Thursday, January 31, 2008 Chiongbian: Taking the sunshine out of the sky By Edgar R. Chiongbian Teetime
WE got so used to watching the PGA Tour on cable TV and no thanks to Sky Cable, we will miss it all. Last week, we missed the Buick Open with Tiger Woods playing excellent golf because Sky Cable yanked Solar Sports, one of our favorite channels to watch golf, out of their TV programming, supposedly for political reasons.
I was always somewhat critical of Solar Sports because of the way they managed our viewing of live programs and reruns. But the bottom line is that they were always able to give us the programs we wanted to see.
Sky Cable subscribers were sent letters or notices regarding their programming changes with explanations that the deleted channels will be replaced with equivalent channels that has equal or better shows. Solar Sports was replaced with Balls so I watched Sky Cable’s Balls and to put it mildly, it sucks. Maybe their target audience is in the US or Australian viewers who want alternate programming to watch besides mainstream sports.
Supposedly, the cancellation was because Manny Pacquiao moved to GMA from ABS-CBN, the owner of Sky Cable. We cry about politics in government doing injustice to the people, well I never thought there would be political injustice in television too. For the people, by the people, we shall perish to seek justice from the people with the remote control.
I understand that Destiny Cable and Dream Cable still has Solar Sports, but don’t you all rush in and get connected, you hear!
If you think that story was ludicrous I will tell you another story that’s even more ridiculous. Somebody wrote a letter of complaint to Philippine Air Lines to disqualify Cebu Country Club, the five-time men’s champion from the PAL Interclub golf tournament. The main rationale is that all the golfers at Cebu Country Club are golf professionals.
The basis of the complaint is the Calcutta sideshow at CCC, which generates a lot of money in the kitty and pays or gives the money to the winning team.
Now, everyone knows that this is just a side bet organized by the players to bring additional excitement to the second day of the two-day tournament. Only three teams get to win the pot and the winning players may not even get a share if they opted out of the bet.
There is no need to explain the Calcutta further because everyone knows how it works, which is like betting on a horse who you think will win. I can’t believe PAL is even entertaining this complaint on an issue that has existed for years, instead of just trashing it. Anyway, this letter has been passed on to CCC and the PAL review board for a decision.
A man popularly known as the diamond man for winning the biggest prize of the MSY charity golf tournament has gone to heaven to play golf. Dodo Tacudin won an almost perfect diamond worth P3 plus million pesos for making a hole-in-one during the MSY tournament about five years ago.
Last weekend was the monthly medal tournament at Alta Vista and like most of our gifted players, Tacudin wanted to get in on the action. Feeling a little tired, he borrowed Peter Dy’s golf cart and played anyway. After completing the front nine, he faced the cardiac 10th hole of Alta and after two fairways shots he suffered a fatal heart attack. This is the best place to go, with the people you like, playing the sports you love. No pain, all gain.
Golf Tip. How to get started on the first tee? Most golfers are very anxious for hitting the ball on the first tee and ends up, jerking or yanking the driver back at a very high speed. The body never gets a chance to catch up and the club loses momentum before impact.
The best way to avoid this fast start is to make a slow takeaway. Lead your swing with your right hand, taking the club back slowly with a very nice easy tempo. Then accelerate the clubhead gradually on the downswing with the intention of reaching top speed just after impact.
