GOLF

We were treated to a very exciting weekend of THE MASTERS.  Coming into the final day, the leaders were a few Australians (Jason Day, Adam Scott), and Argentinian (Angel Cabrerra) and of course Tiger Woods.  This is an incredible event to watch, as hitting in the water or missing a putt can drop you completely out of contention.  That could mean the difference of a few hundred thousand dollars or   nothing.

Once the Contenders got down to the final stretch, some amazing shots put just two guys in the lead:  Adam Scott and Angel Cabrerra.  Tiger finished at -5 and still brought home $352,000, but unfortunately not good enough to wear the famous Green Jacket (the sports coat the winner gets to wear).  Adam Scott sunk an amazing putt that he thought would put him in the lead, but then Cabrerra hit a spectacular pitch that would keep things even and require a playoff.  In fact, they needed two playoff holes.  And on the second, Cabrerra had a beautiful putt, but it was just a half-an-inch short of going in.  That opened the door for Scott to hit a relatively easy shot to win the 2013 Masters.  That is the first Masters win for the country of Australia.  Aussie Greg Norman came close a few times in the 90s, and Scott used to watch those.  When Norman lost, Scott said he would be the first Australian to win a Masters.  On Sunday, he did.  Just a great weekend of golf.

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, the major news came out of Los Angeles.  The Lakers desperately needed a win against the Warriors if they wanted to get a chance to make the playoffs.  Down the stretch, the Lakers, of course, looked to their leader Kobe Bryant.  But, with just 2 minutes to play, Kobe made a routine move, and… couldn’t get up.  It turned out that Kobe had torn his Achilles Heel.  The Lakers did go on to win the game, but the future on Kobe is now very uncertain.  Doctors said it will take at least 6-9 months to recover from that injury, and there is no certainty that Kobe will be in a Lakers uniform if he does come back from that.  There is even a chance he could retire.  This is really upsetting news for Kobe and Lakers fans (and honestly anyone who’s had an achilles injury…it’s a tough recovery).  LA Lakers 118, Golden State 116.

FOOTBALL

And in the NFL, long time Steelers star linebacker James Harrison was recently released by the team.  And while Harrison does have some behavioral issues, he’s still a great talent looking for another opportunity to prove himself.  It looks like the Bengals may be the team to give him that chance.  The Bengals are a team on the rise, and adding a guy like Harrison could be another component that could help them capture that AFC North Division.  This could be a great signing for the Bengals.