The Monday Morning Rush for Feb. 13, 2012

CINCINNATI - It's Monday, Feb. 13, 2012:

SUNDAY SPOTLIGHT: I rarely make plans to watch golf on a Sunday afternoon, especially in February. But that changed on Sunday when I knew that Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods were paired today, and both were chasing Charlie Wi.  When poor Charlie double bogeyed the first hole, the chase was on.

LEFTY: Mickelson hit a great tee shot on number five within 18 inches of the cup. That set up a birdie and he was off and running. He shot an 8-under par 64 to finish at 17-under par.  Good enough for a two-shot win.

TIGER: Tiger was in position to make a run, but he couldn't get a birdie putt to drop in the opening stretch, and then he ran off three straight bogeys at the turn.

TRADING PLACES: Confidence is a huge factor in golf and you could sure see that with Mickelson and Tiger. When you used to watch them play together, Tiger swaggered, he controlled the gallery, and you just always felt he was going to win. He's still trying to get that back. Mickelson played with the swagger Sunday.

OF INTEREST TODAY: I want to see what the television ratings look like for a golf tournament this early in the season. There was no NFL football, no marquee college basketball game, and it's still early in the season for the NBA. I think most fans who wanted to watch sports on Sunday, had to find golf the most appealing destination.

LOCAL KID DOES WELL: Jason Kokrak, a 2007 Xavier graduate finished at 9-under par for his first top ten finish since earning his PGA card. Jason is the first Xavier athlete to make the PGA tour.  He's a graduate of JFK High School in Warren, Ohio. 

BUMMED BIGTIME: I rarely remember a time in our newsroom when so many people were saddened by news as when we learned Saturday night that Whitney Houston had died. She had a talent that crossed several generations and cultures. A 61-year-old guy like me bought her first album, but all the young people in their mid-20's have her on their iPods. And it made no difference if you were white, black or somewhere in-between, you knew her music and appreciated her talent. Gosh, she was really good!

WALLEYE WIPEOUT: A bad weekend in Toledo.  A lot of people have experienced such a thing, but it was a double loss for the Cyclones.  The Cyclones lost 4-3 Saturday night and then 3-2 in overtime on Sunday. The Cyclones play Tuesday in Kalamazoo.

FRANTIC FEBRUARY: We talked college basketball on Meijer Sports of All Sorts Sunday night, and it's interesting that there were more calls about the Xavier Musketeers than usual.  Xavier has had great teams for many years, and we could get anybody to call. But this is a struggling squad, and it seemed like there were a lot of theories. Bad strategies, lack of leadership and selfishness were how the viewers saw it.

MACK'S ATTACK: After the loss to Temple Saturday night, Chris Mack said "we didn't pass the ball. One guy just wants to pat it, pat it, pat it and just survey the court like he's a quarterback."

MISERY LOVES COMPANY: Chris Mack isn't the only local coach searching for answers.  Mike Cronin was also asking questions after Saturday's loss at Marquette. "I don't know what they do at night" Cronin told reporters. "I don't know what they've been doing for the last 48 hours as we've been preparing for them. But like I said, we weren't ready to play. We weren't ready for what was going to happen."

Hope you had a good weekend The work week starts today, give it your best shot.

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