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Fox News
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Fox News
John Smoltz optimistic about American Century, explains why golf is more 'nerve-racking' than baseball
Print Close By Ryan Gaydos Published June 26, 2025 John Smoltz will be in the field for the American Century Championship next month at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Club in Nevada, and he is looking to leave as the champion. The Baseball Hall of Famer and FOX Sports MLB broadcaster finished fourth in the celebrity tournament in 2024 and tied for 12th in 2023. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON Smoltz explained to Fox News Digital in a recent interview he has "no excuses" this year for him not to at least be in contention to win the tournament. "I've been doing it now, I don't know, 13-14 years, I got two brand new hips, I training getting stronger and no longer losing 30 yards to all these young whippersnappers who just bomb it. So, there is no excuses for me not win at some point even though I am 58. I'll be the oldest winner to ever win the American Century Championship. I am already proclaiming it, I'm not going to say it is this year but I will be the oldest winner at some point." Smoltz suggested he would be even more sure of himself if he was able to "figure out how to put those greens." "I finished second a couple times, I finished top 10 a lot, top five, but it comes down to you have to make birdies, and I just haven't made enough birdies," he said. "If it came down to stroke play there is no doubt I would always be right there, but you still have to make birdies. So I'm working on some these things as we speak, I am doing all these interviews and Zooms from my golf club, Hawks Ridge, putting in the time putting in the work, and putting in my shoulders have been horrible until two months ago, I'm getting stronger, I am training for that. GOLF LEGEND ANNIKA SORENSTAM TALKS CHARITABLE EFFORTS AHEAD OF AMERICAN CENTURY CELEBRITY TOURNAMENT "I have no excuses, I can walk 16 miles now with two new hips, in the past I was broken down trying to play a 5-and-half-hour golf round, and it was very difficult to do, and I know that sounds like a bunch of excuses, but I can't go through the airport without the thing going off, so I got new metal in my body." Smoltz, like many athletes and celebrities who have participated in the tournament, circles it on his calendar each year. "I think this is the greatest time of the calendar in the middle of what I do and probably everybody else does," he said. "An event that brings together 91, or whatever it is, different personalities, different walk of life, and we all get to test our skills and mingle together at Lake Tahoe, it is fantastic. American Century does an incredible, incredible job putting this on well past 30 years, and I'm fortunate to be a part of it. I love it, and obviously I want to win it." Smoltz won a World Series in1995 with the Atlanta Braves and the National League Cy Young Award in 1996. When an out was needed, he would be called upon to get it. However, he admitted there is a pressure that comes with playing golf that he has never really experienced on the mound. "It is not even close – golf is more nerve-racking than anything I have ever done in baseball," he said. "You can load the bases up and get a 3-0 count on the greatest hitter and I still rather be there than necessarily losing your swing coming down the stretch and everybody wondering why you hit that shot. So, golf is all about you and mother nature and there's no teammates to bail you in or out. "And, you know, I played a team sport my whole life, so some of the mixed results. You can pitch bad and win, you can't play golf bad and win so I think golf has its own mental toughness that it ranks by itself even though it isn't a physical demanding sport that some would argue, and I would argue it is physically demanding. But it is not in the realm of basketball, baseball, hockey or football. So, the issue is everybody who played the physically demanding sport want to play this game as long as they can and play it a lot longer than their sport allowed them to play." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The festivities for the American Century Championship begin on July 9 and run through July 13. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter . Print Close URL
Fox News
28-05-2025
- Automotive
- Fox News
Indy 500 winner Alex Palou pumps brakes on possible F1 move
Print Close By Ryan Gaydos Published May 28, 2025 Alex Palou is on top of the open-wheel racing world as he won Sunday's Indianapolis 500 for the first time in his career and notched his fifth win in six IndyCar races this season. Palou appeared to be cemented in his IndyCar seat for the foreseeable future as he made clear that joining Formula 1 wasn't in the cards. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON "(F1) is not calling me anymore. I still follow it. It's a huge series. It's amazing. I'm a big fan, but I don't think they're having as much fun as I'm having here," Palou told the Indy Star. "I don't see people celebrating with their wives and their kids as much as we do. I don't see them hanging in the bus lot or having dinner with their mechanics. I only enjoy driving and having fun and being with my people, so I think (F1) is the total opposite." Palou dipped his toe in the F1 waters in 2022 when he signed with McLaren's Testing of Previous Cars program. He was then named a reserve driver for the 2023 season but never raced in an official event. CONOR DALY ADMITS TO PERFORMING GROSS ACT WHILE WAITING FOR INDY 500 TO BEGIN He participated in four races in Formula 2 in 2017 and drove full time in Formula 3 in 2018, finishing in seventh in the drivers' championship. Palou joined IndyCar in 2020 with Dale Coyne Racing. He moved to Chip Ganassi Racing in 2021. He's won the IndyCar championship three times and is in line for a fourth. After the Indy 500 win, Ganassi called him the "best driver." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP "I think he's one of the greats. It's that simple," Ganassi said. "Certainly we've had some great drivers on our team, and he's right there, at worst, shoulder-to-shoulder with all the rest of them." Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter . Print Close URL
Fox News
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
ESPN's Ryan Clark evokes RG3's marriage after ex-NFL star weighs in on Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese
Print Close By Chantz Martin Published May 19, 2025 Robert Griffin III was among those who chimed in on the latest saga in the rivalry between basketball stars Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark, saying the Chicago Sky star "hates Caitlin Clark." "After watching Caitlin Clark's flagrant foul on Angel Reese and the aftermath, there is no way Angel Reese can continue the lie that she doesn't dislike Caitlin Clark," Griffin wrote on X. "I know what hatred looks like. Angel Reese HATES Caitlin Clark. Not some basketball rivalry hate either. Hate." Griffin later claimed his statement was "purely based in basketball" and was simply a "sports take." CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON Tempers flared between Reese and Clark after the Fever guard committed a flagrant foul on the Sky forward. It was one of the bigger moments of Indiana's 93-58 blowout win on Saturday. Current ESPN NFL analyst and former Pittsburgh Steelers star Ryan Clark reacted to Griffin's comments on the Reese-Clark drama. Clark suggested Griffin was joining the "hate train" and was falling in line with the positions other media figures have taken. "When RG3 jumps onto the hate train or the angry train, it now follows what we saw from Keith Olbermann, what we saw from Dave Portnoy, as they poured onto Angel Reese to make her the villain, and Caitlin Clark heroic or hero story," Clark said during a recent episode of his "The Pivot" podcast. "The one thing we know about RG3 is he's not having conversations at his home about what Black women have to endure in this country. About what young Black women and athletes like Angel Reese have had to deal with being on the opposite side of Caitlin Clark's rise and ascension into stardom." CAITLIN CLARK SPEAKS OUT ON WNBA'S PROBE INTO ALLEGED 'HATEFUL COMMENTS' TOWARD ANGEL REESE Clark then highlighted the former NFL quarterback's marriage. "If you're RG3, when is the last time within your household you've had a conversation about what [Angel Reese is] dealing with?" Clark asked. "You haven't been able to do that because in both of your marriages, you've been married to White women." Griffin is married to Grete Griffin, who is a native of Estonia and a heptathlete. "You haven't had opportunities to have those conversations to educate you on what they're feeling, what Black women deal with, what they're seeing when they think of a young Angel Reese. And the whole time that he's mimicking Angel Reese and bobbing his head and moving his neck while he's doing this whole piece, his wife is in the back amening and clapping." Griffin left ESPN in 2024. Multiple outlets reported at the time that Griffin's dismissal was a cost-cutting move. "When I worked with RG3, he would make all of these sort of corny jokes about milk and how much he loved it and how important it was. And he always points out on social media the color of his wife's white skin. As if the color of her skin is what makes her special. As if the color of her skin is what makes her a good wife," Clark continued. "I've met the lady. I've had a conversation with her. I think she's more than that. But it also leads to what Black women deal with a lot from Black men who have chose to date or marry outside of their race. They always feel like they have to go the extra mile to prop up the woman that they married or the woman that they're with over Black women by denigrating Black women." Griffin caught wind of Clark's comments and took to social media to share his response. "Ryan Clark personally attacking me and my family personally over a sports opinion is cowardly, spineless, and weak," Griffin wrote on X, along with a more than two-minute-long video. Griffin also stated several times that Clark's assertions were "way out of bounds." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Caitlin Clark and Reese have major history, going back to the 2023 NCAA women's basketball national championship. Both players downplayed the incident. Clark told ESPN's Holly Rowe after the third quarter that there had been "nothing malicious" behind the foul. Fox News' Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter. Print Close URL
Fox News
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Fox News
US women's rugby star sent off for 'deliberate and dangerous' head stamp of Australian opponent
Print Close By Chantz Martin Published May 19, 2025 American Olympic rugby star Alev Kelter will face a judicial hearing and potentially lengthy suspension after being sent off in a women's rugby test on Saturday for stamping on the head of an opponent. Team USA was playing against Australia, who went on to celebrate a 27-19 victory in Saturday's contest. Upon a video review, referees issued a red card around the 79th minute of action in the Pacific Four Series test. Officials determined Kelter forcefully stamped on the head of Australian center Georgie Friedrichs. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON Microphones picked up a referee saying, "Twelve, blue (Kelter), is going to receive a permanent red card because this is thuggery, it is deliberate and it is very dangerous foul play. "She's clearly stamped on the head of the Australian player. That's reckless, that's dangerous and she's going off." US RUGBY SEVENS STAR ILONA MAHER ADMITS BRONZE MEDAL IS 'WEARING A LITTLE BIT' Friedrichs appeared to avoid any major injuries in the incident. Team USA coach Sione Fukofuka later apologized to the Australian players. Foul play in rugby that involves contact with the head is treated with extreme seriousness. Rugby, like many contact sports, has changed its rules in an effort to limit the danger of concussion and other head injuries. Kelter is a three-time US Olympic representative in rugby sevens and won a bronze medal in Paris last year. She previously played ice hockey and soccer for the University of Wisconsin. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In rugby, judicial hearings over foul play usually take place within 48 hours of a match. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter. Print Close URL
Fox News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Football legend Lou Holtz calls on Catholics to 'defend and encourage' Pope Leo XIV
Print Close By Scott Thompson Published May 15, 2025 With Pope Leo XIV assuming his post, college football coaching legend Lou Holtz shared an important message for every Catholic around the globe. Holtz said he has been "Catholic all my life," serving as an altar boy as well. He urged people in the United States and around the world to be gracious to Pope Leo as he begins his leadership of the church. "I'm an old man, I've been Catholic all my life. I was taught about how the pope would be selected. The white smoke, the black smoke, et cetera," Holtz began his message. "But you never know about the pope, because he isn't infallible. He's infallible when everything comes to religious decisions, and we're taught to respect him and pray for him and listen to him. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON "I hope this pope will be a very, very good one, but I do know this: He is our pope. We must defend him, we must encourage him, we must pray for him, and we must help him." Holtz continued by arguing "too many people don't give enough to the church today," and perhaps that is due to some not believing in past papal decisions. "The church has financial obligations like anything else. So, whether you like the pope or not, is irrelevant. He's our pope. You must respect him, pray for him, and care about him at the same time, accept the decisions he makes. MEDIA POSITIONS POPE LEO XIV AS POTENTIAL 'COUNTERWEIGHT' TO TRUMP "It's important for us to support the pope regardless of who he is, whether we like him or not. Pray for him. Pray for the decisions that they make. I've been blessed to know two popes, have visits with them. Let's make sure that we pray for the pope, follow his blessings and teachings because they've led us the correct way for so many years. "Good luck to you, and I promise you, I will pray for the pope because I know the pope's also going to pray for me and pray for the choices he makes in the best interest of this country." Since Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected as the first American pope last week, many wanted to learn about the new leader of the church. Louis Prevost, his conservative brother, pushed back on accusations that Pope Leo would be a "woke" successor to the late Pope Francis. "He wasn't, like, super political," Prevost told Piers Morgan on "Uncensored." "He's not left, he's not right, he looks at the whole scene, takes information from both sides, and somehow finds a way to go down the middle and not ruffle too many feathers." Prevost did, however, address Pope Leo's previous criticism of President Donald Trump's methods amid the migrant crisis. "He may take offense with the method in which they're moving people out and comment on that," but nonetheless, "you still have to follow the rules of the law." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Holtz is a staunch Trump supporter, posting similar videos of his praise for the 47th president. Holtz coached for 33 years in college with six different programs, most notably Notre Dame, where he went 100-30 over his 11 years with the Fighting Irish. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter. Print Close URL
