Serena Williams and Bryan Brothers Win, Earning Golden Slam

LONDON — It was Saturday afternoon at Wimbledon, and Serena Williams, Olympic gold medal already around her neck, spotted Bob and Mike Bryan heading for their final on Centre Court.

“She said, ‘Guys, come on!’ ” Bob Bryan said. “And she gave me like a fist and this really tough face, and I thought, ‘We have to adopt that persona.’ ”

It was a fine model to follow.

Williams, who has dominated many a tournament in her remarkable emotional roller coaster of a career, has perhaps never been more dominant than she was in singles at these Olympics.

“I honestly don’t think I have ever played better from start to finish,” she said.

In six matches, she did not come close to losing a set and came very close to not losing a game in the final against Maria Sharapova, a four-time Grand Slam singles champion and former world No. 1 who is one of the most ferocious competitors and most aggressive baseliners in the women’s game.

Sharapova, representing Russia in her first Olympics, shrieked and hustled. She maintained her focus and her composure, but Williams was simply in a different league.

Her 6-0, 6-1 victory required just 1 hour 3 minutes.

“One of the most dominating performances in the history of the sport,” said Jay Berger, the men’s tennis coach of the United States Olympic team. “She just showed she’s the best player in the world right now.”

The rankings still do not confirm that. Victoria Azarenka, who won the bronze medal here, will still be No. 1 and Sharapova still No. 2 come Monday, but Williams, who will be No. 4, has taken full advantage of the historic opportunity to play for big titles twice on the grass of the All England Club this summer.

After winning Wimbledon last month, she capitalized on her return visit to win her first Olympic singles gold medal. Williams had already won gold medals in doubles in 2000 and 2008, but at age 30, she now has the last major singles prize she lacked.

“I love bling-bling but this is like the ultimate,” Williams said, fingering her gold medal.

Williams withdrew from the 2004 Olympics because of a left knee injury. She was beaten in the singles quarterfinals in 2008 in Beijing. But she was an unstoppable force here: losing an astonishing 17 games in six matches and never being pushed beyond 6-3 in any set.

“Basically, she took the momentum from Wimbledon and improved on it,” said Patrick Mouratoglou, the French coach who began advising Williams after her shocking first-round defeat at the French Open in May.

Since then, she has not lost a match, winning Wimbledon, flying to the West Coast to win in Stanford, Calif., then returning to Europe to win the Olympics.

For a star who has often played sparingly during her career, this was working overtime, but it worked beautifully — jet lag or no jet lag — for Williams.

“Look, she playing incredibly confident tennis,” said Sharapova, who has lost eight consecutive matches to Williams. “After winning Wimbledon, you’ve seen her level progress so much here over this tournament. With every match she’s played, she’s playing better, hitting harder, so much power on the ball. Even against the wind today, her shots were very powerful. I mean, she’s done an incredible job of keeping that up.”

At one stage late in the first set, Williams had as many aces as Sharapova did points. In the end, she finished with 10 aces and 24 total winners and — most remarkable of all for those who have followed Williams’s first-strike tactics over the years — just seven unforced errors.

 And yet it was not quite a perfect occasion. During the medal ceremony, as a recording of the national anthem of the United States was played, the flag of the United States broke loose from its horizontal pole in the gusting wind and unceremoniously floated to the ground, landing behind the fence separating the clubhouse from the court.

The other two flags — those of Russia and Belarus — remained affixed to their poles as the ceremony concluded. Williams kept her composure and later explained that the incident had not spoiled her long-awaited moment.

But there was a second chance to get the ceremony just right — Star Spangled Banner and flag included — after the Bryans followed Williams’s lead and defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Michael Llodra of France in the men’s doubles final.

Their 6-4, 7-6 (2) victory gave them, at age 34, their first Olympic gold medal after winning all of the other major titles in tennis, including the Davis Cup with the United States in 2007.

“This is the top of the mountain for us,” Bob Bryan said. “Winning Wimbledon was awesome, but this is a different level.”

Via: NYTimes

Aly Raisman Looks Ahead to Her Remaining Olympic Events

Aly Raisman has long been known as a mentally tough, incredibly consistent gymnast. 

So it was quite a shock for fans to see Raisman, 18, make a major, uncharacteristic error in the women's gymnastics all-around final on Thursday, leaving her just shy of a medal. 

But Raisman's Olympic experience isn't over yet. She'll compete on the balance beam and floor individual finals on Tuesday. 

"I'm really excited about that," Raisman (who won team gold earlier in the week) told reporters after a tie-breaker left her off the podium Thursday. "I'm just going to keep working hard and move past it." 

"It is what it is, it's a learning experience," she added. "I'm only human – everyone makes mistakes." 

Her coach had a more detailed explanation. "When it is about the team, she's giving everything," says Mihai Brestyan. "When it's about herself, something gets wrong there. I don't know what. It's a shame. But being third [or] fourth in the world, in Olympic Games, still it's a good thing even if you don’t have the medal on your neck."

The Jordyn Wieber Factor?

Brestyan says he also wonders whether the drama over Jordyn Wieber (who is blogging for People.com) being edged out of the all-around had something to do with Raisman's performance. (Each country can only send two athletes to the all-around, so despite high scores, Wieber was bumped by Raisman and Gabby Douglas's higher scores.) 

Before the all-around competition, "She was fine, she did her normal routine, her warm up was perfect – I don't know what happened," says Brestyan. "The big pressure was, you take Jordyn's place first and everybody feels bad because you take the World Champion's place. They are not happy for you, they are mad for Jordyn, and you feel really bad and you carry this with you."

"You come here to prove yourself ... and you are more under pressure than anybody else, and this is part of that. I try to encourage her. She's usually very calm and studied in her execution." 

Team coordinator Marta Karolyi weighed in as well, telling reporters, "Oh, I'm extremely disappointed for Aly. She is so calm and so solid. I honestly could not know what happened. Just hitting her normal routine, she would be categorically on [the podium]. It was a little bit of a mental break." 

But Raisman isn't making any excuses as she reflects on the medal she missed – demonstrating an impressive display of sportsmanship in the process. 

"I was hoping they'd give [me and Aliya Mustafina] both the bronze medal, but obviously they didn't, so it's definitely upsetting, but I'm still happy for the girls who were on the podium," says the gymnast. "I'm happy for Gabby and really excited for her." 

Via: People

Gabby Douglas poised to reap sponsorship windfall after London Olympics - VIDEO

Aug. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Gabby Douglas won her second gymnastics gold medal, an American first, and is poised to reap a sponsorship windfall after the London Olympics.

By adding the all-around title yesterday to the team crown she helped the U.S. win two days earlier, the 16-year-old from Virginia Beach, Virginia, became the first American woman to win both golds at a single Olympics.

Douglas -- nicknamed the “Flying Squirrel” -- would be a great saleswoman for everything from toothpaste to cosmetics to airline tickets, said Bob Dorfman, executive creative director at San Francisco-based Baker Street Advertising.

“All-around gold means serious green for Douglas, in the neighborhood of at least one to three million dollars a year,” Dorfman said in an e-mail interview. “The U.S. gymnastics darling always seems to be the girl who comes out with the greatest endorsement success after the games.”

Douglas beat Victoria Komova of Russia to win the title at the North Greenwich Arena. Russia’s Aliya Mustafina won the bronze medal in a tiebreaker over Aly Raisman of the U.S. after they finished with the same score.

Douglas’s win marked the third straight all-around title for a U.S. woman at the Olympics following Nastia Liukin in 2008 and Carly Patterson in 2004. Mary Lou Retton is the only other American woman to win the all-around, at the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

‘Success Story’

“It really is that great American success story,” Peter Shankman, founder of the Geek Factory marketing firm in New York, said in a telephone interview. “As soon as she won, she put her hand on her heart. How can that photo not be on the back page of every paper in America?”

Douglas, who also won the U.S. Olympic trials all-around title, led the competition from her vault in the first round. The crowd drowned out the announcer’s voice as she was welcomed to the floor for the final routine that would seal the American’s second gold medal.

“A lot was going through my mind, I was like, ’Yes all the hard work has paid off,’” Douglas told reporters after the medal ceremony. “I was speechless. Tears of joy and just waving to the crowd.”

The Americans won the team event for the first time since the 1996 Atlanta Games earlier this week, led by Raisman, the squad’s captain, who performed the final floor exercise that sealed gold for the U.S.

U.S. First

Never before had U.S. women gymnasts won the team and all- around competitions at the same Olympics. That may change now, according to Douglas.

“I think we can go on for a very long time,” she told reporters. “Team USA and United States of America are very strong, we have some very good gymnasts, so it’s going to continue.”

Douglas and her Olympic teammates will make a base salary of more than $100,000 each for participating in the 40-city Kellogg’s Tour of Gymnastics Champions that begins Sept. 8 in San Jose, California, and ends Nov. 18 in Brooklyn, New York.

Steve Penny, the president of USA Gymnastics, said before the Olympics that gymnasts who won team or individual medals at the London Games could earn as much as $500,000 each on the tour.

American Flags

The 4-foot-11 (1.50-meter) Douglas beamed as she completed each dismount, routine and flourish during the final. American flags outnumbered the host nation’s Union Jack among the crowd in Greenwich.

“Her fresh face is perfect for a cosmetics deal, her infectious smile could sell toothpaste, and her nickname -- The Flying Squirrel -- is ideal for any airline,” Dorfman said. “Ka-ching. That’s the sound of America’s newest gymnastics darling being born.”

Via: WashingtonPost

Opening ceremony London 2012 celebrated by Google doodle

New Delhi: Opening ceremony London 2012 is marked by Friday's Google doodle. The doodle shows 5 athletes - incidentally also the number of rings in the Olympic logo - playing different Olympic sports.


Olympics 2012 | Schedule | India at Olympics | Medals Tally


The stage is set and the athletes are primed as the seven-year countdown to the London 2012 Olympics reaches its finale with Friday's much-anticipated opening ceremony.


The three-hour spectacle, expected to be watched by a global television audience of up to one billion, will mark the beginning of 17 days of athletic endeavour which will create heroes, shatter dreams and fire national pride.


But London is preparing for its own intense examination as questions over the city's creaking transport system and the ever-present security threat hang over the event, ready to overshadow on-track achievements.


Sneak previews of the £27 million ($42 million, 35 million euros) opening ceremony - filmed at Wednesday's final rehearsal - suggest it will be a grand but quirky production, reflecting the philosophy of director Danny Boyle.


The Slumdog Millionaire Oscar-winner has promised to create a "picture of us as a nation" and revealed the eccentric show will feature live sheep and dancing surgeons from the National Health Service.


In depicting Britain, warts and all, Boyle has drawn from William Shakespeare, British pop culture, literature and music, and other sources of inspiration that will speak not just to Anglophiles but to people across the globe. One segment involves actor Daniel Craig's James Bond, and former Beatle Paul McCartney will lead a sing-along.


Boyle's Isles of Wonder show will celebrate the green and pleasant land of meadows, farms, cottages, village cricket matches and bird song, but also dwell on Britain's darker industrial past. That's not a surprise from a movie director who depicted Scottish heroin addicts in "Trainspotting" and Indian poor in Slumdog Millionaire.


As well as thousands of athletes and performers, some 60,000 spectators will pack the Olympic Stadium. Political leaders from around the world, U.S. first lady Michelle Obama and her daughters, and a sprinkling of European and celebrity royalty will also attend.


According to the Sunday Times, one section will feature characters from children's fiction classics including Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan - and a showdown between Lord Voldemort, the villain of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books, and a horde of flying magical nannies based on Mary Poppins.


Many of the juiciest and most significant details from the three-hour show, including the identity of the person or people who will light the Olympic cauldron - if, indeed, there is one - remain secret. That is, in itself, remarkable for the first social media Olympics, where the urge to tweet anything and everything is putting more scrutiny than ever on organisers and the 10,902 athletes from 204 countries.


Thousands of VIPs including some 120 national leaders are in town for the event, with guests ranging from Angelina Jolie and US First Lady Michelle Obama to the king of Swaziland.


Germany's Angela Merkel and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda are among the leaders set to attend while Michelle Obama will head the US delegation.

London 2012 Archery: Google doodle 'aims' at the 'target'

New Delhi: The London 2012 Archery action began as Men's and Women's played their ranking rounds. Google too takes a women archer aiming at the target in their 'Google Doodle'.

Legally blind South Korean archer Im Dong-hyun set the first world records of the London Olympics, breaking his own record in the 72-arrow mark and participating in the team shoot record during Friday's ranking round.

Olympics 2012 | Schedule | India at Olympics | Medals Tally

Im broke the 72-arrow record he had set in Turkey in May by three points with a score of 699, hours before the 2012 Games official opening ceremony.

He combined with Kim Bub-min and Oh Jin-hyek, smashing the record for 216 arrows with a total 2,087. That was 18 better than the mark South Korea set in May.

Im, 26, won gold medals in the team event in both the Beijing and Athens Olympics. He has only 10 percent vision in his left eye, and 20 percent in his right, meaning he is considered legally blind.

India's campaign at the London Olympics got off to a disappointing start after both the men and women's archery teams finished at the bottom of the table in the ranking rounds at the Lord's Cricket Ground here on Friday.

While the trio of Jayanta Talukdar, Tarundeep Rai and Rahul Banerjee finished at the bottom of the heap at 12th in the men's competition, their women counterparts were a shade better at ninth spot.

World number one Deepika Kumari was the best-placed Indian of the day as she finished eighth with a score of 662 in the women's individual event.

Starting the proceedings earlier, the Indian men's trio combined for a score of 1969 on a day when defending champions Korea shattered the team world record with a tally of 2087 to lead the rankings.

In the men's individual event, Tarundeep Rai finished 31st with 664 points from 72 shots, while Banerjee was at 46th with 655 points, followed by Talukdar at 53rd with 650 points.

In the women's individual competition, L Bombayla Devi's score of 651 (327+324) helped her to the 22nd spot, while Swuro Chekrovolu finished at the 50th place after scoring 625 (309+316).

Michael Phelps-Ryan Lochte set for first London duel

Five things to know about Saturday, when 12 gold medals are awarded on Day 1 of the 2012 Olympics:

-Phelps-Lochte headed for first London showdown.

-Surprise torch lighters highlighted a dazzling start to the games.

-Legally blind archer has a new world record.

-A headscarf standoff poses a problem for a Saudi judo fighter.

-The IOC calls London's prep for games "excellent."

-----

The opening ceremony provided a rousing start to the games, but the focus quickly shifts to the pool.

Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte face off Saturday in the 400-meter individual medley, a grueling race encompassing all four strokes and an appropriate next chapter in this most intriguing of rivalries.

"A very rough race," said Phelps' coach, Bob Bowman. "It will be a coach's dream, but also a spectator's dream. It will be fantastic."

Phelps wants to add to his record total of 14 gold medals and become the first male swimmer to win the same event at three straight Olympics. But Lochte is the defending world champion and defeated Phelps rather easily at the U.S. trials last month.

Lochte is certainly not lacking for confidence.

"Right after Beijing, I had a four-year plan for getting here to London," he said. "I thought I could go a lot faster. I knew I could, just because of the training I've done. That's why I knew this was going to be my year."

There will be four finals at the Aquatics Center on Saturday. Medals also will be awarded in archery, cycling, fencing, judo, shooting and weightlifting.

The cycling gold goes to the winner of the road race, where Mark Cavendish is the favorite, tasked with providing a memorable start for the host country.

After days of speculation, there's an answer to the question that dominated London in the run-up to the games: Who would light the Olympic torch?

Was it Roger Bannister? Steve Redgrave? David Beckham?

Nope, nope and nope.

Seven teenage British athletes lowered torches to trumpet-like tubes that spread into a ring of fire during one of the signature moments of director Danny Boyle's $42 million show. The copper "petals" then rose skyward and came together to form the elegant cauldron.

Fireworks erupted over the stadium to music from Pink Floyd. With a singalong of "Hey Jude," Beatle Paul McCartney closed a show that ran 45 minutes beyond its scheduled three hours.

The other big highlight? A clever video that gave the illusion of Queen Elizabeth II parachuting into the Olympic Stadium with James Bond, aka actor Daniel Craig playing Britain's most famous spy.

A South Korean athlete is celebrating a London first: He recorded the first world record of the games. Im Dong-hyun, who is legally blind, broke his own record Friday in the 72-arrow mark and helped South Korea set a team record in the ranking round.

"This is just the first round, so I will not get too excited by it," said Im, who has 10 percent vision in his left eye and 20 percent in his right.

Im bettered the record he set in Turkey in May by three points with a score of 699. He also combined with Kim Bub-min and Oh Jin-hyek, smashing the record for 216 arrows with a total 2,087. That was 18 better than the mark South Korea set in May.

Im has said that when he looks at the targets, he sees colors with blurred lines between them. He doesn't wear glasses in competition, saying he relies on distinguishing between the bright colors of the target.

Talks are also under way to allow judoka Wojdan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani to compete after the sport's governing federation said she would not be allowed to wear a headscarf.

Saudi Arabia, which sent its first two female athletes to the games, had only agreed to let women participate if they adhered to the kingdom's conservative Islamic traditions, including wearing a headscarf.

Nicolas Messner, a spokesman for the International Judo Federation, said there was "good collaboration" to find a solution among judo officials, the International Olympic Committee and Saudi Arabia.

Messner said wearing a headscarf could be dangerous because the sport includes chokeholds and strangleholds.

International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge praised the local organizing committee, saying the preparations were "excellent."

"The key ingredients for successful games are good security, a good village, venues and transportation that works," he said. "If we have all that, we will have very good games. I am optimistic and confident."

Rogge was asked how ready London was at this stage compared with previous host cities.

"I would think in terms of readiness these games equal the readiness of Sydney and Beijing definitely," he said. "But the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Ask me again at the closing ceremony."

Via: Sports.NdTV

British Open 2012: Ernie Els Wins As Adam Scott Falters Late

Ernie Els of South Africa plays a shot off the first tee at Royal Lytham & St Annes golf club during the third round of the British Open Golf Championship, Lytham St Annes, England, Saturday, July 21, 2012. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England — Ernie Els plucked the ball from the hole after one last birdie and heaved it into the grandstand. At the time, it looked like nothing more than a classy gesture by a former British Open champion – not the next one.

The name on the claret jug was supposed to be Adam Scott, who had a four-shot lead with four holes to play.

But in a shocking turnaround Sunday, Els returned to the 18th green less than an hour later to claim the oldest trophy in golf. Scott joined a list of players who threw away a major.

That was not lost on Els, whose heart sank when he looked over at the 32-year-old Australian.

"Sorry," Els told him. "You're a great player, a great friend of mine. I feel very fortunate. You're going to win many of these."

Scott might not get another chance like this.

After hitting a 3-wood into a pot bunker on the final hole, Scott had one last chance when he stood over a 7-foot par putt to force a playoff. It stayed left of the cup, and Scott dropped into a crouch. Standing off to the side, his chin quivered as the magnitude of the meltdown hit him. Instead, he mouthed one word: "Wow."

Wow, indeed.

Even though Els had gone more than two years without winning, and had thrown away two tournaments in recent months with shaky putting, the Big Easy felt all along that something special was going to happen at this British Open.

And it did – all because of a collapse by Scott that no one saw coming.

"I know I let a really great chance slip through my fingers today," Scott said.

On a wind-swept afternoon at Royal Lytham & St. Annes that blew away the hopes of Tiger Woods and a handful of others, Scott looked steady as ever by going eight straight holes without making bogey. And that's when it came undone.

"I had it in my hands with four to go," Scott said.

A bogey from the bunker on the 15th cut the lead to three. That was followed by a three-putt bogey on the 16th, where his 3-foot par putt spun in and out of the cup and made the gallery gasp. From the middle of the 17th fairway, he hit a 6-iron that turned left, ran down the slope and took one last bounce in shin-high grass.

"I thought, `Hold on. We've got a problem here,' " said Graeme McDowell, playing with Scott in the final group.

By then, Els had posted a 2-under 68 with a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole, a cheer that Scott recognized while playing the 17th. Scott failed to get up-and-down for par from the rough and suddenly was tied.

Els headed to the practice green, where it rarely works out for him. In perhaps the most crushing defeat in a career filled with them, Els was on the putting green at Augusta National in 2004 when Phil Mickelson made an 18-foot birdie putt to win the Masters.

"I just thought, `I'll probably be disappointed again,' " Els said. "You're not really hoping the guy is going to make a mistake, but you're hoping you don't have to go a playoff, you can win outright. This one was different, because I feel for Adam."

Els, who started the final round six shots behind, wound up with his second British Open – the other one was 10 years ago at Muirfield – and fourth major championship at a stage in his career when it looked as if his best golf was behind him.

"Amazing," Els said. "I'm still numb. It still hasn't set in. It will probably take quite a few days because I haven't been in this position for 10 years, obviously. So it's just crazy, crazy, crazy getting here."

The celebration was muted, unlike his other three majors.

"First of all, I feel for Adam Scott. He's a great friend of mine," Els said. "Obviously, we both wanted to win very badly. But you know, that's the nature of the beast. That's why we're out here. You win. You lose. It was my time for some reason."

The wind finally arrived off the Irish Sea and ushered in pure chaos – a mental blunder by Woods that led to triple bogey on the sixth hole, a lost ball by Brandt Snedeker that took him out of contention and a topped shot that made McDowell, a former U.S. Open champion, look like an amateur.

"I guess my disappointment kind of seems relatively stupid in relation to the guy ... I've just seen a guy lose The Open Championship," said McDowell, who played in the final group of a major for the second straight time.

Nothing was more stunning than what happened to Scott, who closed with a 75.

"I managed to hit a poor shot on each of the closing four holes," Scott said. "Look, I played so beautifully for most of the week. I shouldn't let this bring me down."

Even so, it added another chapter to Australian heartbreak, most of that belonging to his idol, Greg Norman.

Scott was the fourth Australian since the 2007 Masters to lead going into the final round of a major, yet the proud land Down Under remains without a major since Geoff Ogilvy won the U.S. Open at Winged Foot in 2006.

"Greg was my hero when I was a kid, and I thought he was a great role model, how he handled himself in victory and defeat," Scott said. "He set a good example for us. It's tough. I can't justify anything that I've done out there. I didn't finish the tournament well today.

"But next time ... I'm sure there will be a next time and I can do a better job of it."

Already in the World Golf Hall of Fame, the 42-year-old Els joined even more elite company. He became only the sixth player to win the U.S. Open and British Open twice. The others are Jack Nicklaus, Woods, Walter Hagen, Bobby Jones and Lee Trevino.

Woods came undone on the sixth hole when he tried to blast out of a bunker from a plugged lie, stayed in the bunker, and three-putted for triple bogey. Still with an outside chance after a birdie on the 12th, he stuck with his conservative plan of hitting iron off the tee and made three straight bogeys. He closed with a 73 to tie for third with Brandt Snedeker, who also had his share of problems for a 74.

Woods had his best finish in a major since he lost to Y.E. Yang in the 2009 PGA Championship, though he remains winless in the last 17.

"It's part of golf," said Woods, who moves to No. 2 in the world. "We all go through these phases. Some people, it lasts entire careers. Others are a little bit shorter. Even the greatest players to ever play have all gone through little stretches like this."

Els finished at 7-under 273. He failed to qualify for the Masters this year for the first time in nearly two decades, but that won't be a problem now. His win gives him a five-year exemption into the majors.

It was the most shocking collapse at the British Open since Jean Van de Velde took a triple bogey on the final hole at Carnoustie and lost in a playoff. But this was different. It wasn't a last-minute blowup, more of a slow bleed, similar to Jason Dufner losing a five-shot lead to Keegan Bradley in the PGA Championship last year, or Ed Sneed making bogey on the last three holes at the 1979 Masters.

There was just enough wind to make the 206 bunkers at Royal Lytham look a little bit bigger. And as the gusts increased, a calm week turned chaotic.

It started with Woods on the sixth hole, his first triple bogey at a major championship since he lost his ball on the opening hole at Royal St. George's in 2003.

"One yard," he said to his caddie, a measure of the miss. It plugged near the steep wall of a pot bunker.

Instead of chipping to the middle of the bunker, Woods tried to get out with a ferocious swing. The ball smacked into the wall, nearly hit him and wound up near the left wall. He sat on the grass, his left knee (which has gone through four surgeries) flexed underneath him, his right leg extended as he dipped his upper body toward the sand to make a swing. This one also hit the ball, and caromed around and out to the right. From there, he three-putted for a 7.

"The game plan was to fire it into the bank, have it ricochet to the right and then have an angle to come back at it," Woods said. "Unfortunately, it ricocheted to the left and almost hit me."

Just like that, he was seven shots behind. It was the second time this year that one of golf's biggest stars made triple bogey in the final round of a major while in contention. Phil Mickelson made his on the fourth hole at the Masters and never recovered.

Els made a bogey on the ninth to fall six shots behind. All that did was fire him up, and he came home in 32. His 68 is best measured in these terms – of the last 12 players who teed off in the final round, no one else had better than a 72.

Yet there was one more collapse, in the final hour, and it was the one everyone will remember from this British Open. It's one Scott will somehow need to forget. As winner and runner-up met in a portable trailer before going out to the trophy presentation, Els told him: "Don't beat yourself up."

Via:HuffingTonPost

HELLO HEALTHY LIFE!

via Lina Mallon and Tumblr

As you may have seen on my Facebook page, I signed up for the gym. I'm officially enrolled at Superfit and I'm super excited and highly motivated for my new sporty lifestyle. (Hello bikini body!) Okay to be honest I only signed up because of Yoga and Pilates classes.

hahahhahaha x)

But since I'm already there, I might as well do some real workout.. right? :)
I got a little taste of it as I accompanied my neighbour (the coolest neighbour ever) to gym last night. Btw late night gym session are awesome. There is no freaking pumped up ass there and it's like you've got the gym all to yourself.

My first day starts 18th June. Letsss go go go!

Love Lois xxx

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Brittney Griner and Baylor women perfect, beat Notre Dame for NCAA title

Brittney Griner has been the dominant player in women's college basketball the past three years. Brittney Griner and her Baylor teammates defeated the Fighting Irish Tuesday night to complete an undefeated season.

• 

Brittney Griner (l.) and her Baylor teammates celebrate as the Bears' Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Robert Griffin III poses with the trophy after the NCAA Women's Final Four college basketball championship game against Notre Dame in Denver, Tuesday, April 3. Baylor won the championship 80-61.

Eric Gay/AP

Blocking layups, snagging rebounds, hitting shots over two and three helpless defenders, she towered over the competition all season long to earn player of the year and outstanding player of the NCAA tournamenthonors.

She was simply dominant in adding national champion to her resume on Tuesday night.

Griner had 26 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks to lead Baylor to an 80-61 victory over Notre Dame in the NCAA women's basketball championship, capping an unparalleled 40-0 season for the Lady Bears.

"Brittney Griner, whether she won today or not, will go down in the history of the women's game as, if not the greatest post player, one of the greatest," Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said. "I'm so glad she has that ring now."

When the buzzer sounded, Griner finally celebrated, hamming it up as she helped take down the nets and dancing with Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III.

Then she lifted coach Kim Mulkey up on her shoulders briefly, just the way she has done for the Lady Bears during this long season.

"It meant everything for us to get it for coach," said Griner, referring to Mulkey's struggle with Bell's palsy during the tournament. "She felt like she wasn't there for us, but we told her every second that we could hear her loud and clear, everything she was saying."

Baylor became the seventh women's team to run through a season unbeaten and the first in NCAA history to win 40 games. It was the second national championship for Baylor, which also won a title in 2005.

"Looking back when we get older, I'm always going to remember this moment, always going to remember confetti falling and being here with my team," Griner said.

Baylor did it in a nearly wire-to-wire victory, finishing with a flourish when anything less than bringing a title back to Waco would have been a huge disappointment.

The 6-foot-8 Griner was right at the center of the action as the Lady Bears took control. Every time Notre Dame made a run in the second half to cut into the deficit, Griner had an answer. She showed a wide array of post moves, hitting turnaround jumpers and hooks that the Irish had no way to stop — even when they collapsed around her.

"Brittney Griner comes to work every day," Mulkey said. "A lot of great players think they're all that and they half go through drills and they come to practice and they dog it. That child comes to work and brings her work pail every day."

Notre Dame fell short in the title game for the second straight season, having lost to Texas A&M by six points last year.

Coach Muffet McGraw's senior-heavy crew did finish the season with a decided edge over rival Connecticut — the Irish won the Big East regular-season title and defeated the Huskies in three of four meetings, including the national semifinal.

But like every other team this year, Notre Dame couldn't solve Baylor and its superstar.

"I think she's one of a kind," McGraw said. "There's so many things she can do. There have been some guards that have had some skill like that. But as a post player, she's the best I've seen."

Griner, selected The Associated Press player of the year, also was named most outstanding player of the tournament.

"We wouldn't be here without my team," the junior said. "All the awards — none of that means anything. If I don't have my team here, we can't get this."

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Buescher Wins Daytona Nationwide Race, Patrick Crashes Early (VIDEO)

James Buesher, driver of the Number 30 Chevrolet, is the winner of the 2012 DRIVE4COPD 300 Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway. Buescher battled through 120 laps of mayhem, including a last-lap crash that took out front-runners like Trevor Bayne, Tony Stewart, Elliott Sadler, Joey Logano, Kurt Busch, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch, to take the victory, despite being in a crash himself late in the game.

Buescher said of his first victory, “It’s incredible. This is top of the list for any race car driver to win at — and we did it.”  He’s not the only first-time winner this weekend, as rookie John King won the Camping World Truck Series race on Friday night.

Danica Patrick, the first female to win a pole position since Shawna Robinson in 1994, had seemingly good luck for the first 50 laps, until a mistake by her teammate, rookie Cole Whitt, caused her to spin out into the wall. Patrick could be heard screaming expletives over the radio about Whitt, but calmly stated later, “I don’t think it’s ever great when teammates come together, so we’ll have to figure out what happened and move forward.”

Whitt said of the accident,” Yeah, I think we’ll be fine. I wouldn’t expect her to be happy about it. I wouldn’t be happy about it, either. I don’t know why anyone would expect her to be like, ‘Oh yeah, it’s great.’ We’re teammates.” Suffice to say, they will most likely have a few words about Whitt’s mistake in the next team meeting.

Patrick’s team pushed the car to the garage for extensive repairs, losing 48 laps in the process. She returned to the track on Lap 98 and finished 38th. Not a very optimistic start to the former Indy car driver’s season, but with the rest of the season in front of her, she has numerous chances to make up for her position in the current standings.

Watch the last-lap crash that led to Buescher’s win here:

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Via: Inquisitr