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Filed under: PGA  As March Madness draws near, this week's PGA stop will give you a little taste of the bracket format that makes college basketball so exciting. The World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championships is one of the best tournaments outside of the majors, pitting the top 64 available players in the world rankings. This will easily be the best field thus far in 2011, and it will be particularly interesting to see the top 5 players in the world all in the same location for the first time since Tiger Woods was unseated as No. 1. We've decided to break this week's power rankings down a little differently due to the match play format. This week we'll dissect players' chances by where they're seeded. From the top group (seeds 1-4), here are the three that have the best chance: 1. Graeme McDowell -- Last time we saw McDowell in a match play format, he was closing out Hunter Mahan to retain the Ryder Cup for Europe. He's playing in the same half of the bracket as defending champion Ian Poulter, but McDowell is arguably the best player in the world right now.
2. Rory McIlroy -- McDowell's fellow countryman hasn't finished outside of the top 10 in six starts and holds a 4-2 all-time record at this event. McIlroy has a difficult draw that includes a possible matchup with Martin Kaymer. It would be a coin toss at that point, but I like McIlroy's game a slight bit more at the moment. 3. Martin Kaymer -- Rounding out the European trifecta of favorites, the No. 2 player in the world could very well be the only No. 1 seed to advance beyond Friday. As a Ryder Cup rookie, the German lost just once in four matches. With a potential matchup looming, Kaymer or McIlroy won't be making the semifinals, but whoever escapes the Player bracket will be a heavy favorite come Sunday. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://golf.fanhouse.com/2011/02/23/wgc-accenture-match-play-power-rankings-euros-lead-ranks/ Maggie Gyllenhaal Majandra Delfino Malia Jones Malin Akerman Mandy Moore Filed under: UCF, Recruiting, Prospects  While most teams feel the success of the latest season in a year or even two years, Central Florida started cashing in on its 2010 campaign with its 2011 recruiting class. The Knights' 11 wins, Conference USA championship, Liberty Bowl win over Georgia and No. 21 ranking were enough to attract what coach George O'Leary claims is the best class in his seven seasons as the head of the program. "I think the athleticism and the balance (make this our best class)," O'Leary said. "I think we helped out a lot of positions as far as bringing in quality players at all the positions, and I think that's what you really need to be doing." The Knights signed 29 players, including three four-star recruits who all signed after the Feb. 2 signing date. Included among those four-star recruits were linebacker Leilon Willingham and receiver Rayshon Williams, who go to Mullen High School in Denver. Both players signed their letters of intent on Feb. 3 because a snowstorm in Denver forced Mullen to cancel classes on Feb. 2. Williams is the cousin of former UCF standout and current Miami Dolphins receiver Brandon Marshall. Marshall is also Williams' legal guardian. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2011/02/18/ucf-notches-one-of-its-best-classes/ Emilie de Ravin Emma Heming Emma Stone Emma Watson Emmanuelle Chriqui Filed under: PGA, Golf Odds and Ends  The Tour heads back to California for one of the most scenic stops all year at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Players will be competing on three courses, all of which measure less than 7,000 yards and demand accuracy and a solid short game. Tiger Woods might be on the other side of the world this week, but the field in Northern California doesn't lack star power. Favorites Dustin Johnson -- After back-to-back top 10s to open the year, Johnson (pictured) might have made it three straight had the weather in Scottsdale not caused delays everyday. Less than 30 minutes after his opening-round 64, he was back on the tee for round two and shot nine strokes worse. The two-time defending champ at this event was a disastrous final round away from winning the U.S. Open here last summer. Vijay Singh -- Don't look now, but the Big Fijian looks to be regaining his form. Winless since 2008, Singh has improved each week and earned his first top three finish in three years, which is pretty unbelievable. The 2004 winner here also has three runner-up finishes at the AT&T Mark Wilson -- Winner in two of his three starts this season, Wilson's game is primed for the trip to Pebble Beach. He sits top 5 on Tour in greens in regulation, scrambling, and scoring, and his consistency will benefit him this week. While his past results here aren't spectacular, the FedEx Cup points leader hasn't missed the cut at the AT&T since 2003. Jim Furyk -- Last season's FedEx Cup winner took a month off since missing the cut at the Sony Open. He also took a month break after playing both tournaments on the islands to open 2007, returning to the AT&T and finishing T6. Maybe that trend could be a bit of a stretch, but there's no doubt Furyk enjoys Pebble Beach - he hasn't finished outside of the top 40 since 1999. J.B. Holmes -- The two-time Tour winner nearly added number three at the AT&T a year ago. Holmes finished one stoke behind Dustin Johnson in a tie for 2nd and hasn't missed the cut in four starts at this tournament. One of the longest hitters on tour, he also sits sixth in birdie average after a T5 at the WMPO. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://golf.fanhouse.com/2011/02/10/pebble-power-rankings-dustin-johnson-aims-for-hat-trick/ Leslie Bega Leslie Bibb Lil Kim Lily Allen Lindsay Lohan Filed under: MLS, US Soccer  The North American Soccer League is undaunted. On Tuesday, the new eight-team circuit unveiled its 2011 schedule, with games set to begin April 9. On Wednesday, an expansion club set to enter the league in 2012, the San Antonio Scorpions, announced its partnership with Nike. It's full steam ahead for the NASL, even though the road ahead may be blocked. Last week, the U.S. Soccer Federation withdrew its provisional approval of the new league's second division status. Without that sanctioning, there will be no 2011 season and no second division soccer in the United States. Conversations with sources connected to the decision indicated that the federation was troubled by either the financial health of NASL backer Traffic Sports, by a delay in the posting of the $750,000 annual performance bond by one or more clubs, or perhaps both. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://soccer.fanhouse.com/2011/01/28/new-nasl-holds-fast-to-ambitious-second-division-vision/ Michelle Trachtenberg Mila Kunis Milla Jovovich Minka Kelly Minki van der Westhuizen Filed under: NFL Draft, NFL Quarterbacks, NFL Analysis  INDIANAPOLIS -- Before Cam Newton faced the cameras, microphones, recorders and notebooks, it was Ryan Mallett's turn, and he had the added burden of dealing with drug use allegations that have been raised recently. He chose to sidestep the issue and let it stay between him and the teams interviewing him, other than to say he has laughed them off and hinted that "obviously, somebody did it for a reason, right before the combine, right before the draft." But just as he seemed to be finding his rhythm in his answers and touted the quality of competition he faced in the Southeastern Conference as another plus, he was pressed a little more on the allegations and how he's dealing with them and he insisted he wasn't going to talk about them anymore. His session came to an abrupt end when another reporter tried to explain that the questions aren't going to go away until he gives a definitive answer as he said he didn't want to and walked off. At 6-foot-7 and 253 pounds, Mallett is slightly bigger than Newton (6-5, 248) and has perhaps the biggest arm of all of the quarterbacks. Some scouts have been concerned about his accuracy, but he shot back that the fact that he has thrown for more than 7,000 yards and 60 touchdowns in two seasons should speak for itself. He also claimed he can throw the ball more than 80 yards. Source: http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2011/02/26/ryan-mallett-miffed-about-questions-concerning-drug-use-allegati/ Ashanti Ashlee Simpson Ashley Greene Ashley Olsen Ashley Scott Filed under: Formula One  MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) -- The crown prince of Bahrain called off Formula One's season-opening race Monday, handing another victory to protesters aiming to break the ruling dynasty's stranglehold on power in the Gulf kingdom. Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa owns the rights to grand prix and serves as commander of the armed forces in an island country were at least eight protesters have been killed in a week of unrest. Angry protesters, who see the Bahrain GP as particularly meaningful to him, wanted the March 13 race dropped. Facing more demonstrations around an event that draws a worldwide TV audience of around 100 million in 187 countries, the crown prince told F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone by telephone that the race would not go ahead. "We felt it was important for the country to focus on immediate issues of national interest and leave the hosting of Bahrain's Formula One race to a later date," Bahrain's crown prince said in a statement. After launching deadly attacks on protesters at a landmark in the capital city of Manama, the nation's security forces pulled back Saturday under international pressure and allowed demonstrators to occupy Pearl Square. The protesters have now established a tent city there. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://motorsports.fanhouse.com/2011/02/21/bahrain-formula-one-gp-called-off-due-to-unrest/ Busy Philipps Cameron Diaz Cameron Richardson Camilla Belle Carla Campbell Filed under: Redskins, NFC East  Redskins coach Mike Shanahan, who spent much of 2010 in wars of wills with his richest players, quarterback Donovan McNabb and defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth, has still declined to reveal whether either is definitely finished in Washington although the former ended the season third-string and the latter on suspension. In his first media session since his Redskins debut season ended with a 6-10 thud, Shanahan on Friday said that he and six-time Pro Bowl quarterback McNabb, for whom he gave up second- and fourth-round draft picks to acquire last April, haven't spoken in the seven-plus weeks since the end of Washington's season. The coach finally talked with McNabb's agent, Fletcher Smith, on Wednesday for 90 minutes but wouldn't elaborate on their discussion other than to say the quarterback's future with the Redskins won't be decided until after this April's draft. "I was able to address questions he had and I thought the conversation went well," Shanahan said. "I think over the next few weeks we'll get the chance to talk again, and then we'll make a decision right after the draft of the direction we'll go." With only McNabb and the unproven John Beck under contract at quarterback -- although journeyman Rex Grossman who finished 2010 as the starter could well be back -- Shanahan is believed to be strongly considering choosing quarterbacks Cam Newton of Auburn or Blaine Gabbert of Missouri with the 10th overall selection. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2011/02/26/mike-shanahan-addresses-albert-haynesworth-donovan-mcnabb-drama/ Natalie Imbruglia Natalie Portman Natalie Zea Natasha Bedingfield Natassia Malthe Filed under: MLS, U.S. Men's National Team, D.C. United  Andy Najar has never been a big fan of the press. "When you're a professional, you know that your job is to play but also you have other duties, and talking to the press is one of them. I'm starting to understand that more and more," he told me last fall, toward the conclusion of his rookie of the year season with D.C. United. He said this during a one-on-one interview at RFK Stadium, from which I had been covering soccer for various publications for a decade. In all that time, I had never encountered a player more ill at ease while talking to a reporter, and that included high school and college kids, non-English speakers and even Mia Hamm. Najar spent twice as much time looking down at his phone as he did looking at me. There certainly are mitigating factors. He's shy -- especially when dealing with English speakers he doesn't know -- and he's a 17-year-old from small-town Honduras for whom change has happened very fast. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://soccer.fanhouse.com/2011/02/03/andy-najar-honduras-and-his-media-driven-national-team-tug-of-w/ Piper Perabo Poppy Montgomery Portia de Rossi Rachael Leigh Cook Rachel Bilson Filed under: Brigham Young  BYU starting quarterback Jake Heaps admits that when it comes to last season, there are parts that he'd rather forget -- the quarterback controversy, the 2-5 start, the first loss to Utah State since 1993. But Heaps knows all of the experiences from his freshman year -- good and bad -- helped shape the quarterback that he ultimately became by the end of the season. The Cougars won five of their last seven games, including a 52-24 win in the New Mexico Bowl and Heaps proved, despite early doubts, that he could be the leader of BYU's football team. "In my mind, I really don't remember the first half of the season. I almost kind of like to forget that it even happened," said Heaps, who played in every game for the Cougars his first season and started 10. "I think the hardest thing was at the beginning of the season, it wasn't just me, it was both me and (quarterback) Riley (Nelson) and there were two voices instead of just one. And that's always hard to do. It's almost kind of impossible, especially as a quarterback, to try and reach a team. There were times when it was really hard. After that loss to Utah State -- I was the first quarterback to lose to Utah State in I don't know how many years -- and that was a real low point. "We really had a point on our team where we could have let the season fall and just accept the fact that we were a losing team or we were going to do something about it and make something out of the season and we ended up really coming together and being able to finish off a strong year." Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2011/02/27/byu-quarterback-jake-heaps-comes-of-age-after-tough-freshman-yea/ Taylor Swift Teri Hatcher Teri Polo Tessie Santiago ThalÃa Filed under: Kings  SACRAMENTO, Calif. - With so many signs continuing to point toward a Kings exodus to Anaheim, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson on Thursday admonished the owners of his city's only professional sports team for the way in which they've handled the ongoing process. Johnson, the former NBA player who is so uniquely positioned in this attempt to retain the Capital City's basketball team, was reacting to an announcement from the NBA that Kings owners Joe and Gavin Maloof had requested an extension on the March 1 deadline to file for relocation. Johnson, who said he learned of the news through a Google alert in his e-mail account, wasted no time in responding. "Today's news is very disappointing in my opinion for the city of Sacramento," Johnson said early in his news conference that lasted nearly 20 minutes and much of which can be seen here. "As you know, the Kings have asked the NBA for an extension of March 1 in terms of relocation, that deadline. I don't think you can mince words. It means one thing: they're looking for a deal elsewhere, and they're going to take the next few weeks or so to see if they can pull off something in another city, and I just think, in my opinion, Sacramento deserves better than this." Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://nba.fanhouse.com/2011/02/25/kevin-johnson-maloofs-lacking-communication-over-kings-relocat/ Grace Park Gretha Cavazzoni Gwen Stefani Halle Berry Hayden Panettiere Filed under: Redskins, NFC East Redskins coach Mike Shanahan, who spent much of 2010 in wars of wills with his richest players, quarterback Donovan McNabb and defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth, has still declined to reveal whether either is definitely finished in Washington although the former ended the season third-string and the latter on suspension. In his first media session since his Redskins debut season ended with a 6-10 thud, Shanahan on Friday said that he and six-time Pro Bowl quarterback McNabb, for whom he gave up second- and fourth-round draft picks to acquire last April, haven't spoken in the seven-plus weeks since the end of Washington's season. The coach finally talked with McNabb's agent, Fletcher Smith, on Wednesday for 90 minutes but wouldn't elaborate on their discussion other than to say the quarterback's future with the Redskins won't be decided until after this April's draft. "I was able to address questions he had and I thought the conversation went well," Shanahan said. "I think over the next few weeks we'll get the chance to talk again, and then we'll make a decision right after the draft of the direction we'll go." With only McNabb and the unproven John Beck under contract at quarterback -- although journeyman Rex Grossman who finished 2010 as the starter could well be back -- Shanahan is believed to be strongly considering choosing quarterbacks Cam Newton of Auburn or Blaine Gabbert of Missouri with the 10th overall selection. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2011/02/26/mike-shanahan-addresses-albert-haynesworth-donovan-mcnabb-drama/ Rachel Blanchard Rachel Hunter Rachel McAdams Rachel Nichols Rachel Perry Filed under: David Reutimann, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, Michael Waltrip, Sprint Cup, NASCAR  DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The racing may look different at Daytona, but the big crashes are still around. Less than 30 laps in to Sunday's Daytona 500, contact between a former Daytona winner, Michael Waltrip, and another car he owns set off a 14-car melee in turn four. Waltrip nudged David Reutimann into a spin on the race's 29th lap to start the incident. Earlier in the race, Waltrip spun Kyle Busch on lap six -- an incident that managed to miss the rest of the pack. "They make a quick move and it just spins them out," Waltrip said. "I've been doing this all week and I haven't spun anyone out. I'm involved in both of them and I don't know what I could have done different." The crash collected several of the race's likely contenders, including reigning five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson as well as his teammates Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Source: http://motorsports.fanhouse.com/2011/02/20/fourteen-car-crash-comes-early-in-daytona-500/ Amber Brkich Amber Heard Amber Valletta America Ferrera Amerie |
For the second time in three days, actor Charlie Sheen made an appearance on Dan Patrick's radio and television show Wednesday to clarify his professional and personal situation.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- 
Several Americans abroad found net this weekend, a few settled in with new clubs, and one even did both. But amid it all, Clint Dempsey continued to set the gold standard for Yanks abroad.