

See the website for all products.

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“3rd and 33”

Posted on February 15, 2021 by Jim Tunney Ed.D

brady mahomes 2021On the TunneySide of Sports February 15, 2021 #835 Up next… “3rd and 33”

After further review..”Third and thirty-three” certainly tells the story of Super Bowl LV played in Tampa, Florida on February 7th, 2021. That was the call by CBS announcer Jim Nantz as Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes was “sacked” by the Tampa Bay Bucs defense. Chasing Mahomes all night seemed to be the highlight of SB LV, also called “the double-nickel”.

The hype preceding the game was certainly overblown considering the final score: Bucs 31, Chiefs 9. You are reading that correctly “nine” points in 60-minutes for the Chiefs! No touchdowns, which was not Mahomes style as he threw 38 touchdowns and 4,740 yards this season. The Chiefs only had 3 field goals by kicker Harrison Butker. BTW, while I’m on the subject of field goal kickers, Ryan Succop, field goal kicker for the Bucs was drafted #256 by the Chiefs out of South Carolina. He was the last draft choice in the 2009 draft earning him the title  “Mr. Irrelevant” created by Paul Salata and earning a week of frivolity in Newport Beach, California which was not as exciting as winning the Super Bowl and defeating his former team.

Tom Brady at 43 years of age again was awarded MVP honors. Brady vacated his 20-year tenure with the New England Patriots after winning 6 Super Bowls. Following the 2019 season, Brady sought a transfer to the Bucs with a new and much different coach in Bruce Arians. It was a shaky start in their relationship, but Arians knew what he was getting with Brady, yet was forthright in his early criticism of his quarterback. Arians knew that Brady’s knowledge of the game combined with his successful experience would make the players around him better.

Brady did just that and in his brief, but sincere and humble, post-game remarks said “the credit (for this win) belongs to ‘them’” pointing to his T*E*A*M. Then he handed the Lombardi Trophy to a teammate standing next to the platform. Arians’ remark makes sense when you watched the performance of the Bucs defense as well as their running backs.

While this was ongoing, Mahomes was in the Chief’s locker room doing some self-talk: “It was a bad feeling in that locker room after the game. I don’t want to have that feeling again. It’s not the end of something. It’s going to be another chapter where we’re going to have to drive to make ourselves better so we’re back in the game.”

Will you set your goal to bounce back when you’ve experienced a setback?

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Jim’s bobblehead and books are available from my website. If you are ordering from this email, please ask for your 10% discount. Mail to Jim Tunney Youth Foundation (a 502c3)

P.O.Box 1440
Pebble Beach, CA 93953.

Be well and stay safe! Thank you!

See the website for all products.

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