![]() ![]() I was selected to be the sports director of the campus radio station, WAER in my sophomore year. We haven’t always stayed in touch, but we have been friends. In my opinion, Marv, who excelled in hockey,and boxing commentary among others, was born to be an NBA play-by-play broadcaster. team at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. Marv, who had been a ballboy with the New York Knicks in high school, followed the advice of the great New York sports announcer Marty Glickman to attend Syracuse, where Glickman was a top-ranked track star who was on the U.S. I met Marv at Syracuse University in the early 60’s. Only Mike Breen, currently with ABC and ESPN has done more. I had the honor of broadcasting nine NBA Finals, the same number as Marv. He will turn 80 June 12th, and follows Mike Emrick and yours truly in retirement from calling games on network television. It will take effect after he completes the NBA Conference Finals on TNT in June. Marv Albert announced his retirement last week. How often do we overthink, and not just “keep our mind quiet”?įor us, it’s the difference between feeling good after a round of golf with the guys.įor Phil Mickelson, it was the difference in winning, perhaps, the most significant tournament of his career. How often, does our concentration and focus, lapse during a round? ![]() We also see how much concentration is a huge factor in playing well. It’s just that they play on an astronomically higher level. We see them miss short putts, chunk chip shots, and hit drives way to the right. They do great things, but we see them struggle too. We know what they do is in an entirely different universe from what we do. He held on in the final round, as a five-stroke lead was narrowed to two.įor those of us who play golf, it is fun to identify with what the pros do when we watch them on TV. This time, with Tim’s urging, he was able to concentrate, and focus completely. His mind has flown in many directions, and it has cost him. Many stars from many sports are able to keep the “noise” from the outside, from affecting their concentration. This is where his caddy, and brother, Tim, proved to be a hero.Īll week, the new PGA champ was a study in patience, quiet determination, and calm. He has been affected by distractions of all kinds, including criticism from outsiders. In failing to finish in the top 20 in his last 24 appearances, Mickelson has suffered from mental lapses that has gotten him off track more often than not. The other story is about Phil Mickelson’s temperament. Perhaps the only one who had difficulty with the conditions was Koepka, who had to protect his surgically-repaired knee, and said he got “dinged” a couple of times. He finally emerged as he walked to the green. I had never seen anything like it.Īfter his second shot on 18, he was engulfed by the fans, almost swallowed up. Then, the throng got bigger and louder as they closed in at the final holes. Most golfers look straight ahead as they walk to the next tee, and march down the paths of the fairways, heading for their second shot. The joyous scenes showed Phil giving the thumbs up sign to his loud, enthusiastic supporters almost every step of the way. I look at Phil Mickelson’s tremendous accomplishment in two respects: the pictures we all saw on television, and the behind the scenes story that paved the way for what transpired. There is so much more than breaking down the PGA Championship by the pure numbers of Mickelson’s lead going into the final round, and his eventual margin of victory, as well as the critical holes that both made a difference in his winning, and almost proved to be his undoing. In unexpectedly winning his first major tournament in eight years, Mickelson became the oldest professional golfer in history to take down a major. Andrews in Scotland in 2010, was in the hunt as well. Open on two occasions.Īlso, Louis Oosthuizen, who won the Open Championship at St. Yes, Brooks Koepka, was coming off knee surgery which left him unquestionably less than 100%, but Koepka is 19 years younger than Mickelson and has won the PGA title twice and the U.S. Not only did he achieve the victory on the difficult Kiawah Ocean Course with winds creating chaos, especially on the final day, but he had to hold off some mighty challengers in the process. In what was one of the top moments of the year in sports, and undoubtedly the banner moment in Mickelson’s career, the golfer who many understandably said was no longer a threat to win a major, captured the PGA Golf Championship. It was thumbs up all the way for Phil Mickelson. ![]()
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