The USA sucks at golf and tennis. AGAIN.

Nick going, Nick Faldo. Just let the Mars Rover run your ass over and retire, you fag.

===

Faldo slammed for Ryder Cup loss


LONDON (AP) One headline branded the outcome "Faldo Folly." Another deemed him "Captain Calamity."


Under fire: Europe's Ryder Cup captain Nick Faldo is taking heat for his team's surprising loss to the United States over the weekend in Louisville, Ky. AP PHOTO
European Ryder Cup captain Nick Faldo was under siege Monday after his team's loss to the United States. Faldo, a six-time major winner, was belittled for his player selections.

"Nick Faldo, not the crowd, was America's 13th Man," the Daily Maily said of his role in Europe's 16 1/2-11 1/2 loss in Louisville, Ky.

The Times of London said that while U.S. captain Paul Azinger instilled belief in his team, "Faldo inspired chaos."

Even without the best player in the world — Tiger Woods' only involvement was text messaging Azinger — and a team comprised of six rookies and three veterans who knew nothing but losing in the Ryder Cup, the captain's messages got through.

The Times assailed Faldo for using his most successful players — Ian Poulter and Graeme McDowell — near the end of Sunday's singles matches rather than at the beginning. That meant the overall result was decided by the time they won their matches.

"Buzzing around the 17th green, the United States players extolled the team-bonding skills of Azinger," the Times said.

"Faldo's thin skin, the need to have his sports shrink by his side even out on the course and his grating sense of humor, had confirmed what we knew all along, which is that he is no natural leader," the paper said. "But what we had not expected was that a man who had dedicated himself so much to this job would make such a colossal mistake."

Former European Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher said Faldo got his singles selections wrong.

"I was worried about putting three top players at the bottom of the order," said Gallacher, who lost two Ryder Cup matches and then won his third. "The top players should be at the top to get the points early."

The Daily Mail said Faldo's decision to put Poulter and McDowell near the end of the 12 matches was like "sending an aircraft carrier to a conflict that was already over."

"His list will go down as one of the great leadership howlers and it confirmed the sense we had of Faldo being swept along by instinct and whim," the Mail said.

The Telegraph said Faldo had used the Ryder Cup to feed his ego.

"Faldo's gamble on the big finish . . . left Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and Padraig Harrington, thrashing at thin air, their legs amputated by a hopelessly incontinent ego," it said.

The Telegraph said the Valhalla fallout would leave Faldo "about to pay the price of a lifetime of self serving, of devotion to the cult of the individual."

The Japan Times: Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2008
(C) All rights reserved


===

And as long as we have Rafa Nadal playing for Spain...and we face them...we will always be screwed.

US out of Davis Cup

Written By:BBC , Posted: Mon, Sep 22, 2008


Caption: Rafael Nadal beat Andy Roddick in straight sets to put defending champions the United States out of this year's Davis Cup.


Spain's Rafael Nadal beat Andy Roddick in straight sets to put defending champions the United States out of this year's Davis Cup.

Nadal's 6-4 6-0 6-4 win gave Spain an unassailable 3-1 lead, taking them through to the final where they will face Argentina, who beat Russia 3-2.

Playing at the Las Ventas bullfighting arena, Nadal put Roddick to the sword with his array of passing shots winning a huge ovation from the partisan home crowd.

It is the latest chapter in a dream year for Nadal, coming after his wins at the French Open, Wimbledon and the Olympics and his claiming of the number one spot.

US pairing Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish had kept their team's hopes alive on Saturday with a thrilling 4-6 6-4 6-3 4-6 6-4 defeat of Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco in the doubles.

Fish was only playing because of a shoulder injury to Bryan's usual partner, his brother Bob.

But after a hesitant start that saw Lopez and Verdasco take the opening set, he proved to be a strong partner.

Nadal had survived an early scare against Davis Cup debutant Querrey before winning in four sets in Friday's opener.

The French Open and Wimbledon champion initially struggled to contain Querrey's powerful serve and forehand and had to recover from the initial shock of being put on the back foot by an opponent just out of his teens.

The 20-year-old took the first set on a tie-break but Nadal fought back to win 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 6-3 6-4.

Spain will play Argentina in the final in November after they completed a 3-2 win over Russia in Buenos Aires.

Russia's Nikolay Davydenko came from behind to beat David Nalbandian 3-6 6-3 7-6 (7-2) 6-0, bringing his side level at 2-2.

But Argentina secured victory when Juan Martin Del Potro defeated Igor Andreev 6-4 6-2 6-1 in the decisive encounter.

On Friday, Nalbandian had swept Andreev aside to claim a 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 6-4 win but Del Potro's victory over Davydenko was even more one-sided, the 19-year-old dropping only seven games against the world number six on his way to a 6-1 6-4 6-2 win.

Elsewhere in the Davis Cup, Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka teamed up for the first time since winning Olympic gold in Beijing to clinch Switzerland's place in the elite World Group.

They beat Belgium's Xavier Malisse and Olivier Rochus 4-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-3 on Saturday, giving the Swiss an unassailable 3-0 lead.

Individually they had got off to a perfect start on Friday, as world number nine Wawrinka eventually beat 58th-ranked Steve Darcis 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 6-3 2-6 6-4 in the first singles match.

US Open champion Federer saw off world number 95 Kristof Vliegen 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 6-2.

===

What happened to showing up?

There are teams that I follow that lose, and there are teams that I can't help but wonder, "Why do you even bother playing if you don't even bother to show up for it? It's asinine, really. That was the case with a number of teams I follow. First, AFC Liverpool, a fledling outfit, got walloped by a team a tier blow them, called Waterloo Dock, 6-1. And this side at the top of their table...and they get thumped. Bloody wanks. I mean, at least if you're going to exit, you'd at least make the score respectable. That just gets on my bad side. Even though they are in theri first year, one would expect a scoreline better than this. Scouse fags.

Even worse, while Yankee Stadium is due to be nothing more than a smoldering pile of rubble in a number months' time, the Angels, who are three wins away from 100 victories, cannot rely of Jered Weaver to help him. The rube can't pitch his way out a wet paper bag in a 9-6 loss to the Mariners. Adding a little insult, the Dodgers won that day.

And that's what drives me to bedlam here. Dodgers win, Angels lose. Send Jered back to Salt Lake, MIke Scioscia. We can't rely on him next month. We'd have to bring up the bullpen at the top of the 2nd inning.

===

Is it just me, or has the world ended? While President Bush's dementia has reached beyond Satanic levels with his plan to make the rich richer and the poor poorer (a plan that will go back to hell from whence it came), the Los Angeles Galaxy...actually WON a few days ago. DC United fell, 5-2.

About bloody time you pricks did something right. Now let's get on a streak already, you dormant rubes.

===

Two-game losingt streak, Roughriders? Get out of here.

===

Lack of consistency isn't restricted to my university's women's soccer team, apparently. The women's volleyball team suffered their first sweep of the season...to fucking Santa Clara, of all sides, a day after sweeping them on Friday.

Gimmillaro...we ought to send the New York Five Families to question you and your team's dwindling commitment to consistent play this year.

===

There are individuals and teams, though, that cut the mustard. The USA, Australian, and English squad are undefeated in their runs towards South Africa 2010. And Francisco Rodriguez became the first closer to reach 60 saves in a season. Adelaide United is the first Australian side to advance to the semifinals of the AFc Champions League, defeating the defending J.League champions Kashima Antlers 2-1. Robert Cornthwaite, who scored an own goal in the first leg in Japan, made up for it by scoring the winner at the Hindmarsh Stadium. I think Oswaldo may want to send their first team keeper, Hitoshi Sogahata, to the reserve side.

And the Sparks are still alive. Bring on San Antonio. 71-64 win over Seattle.

ISML 2008 Tiara Preview

A preview of the International Saimoe League Postseason, which starts September 30, 2008 and concludes in early November. NOTE: This is the final version. The previous one had a typographical error in one of the slides. Thankfully that was the only mistake. This is also being posted on Google Video.

ISML 2008 Tiara Preview

A preview of the International Saimoe League Postseason, which starts September 30, 2008 and concludes in early November. NOTE: This is the final version. The previous one had a typographical error in one of the slides. Thankfully that was the only mistake. This is also being posted on Google Video.