Golf’s major trends have been all about technology —DeChambeau is employing vastly different ways to use that technology.
First he hit upon the idea of playing with clubs all fitted with the same length shaft, just as the legendary Bobby Jones once did. thestar.com/sports/golf/op…
He used a different stance while striking the ball, along with different hand/arm positions. He studied the necessary requirements of projecting a golf ball, then he designed a brand new swing around those requirements, writes @DamoSpin.
Next, DeChambeau moved on to reducing putting, and pretty much everything else, to a mathematical equation rather than a question of feel. Finally, he added 50 pounds of bulk.
Combine that with an insatiable work ethic — DeChambeau was the last man on the range Saturday, ripping drivers into the blackness of the night in New York state — and you have a powerful force.
DeChambeau played like a cerebral bulldozer, smashing his driver then dealing with the consequences by overpowering the ball out of the thickest grass. He hit the fairway less than 50 per cent of the time over four days, and didn’t care, writes @DamoSpin. thestar.com/sports/golf/op…
The only question now is whether others, either on tour now or future stars, will accept his thinking and try to copy the idiosyncratic #USOpen champion.
Messaging from #Leafs brass reeked of a strange self-satisfaction. Here’s guessing former CEO Tim Leiweke would have fired somebody. Only in Toronto does something that ought to be a bare-minimum expectation get a badge of honour. New column from @dfeschuk:thestar.com/sports/leafs/o…
More than 8 years after Leiweke hired Brendan Shanahan to great fanfare, Shanahan has yet to win a playoff series. And yet, on Tuesday, the president wasn’t exactly a picture of angst-ridden urgency, refusing to tolerate another in a long line of losses.thestar.com/sports/leafs/o…
To the contrary, Shanahan rationalized another playoff defeat while offering strong votes of confidence to GM Kyle Dubas and coach Sheldon Keefe. If you didn’t know any better you could have been convinced the Leafs had just won something, writes @dfeschuk.thestar.com/sports/leafs/o…
MLB's crackdown on the use of foreign substances has turned into a circus, and this sideshow figures to get a lot worse before it gets any better. The current level of enforcement isn’t going to be sustainable for much longer.
The revised ban on “sticky stuff” has been in place for 5 days and has already resulted in theatrics both on and off the field. Pitchers pinned against hitters, managers against managers and umpires stuck in the middle, trying to wade through the chaos.
MLB’s decision to enforce its ban on foreign substances has led to a decrease in spin rates and a slight uptick in offence. So the strategy appears to be working, but the cost has been infighting and public embarrassment.
Canadian basketball player Kim Gaucher says she’s being “forced to decide between being a breastfeeding mom or an Olympic athlete" as she isn’t allowed to bring her infant daughter to #Tokyo2020. thestar.com/sports/basketb…
She pointed out international media and sponsors can travel to Tokyo and a number of spectators will be allowed in venues.
“Japanese fans are going to be in attendance, the arenas are going to be half-full, but I will not have access to my daughter?”
In an Instagram video, Gaucher said Olympic organizers have said “no friends, no family, no exceptions.”
“We’ve looked into shipping milk. We’re run into some complications. We’re still exploring that option, but it’s not going to be easy.” thestar.com/sports/basketb…
Being contractors — not team players — these athletes pay their own way for everything: airfares, hotel rooms (if they can afford them), massage therapists, tennis balls. They have no union that has their backs. No health or retirement plans, either. thestar.com/sports/tennis/…
To bridge the disparity, the high-ranking Canadian @VasekPospisil and the world’s top men's player, @DjokerNole launched the Professional Tennis Players’ Association, calling for more equitable revenue-sharing between tennis organizers and players. thestar.com/sports/tennis/…
Just as Shanahan and Dubas keep doubling down the #Leafs are on the correct track — and insist that all these bad playoff experiences will add up to a good one — the Canadiens have only underlined the ridiculousness of this argument.
Montreal is on the verge of winning a 3rd playoff round this year. It won a round last year. In 4 seasons before that, they made playoffs once. According to Toronto’s front office, Montreal hasn’t lost nearly enough to be winning as much as they are ... thestar.com/sports/hockey/…
... Which only makes a further farce of the season-ending press conference performance of Shanahan and Dubas, who tried to minimize their team’s latest faceplant by insisting that the ultimate road to success needs to be paved with repeated failure.
The Raptors face an off-season like no other, with a handful of free agents to decide on, an uncertain financial picture and a first-round pick in the Nov. 18 draft.
This is a six-part series by @SmithRaps on the decisions and options that lie ahead: