A Fox in the hole
NZ golf on a high, US golfers behaving poorly, Adesanya and Kiwi cricketers cash in, an understated star scores big in Queenstown, and another disgrace on rugby's sidelines.
When asked to name all seven of the United Arab Emirates most people can’t get past the Big Three of Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. Ryan Fox will always be able to name a fourth now after he won the Ras Al Khaimah Classic, the latest stop on the DP European Tour, by a whopping five shots last night.
It was Fox’s second win on the European Tour, though he’s still to win in Europe, with this victory following a co-sanctioned event in Perth three years ago.
Aside from golfing aficionados, the name of the tournament was not instantly recognisable, nor was the vast majority of the field he was up against, but unless you were Tiger Woods in the early 2000s, golf tournaments are bloody hard to win.
To win to such an extent that the last few holes have all the stress of an afternoon with your mates at the driving range is mighty impressive.
Fox looks like he could be that bloke, too. He plays fast, he looks like he needs to keep an eye on how many steaks he throws on the barbie and most of all, gives the impression he can’t believe how lucky he is to travel around the world hitting a stationary ball for a living.
He is about as relatable as you get for someone who just picked up a cheque for $450,000 for four days work.
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It’s hard to imagine Fox behaving like Charley Hoffman, the latest in a long line of obnoxious golfers with an enormous entitlement complex.
Hoffman, playing in the Waste Management Phoenix open (appropriate name), hit a ball in the water, then placed his ball so badly that it rolled in the water again and he lost another shot. He made seven on a par five and that was enough for him to get drunk on the power of Instagram.
Not only did he say the rule sucked, to which he might have a point, but he slammed the PGA Tour as an amateur organisation and said it was no wonder everyone was going to jump ship to a rebel Saudi tour. He even tagged in Saudi International Golf in case he thought his message might be a bit subtle.
He received instant Insta backing from Phil Mickelsen, who seems hellbent on destroying his reputation, and Bryson DeChambeau, who never had much of one to start.
To recap: Hoffman hit a ball in the water, didn’t like it, and said that’s why everyone wants to play in a tour backed by a murderous regime.
Didn’t end up paying for UFC271 for various reasons but I was intrigued to read this piece by MMA experts Brett Okamoto and Marc Raimondi on ESPN, before Israel Adesanya retained his middleweight crown. Just 23 fights into his career, they rate him the second greatest middleweight of all time, behind only Anderson Silva (34-11).
The man himself had a bit to say after his fight, none of which I found particularly endearing but hey, each to their own.
Every now and then her excellence gets overlooked because she’s arguably not the monster in Tm20Is as she is in 50-over cricket, but Suzy Bates is seriously good at cricket.
The 35 year old scored her 11th ODI century in the weekend, putting up 106 against India at Queenstown.
I’m not sure you can make a case that there’s been anybody better at 50-over cricket for New Zealand.
The IPL mega cattle auction proved lucrative for New Zealanders, with 11 picking up a decent pay day, ranging from Lockie Ferguson’s mindboggling $2 million deal with new team Gujarat, to Tim Seifert’s $100,000 deal with Delhi Capitals.
Trent Boult ($1.6m to Rajasthan Royals) and Kane Williamson ($2.8m retained by Hyderabad Sunrisers) are New Zealand’s other 2022 IPL millionaires.
Stephen Fleming’s Chennai Super Kings got the biggest steal, picking up Devon Conway for just $200,000, while Rajasthan also got a sneaky good deal by taking Daryl MItchell for $150,000.
The full list of New Zealand sales and passes can be found here.
Talking of value, if you largely follow basketball through box scores, sometimes it is difficult to see what all the fuss is about Steven Adams, who has bounced from Oklahoma City to New Orleans to Memphis in consecutive years - all teams at the smaller end of the NBA market share spectrum.
If you’re a fan of basketball or even just mildly curious about Adams, it is well worth a gander.
This is the most disturbing tweet thread of the weekend (and the award for best use of Twitter).
It concerns a head injury assessment towards the end of an U20 international between Italy and England, but what is appalling is the attitude of the England medical staff to both the referee and the welfare of their own player.
Referee Aurelie Groizeleau deserves a medal for her insistence of applying the rules, while the English doctor should never be allowed near a rugby sideline again.
Massive props to the Wellington Phoenix women for getting a win under their belts, beating Canberra 3-0. I was asking local football’s biggest booster and all round nice bloke Jason Pine recently whether their debut season had been a disappointment, even given the challenges they were facing and he said he had zero expectations.
“An extremely young side, no real professional experience, pulled together very late, based away from all their home comforts et cetera. Many of them have never even left home.
“It’s professional sport, however, and nobody wants to lose every week, but I think the opening season can almost be written off. Every season after this one will be better.”
THIS WEEK
I’m going to watch the Super Bowl today so you don’t have to.
There’ll be that and a little more weekend detritus waiting for you in your inboxes first thing tomorrow, including Zoi Sadowski-Synnott’s bid for big air.
On Wednesday evening I’m going to pivot to cricket, with an episode of The BYC and a look ahead to the South Africa test series, which will hopefully recharge what has been a very flat summer of men’s cricket.
There’ll be the normal Friday newsletter where we’ll have to look at the start of the rugby season while in the middle of a home cricket test. I’ll also be doi
ng daily wraps on the first test against the Proteas (not from the ground unfortunately) for paying subscribers only, starting Thursday evening.
Was it you that wrote an article a while back for the Herald detailing the corruption and financial conflicts of interest in the IPL? I loved that article and can't seem to find it.