Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Tom Lehman Bruce Vaughan share Day 1 lead at Mitsubishi Electric Championship

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Tom Lehman started this season where he left off last year -- out front.
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By 
Associated Press 

Series: Champions Tour
KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii -- Tom Lehman and Bruce Vaughan shot 7-under 65 on Friday to share the first-round lead in the Champions Tour's season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship.
Lehman, the player of the year last season on the 50-and-over tour, birdied the final hole at Hualalai Resort to match Vaughan at the top of the leaderboard.
Brad Faxon, Loren Roberts, Corey Pavin and Jay Haas were a shot back, and Dan Forsman and Michael Allen followed at 67.
Defending champion John Cook opened with a 69, and Fred Couples had a 72.
All but five of the 41 players shot par or better on the Jack Nicklaus-designed course, the easiest layout on the tour eight of the last nine years.
Lehman had five birdies and an eagle on the 10th, playing the par-5 holes in 5 under. His eagle putt on the 10th came from 20 feet.
"The wind started to blow right about then. It started to get stronger on like the eighth, ninth, 10th holes," Lehman said. "That hole was straight downwind and I hit a good drive and a 6-iron. I had like 20 feet and hit a beautiful putt, perfect speed, right in the center.
"But it was playing more like a par 4, it's like picking up a stroke or a stroke and a quarter on the field, not one of those eagles where you pick up two."
A three-time winner last season, Lehman became the first player to be honored as the player of the year on all three PGA Tour-sanctioned tours. He won the Nationwide award in 1991 and the PGA Tour honor in 1996.
Vaughan played in the third group, missing the wind that picked up to 15 mph in the afternoon. His only bogey came on the 16th hole, but he rallied with birdies on the final two holes for his lowest score on the Champions Tour by two shots. Vaughan has limited exempt status this year and got into the tournament because of his victory in the 2008 Senior British Open.
"I'm just playing the majors and will try to Monday qualify and stuff," the former fireman said.
Roberts won the 2006 event, setting the tour's scoring record at 25 under. He has 19 straight sub-par rounds at Hualalai.
Bernhard Langer, Gary Hallberg, Mark McNulty, John Huston, Russ Cochran and Jeff Sluman shot 68.
Huston played the final four holes in 3 over. He and Faxon are making their first starts in the event, which is open to champions from the last two years and major champions from the last five. Eight more players, including Pavin, received sponsor exemptions.

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Ravens Have Already Started Working On Run Game


Posted Jan 9, 2014

Ryan MinkBaltimoreRavens.com Staff Writer@Ravens All Ryan Mink Articles



Ravens General Manager Ozzie Newsome believes Ray Rice will be a Pro Bowler.



Immediately following the season, the Ravens rolled up their sleeves and went to work on improving their run game.

Head Coach John Harbaugh met with running back Ray Rice, among others. Then General Manager Ozzie Newsome followed up, sitting down with everybody personally involved in the run game, from coaches, offensive linemen, tight ends, quarterbacks and running backs.

“Everybody understands that in 2014, we will do everything we can to be a better run team, because it will make us a better football team,” Newsome said.

The stats will be recited time and time again this offseason. The Ravens finished with the worst average in yards per carry (3.1) in the NFL this season. It was the franchise’s worst mark, and the lowest average of any team in the league since 2007, when the Chicago Bears were also at 3.1.

“To say we’re disappointed in the run game, no doubt,” Newsome said.

“The history of this franchise has been our ability to run the football. Especially in the AFC North with the type of defenses that you face, you have to have the ability to run the football. We think that’s a friend to the quarterback when you have that ability, and that’s one of the things that we’ve already started to work on.”

Much like Harbaugh, who said he expects Rice to return to being one of the league’s best running backs, Newsome came out of his meeting with Rice encouraged.

“I think Ray is committed to being as good a football player as he has been,” Newsome said.

“We had great dialogue yesterday on what we think we can do to help Ray to get there. That combination of us having an understanding and a willingness to provide some help to him, and him having a willingness to work his butt off, we will again have a Pro Bowl running back in Ray Rice next year.”

Rice was a Pro Bowler in 2009, 2011 and 2012. In 2011, he had over 2,000 total yards and scored 15 touchdowns. In 2012, his numbers dipped a bit, but were still very strong with 1,143 rushing yards, nine touchdowns and 478 receiving yards.

Rice’s 2013 season veered off track before it even got started. He suffered a hip flexor injury in Week 2, but sat out only one game. Rice fought through that ailment, then a thigh injury, for the rest of the season.

He finished with just 660 rushing yards (career low 3.1 yards per carry average), four touchdowns and 58 catches for 321 yards. Rice didn’t have his usual burst, had trouble making defenders miss, and didn’t gain much yardage after contact.

An offseason of rest should help Rice regain his legs. He’ll turn just 27 years old on Jan. 22.

Better offensive line play would also be a huge help. The Ravens will look to get bigger at center and guard, according to Newsome, and could go back to more of a physical running style next season. Rice was often dealing with defensive linemen or linebackers in the backfield.