I Dig Sports
With the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs in full swing, there are plenty of betting opportunities every night. Our experts -- Emily Kaplan, Chris Peters, Ben Arledge and Greg Wyshynski -- will be here each day throughout the conference finals and Stanley Cup final, giving their best bets for the evening's games.
Today, they tackle a pick on the Hurricanes-Bruins series, as well as Game 1.
All odds from the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook unless otherwise listed. As always, shop around for the best price.
Thursday's game
Carolina Hurricanes (+135) at Boston Bruins (-155)
Game 1 odds: Carolina (+135), Boston (-150)
Game 1 over/under: 5.5 goals
Wyshynski: The Hurricanes puck line has surprising value considering their rest and their playoff performance thus far. I'll take the puck line and a half with the expectation that Tuukka Rask vs. the Hurricanes is a tightly played contest, and to protect against a potential Game 1 upset.
Pick: Hurricanes +1.5 (-215)
Peters: At 5.5 for a Game 1, I'd
Tagged under
The Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, San Jose Sharks and St. Louis Blues are the final four teams alive in the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs. Each one of them has had clutch performances from clutch players en route to the conference championship round.
Please keep in mind that goalies have won playoff MVP five times since 2000, while a defenseman has won it once since 2007 and three times since 2000.
Here's where the Conn Smythe candidates in the Stanley Cup playoffs rank:
10. David Pastrnak, RW, Boston Bruins
"Pasta" has six goals and five assists in 13 games for the Bruins, including a critical two-goal performance in their Game 5 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
9. Brent Burns, D, San Jose Sharks
While he had his share of defensive lapses, Burns has 14 points in 14 games, with five goals and nine assists.
8. Jaccob Slavin, D, Carolina Hurricanes
The renowned defensive defenseman is third, behind Burns and Erik Karlsson, in playoff scoring among defensemen with 11 points, all of them assists. He's also skating a team high 26:36 per game.
7. Brad Marchand, LW, Boston Bruins
When he's not giving pithy answers in some misbegotten media protest, Marchand has been busy tallying five goals and eight assists for the Bruins. His 13 points make him the Bruins' leading scorer.
6. Jaden Schwartz, LW, St. Louis Blues
Schwartz has eight goals in the playoffs, and many of them have been enormous. He had the winning goal in Game 5 and a hat trick in Game 6 to eliminate the Jets. He had a goal and an assist in the Blues' Game 6 win at Dallas as well.
5. Logan Couture, C, San Jose Sharks
The tenacious center is tied with three players for the NHL lead in postseason points with 14, and he has matched Tomas Hertl's nine-goal total as well. Couture's Game 3 hat trick on the road in Denver was a key moment of the second round. He also scored a goal in each of the Sharks' three wins to rally in the Vegas series, including two in their Game 7 win.
4. Teuvo Teravainen, RW, Carolina Hurricanes
Teravainen leads the Hurricanes with six goals. That includes the winner in their Game 4 victory over the Washington Capitals and a critical tally in Game 7. He followed that with three goals and an assist in the last two games of the Islanders series. The man they call "Turbo" leads the Canes with a 64.83 percent expected goals percentage. He starts just 46.15 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone.
3. Jordan Binnington, G, St. Louis Blues
The rookie netminder has a .915 save percentage and a 2.39 goals-against average. His 5.58 goals saved above average is second in the playoffs. If coffee is for closers, get this man a venti: Binnington stopped 51 of 53 shots in the last two games of the series as the Blues rallied to eliminate Dallas. And as you can see, he's not nervous.
Jordan Binnington has more ice in his veins than the Night King. This is @binnnasty's>pic.twitter.com/ZerzOHUjvE - Goalie Gear Nerd (@GoalieGearNerd) May 9, 2019
2. Tomas Hertl, C, San Jose Sharks
Hertl has nine goals, along with five assists, and is tied for the NHL playoff lead with 14 points. Eight of those goals were scored in the Sharks' eight home games, including both Game 7s they won. The other goal came in double overtime in the Sharks' Game 6 win at the Vegas Golden Knights. If there has been a big goal for the Sharks this postseason, Hertl probably scored it.
1. Tuukka Rask, G, Boston Bruins
Rask had a 1.71 goals-against average and .948 save percentage in the six-game win over Columbus. That brought his postseason numbers to a .938 save percentage and a 2.02 goals-against average. Rask's critics used to be legion. Now, they're an endangered species.
Tagged under
2019 NHL playoffs: Picks on the conference final series
Published in
Hockey
Thursday, 09 May 2019 09:55
The conference final round of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs is set to begin on Thursday, May 9. Our writers, analysts and editors weigh in with their predictions for each series:
ESPN experts panel: Sean Allen, NHL fantasy columnist; Ben Arledge, associate editor; Pierre Becquey, deputy editor; John Buccigross, SportsCenter anchor, "In the Crease" host; Matthew Coller, NHL writer; Sachin Chandan, hockey researcher for ESPN the Magazine; Linda Cohn, SportsCenter anchor, "In the Crease" host; Aimee Crawford, senior editor; Dimitri Filipovic, NHL writer; Emily Kaplan, national NHL reporter; Tim Kavanagh, general editor; Don La Greca, ESPN Radio host; Steve Levy, SportsCenter anchor; Vince Masi, Sports & Information research specialist; Victoria Matiash, NHL fantasy columnist; Chris Peters, NHL prospects writer; Greg Wyshynski, senior NHL writer.
Tagged under
Assembling a 'Bunch of Jerks': How this Hurricanes team was built
Published in
Hockey
Thursday, 09 May 2019 09:56
The Carolina Hurricanes have far exceeded expectations as the lovable underdogs in their 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs run. Timing is everything in hockey, and this group is playing at its best at the exact right time.
It's a fascinating roster for many reasons. The Hurricanes have built a solid foundation through the draft, but consider that Carolina parted ways with three former top-10 picks this past summer and hasn't been able to lure many big names in free agency.
Most teams can't lose that kind of homegrown talent and struggle in the open market and still have a lot of success. But Carolina has because it has had really good fortune with later draft picks making big contributions and some big trades. General manager Don Waddell and former GMs Jim Rutherford and Ron Francis have made signature personnel decisions that have helped build this team.
Let's take a closer look at how the Hurricanes became this bracket-destroying "Bunch of Jerks," running through how all 23 individuals on the playoff roster ended up with Carolina.
Draft picks | Free-agent signings
Waiver claims | Trade acquisitions
Homegrown talent
Ten players on the Carolina playoff roster were drafted by the team, but only two were first-round picks. The team traded former firsts Jeff Skinner, Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin for other assets during the offseason, and former first-rounders Martin Necas and Jake Bean lead an extremely talented prospect pool. (The AHL-affiliate Charlotte Checkers were among the best teams in the NHL's top farm league and are also amid a deep playoff run.) Here are the players who were Carolina draft selections, listed in order of draft status.
Andrei Svechnikov, RW, 19 years old
Round 1, No. 2 overall, 2018
The No. 2-ranked prospect in last year's draft has made good on his projection early on, aside from one ill-advised decision to fight Alex Ovechkin. Svechnikov appeared in all 82 regular-season games and has four points in the five postseason games he has appeared in.
Haydn Fleury, D, 22
Round 1, No. 7 overall, 2014
Fleury has appeared in five postseason contests and has seen limited action. He hasn't exactly lived up to the hype that comes with being a top-10 pick, but he's still a quality young player who provides depth.
Sebastian Aho, C, 21
Round 2, No. 35 overall, 2015
The team's most utilized forward and leading scorer in the regular season, Aho has become a driver for the Hurricanes over three NHL seasons. He is the offensive engine, despite being a second-rounder in that loaded 2015 draft.
He was a bit of an enigma in his draft season, as he bounced between junior and pro in Finland. Aho ended the year on a spectacular note, scoring the game winner for Karpat in Liiga's final before rushing to play in the gold-medal game at the World U18 Championship. By the following season, however, the prospect world knew the Hurricanes had hit a home run. Aho was a point-per-game player in Liiga, dominant in Finland's gold-medal run at the World Junior Championship and a major contributor on Finland's team at the World Championship. He was in the NHL the next year and never looked back, getting better with each passing season.
Justin Faulk, D, 27
Round 2, No. 37 overall, 2010
I distinctly remember a scout telling me before the 2010 draft that he thought Faulk would be the best pro from a U.S. National Team Development Program team loaded with top defensive prospects, and he ended up being right. Faulk was the third blueliner off the board from that team and the ninth from any team. Now only Cam Fowler and John Klingberg have more points among NHL defensemen selected, and Faulk ranks sixth in his draft class with 559 games played.
Brock McGinn, LW, 25
Round 2, No. 47 overall, 2012
The draft isn't always going to net star players, but everyday NHLers can be valuable too. Many draft picks never pan out at all. The Hurricanes did not have a first-round pick in 2012, but they landed McGinn with their second of two picks in Round 2. He is inexpensive depth, averaging 17-plus minutes per game in the playoffs and appearing in 240 regular-season games for Carolina.
Brett Pesce, D, 24
Round 3, No. 66 overall, 2013
It's hard to imagine the Canes' defense without Pesce at this point. He has been a top-four guy most of his career and just had a career season, with 29 points. When I initially saw him as a prospect, I thought he was a high-end defender, but there wasn't enough offensive upside to make him a sure thing. I ranked him 14th among American prospects in his draft year, and he ended up being the 13th U.S. player selected. The industry and I were too low on him. Pesce has become the kind of defensive defenseman NHL teams need, one who can take time and space away from the opposition while getting pucks out of the zone and up the ice with good, smart puck movement.
Warren Foegele, LW, 23
Round 3, No. 67 overall, 2014
I remember Foegele as this big, raw project out of the Quebec high school ranks. No one was quite sure where he'd land in the draft. The third round is often a good spot to take a chance on a guy, and did the Canes ever find a gem. Things didn't pan out for Foegele at the University of New Hampshire, but he moved to the OHL and ended up with the Erie Otters after a season-plus with Kingston. He won an OHL title and was the playoffs MVP that year. Perhaps that's where he cut his playoff teeth: With nine points through 11 games, he's among Carolina's top postseason scorers in what amounts to his first full NHL season.
Lucas Wallmark, C, 23
Round 4, No. 97 overall, 2014
Wallmark is a good example of the importance of patience and the value of AHL development. This was Wallmark's first full season in the NHL after he found success in his native Sweden and in the AHL the past two seasons, where he was a key player for the Checkers. Now he helps bring scoring depth to the NHL roster, with five points in 11 postseason contests.
Jaccob Slavin, D, 25
Round 4, No. 120 overall, 2012
Want to talk about draft value? Arguably the team's most important player, Slavin is usually good for 30-plus points per season and major minutes in tough matchups. He is averaging 26:36 of ice time during the playoffs and leads the team with 11 points, all assists. Admittedly, Slavin was not on my radar in his draft season. He had decent USHL numbers, and I heard a few things about him as he played for the USHL's Chicago Steel, but nothing jumped out. He spent an extra season in the USHL before going to Colorado College, and that's when it started to look like there was a brighter future. But I don't know that anyone could have anticipated it being this bright. Slavin has become one of the NHL's better defenders.
Clark Bishop, C, 23
Round 5, No. 127 overall, 2014
A bit of a tweener, having played in both the AHL and the NHL this season, Bishop has appeared in five playoff games. He's another development success story, with him spending time in the Canes' AHL system the past three seasons and even a bit in the ECHL.
Free-agent signings
The Canes haven't spent big in free agency, as shown by their dead-last ranking in team cap hit ($63.2 million), per CapFriendly. But they have been able to ink their No. 1 goaltender and the heart and soul of their offense, among other valuable assets. Here's whom they landed on the open market, with the most recent signing listed first.
Calvin de Haan, D, 27
Signed July 3, 2018
This was a big-ticket purchase by Waddell this offseason, at four years, $18.2 million, despite de Haan's essentially being a No. 5 defenseman for the team. A quality defender, de Haan had just 14 points in the regular season. He has almost always been a solid possession guy, and that has continued in Carolina.
Petr Mrazek, G, 27
Signed July 1, 2018
It was a cheap gamble on a goalie who had shown flashes of brilliance earlier in his career. The signing ended up being just one year at $1.5 million for 40 starts, 23 wins, a .914 save percentage and four shutouts in the regular season. Before he got injured and missed the last two games, Mrazek had two shutouts this postseason and a .913 save percentage. There were no guarantees that he would get his groove back, but he absolutely did and propelled this team.
Justin Williams, RW, 37
Signed July 1, 2017
Two years at $4.5 million per year was money well spent. On top of back-to-back 50-plus-point seasons, Williams has become the emotional leader of the Bunch of Jerks. The captain appears to have a genuine passion for leading this team and reigniting this fan base. He's a winner, and that's why the Canes brought him here.
Patrick Brown, C, 26
Signed April 14, 2014
An undrafted free agent out of Boston College, Brown has primarily been an AHL guy for the Canes. But the Checkers captain has played in eight playoff games with the NHL club this season. Undrafted free agents don't often make significant NHL contributions, but if those players provide AHL depth and roster flexibility, it's a win for the team.
Waiver-wire finds
Waivers aren't typically a major source of roster pieces, but Carolina was able to snag its backup goalie on the wire back in October.
Curtis McElhinney, G, 35
Claimed on waivers on Oct. 2, 2018
Sometimes a little luck helps. With Carolina's goaltending in a tough spot with Scott Darling's inability to return to form, the Canes took advantage of a cap-strapped move by the Toronto Maple Leafs. They put in a claim for a veteran backup who has now won three straight games in the postseason with a .947 save percentage.
Trade acquisitions
Smart trades have been a major part of building this roster. In addition to the trades listed below, the Hurricanes acquired Aleksi Saarela via trade when they got the center and a pair of second-round picks from the New York Rangers for Eric Staal back in 2016. Saarela isn't listed here because he has skated only nine minutes in the playoffs, all in one game. Trades are listed with the most recent first.
Nino Niederreiter, RW, 26
Acquired from Minnesota Wild for center Victor Rask on Jan. 17, 2019
This is another one of those masterstroke moves that could help Waddell redefine his career as a GM after a tough run in Atlanta. Rask had six points when Waddell moved the once-promising center for Niederreiter. In the 36 games after the trade, Niederreiter had 30 points. He hasn't been as productive in the playoffs, but he's a consistent threat. Rask had three points in his 23 games with the Wild. El Nino has three years left on his current contract.
Dougie Hamilton, D, 25
Acquired from Calgary Flames with defenseman Adam Fox and winger Micheal Ferland for defenseman Noah Hanifin and center Elias Lindholm on June 23, 2018
This was a pretty crazy trade for both sides, but it has largely worked out for both teams. Hanifin and Lindholm were high picks and would have been core players for most teams, but neither had reached his full potential in Carolina, so Waddell made what could be the signature move of his GM tenure.
Hamilton strengthened the top-four defense and brought more offense to the blue line, with 18 goals and 39 points in the regular season. He also has seven points in the playoffs and is averaging more than 20 minutes per game.
Micheal Ferland, LW, 27
Acquired from Calgary Flames with defenseman Adam Fox and defenseman Dougie Hamilton for defenseman Noah Hanifin and center Elias Lindholm on June 23, 2018
The other part of the Flames trade, Ferland had 40 points this season, giving the Canes good secondary scoring. He was injured in the first round of the playoffs and has appeared in only three postseason contests, but there's no arguing that he has made a positive impact on this team.
The Canes traded the rights to Fox to the Rangers for two draft picks, so there are more assets to be gained from this trade, even though Fox never signed in Carolina.
Jordan Martinook, LW, 26
Acquired from Arizona Coyotes with a 2018 fourth-rounder (Ty Emberson) for center Marcus Kruger and a 2018 third-round pick (Luke Henman) on May 3, 2018
This looked like a nothing trade last spring. You don't often see deals done while the playoffs are still going. But Martinook has rounded into a strong bottom-six forward who gives some scoring depth, and the Hurricanes liked him enough to offer him a two-year extension at $2 million per season.
Greg McKegg, C, 26
Acquired from Pittsburgh Penguins for winger Josh Jooris on Feb. 26, 2018
McKegg is on his fifth NHL organization and has yet to play more than half a season in the NHL. However, he has found a nice home in Carolina as the fourth-line center, as he had 11 points in 41 games in the regular season and has appeared in 10 of 11 playoff games.
Trevor van Riemsdyk, D, 27
Acquired from Vegas Golden Knights with a 2018 seventh-rounder (Riley Hughes) for a 2017 second-round pick (Jake Leschyshyn) on June 22, 2017
Selected by Vegas in the expansion draft, TVR never wore the Golden Knights garb. He was immediately traded for an extra draft pick and has provided solid depth on the Carolina blue line, but he was injured and will miss the remainder of the playoffs.
Teuvo Teravainen, C/W, 24
Acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks with Bryan Bickell for a 2016 second-round pick (Artur Kayumov) and a 2017 third-round pick (Evan Barratt) on June 15, 2016
Teravainen was essentially a sweetener to get the Canes to take Bryan Bickell's contract off the books for the cap-strapped Hawks. Even though he helped Chicago win a Stanley Cup in 2015, the young Finn never seemed to fit with what Joel Quenneville was trying to do, and his ice time was limited. But in Carolina, Teravainen has thrived as a top-six forward, and he had a career-high 76 points this season. He has also netted six goals in the playoffs so far.
Jordan Staal, C, 30
Acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins for Brandon Sutter, Brian Dumoulin and a 2012 first-round pick (Derrick Pouliot) on June 22, 2012
A significant move in Rutherford's tenure in Carolina, reuniting Jordan with brother Eric was an absolute splash. Although the Stall brothers never reached the playoffs together, Jordan is a huge part of this team. Despite missing time this season, Staal has been a top performer in the playoffs, with nine points. Having that Stanley Cup pedigree on your roster certainly doesn't hurt, nor does a hard-driving center who can spearhead your second line.
Tagged under
2019 Stanley Cup playoffs: Bruins vs. Hurricanes series preview, pick
Published in
Hockey
Thursday, 09 May 2019 09:57
The Carolina Hurricanes don't always make the playoffs, but when they do, they go on big runs. Since the NHL's current playoff system was instituted in the 2013-14 season, the Hurricanes are only the second wild-card team to advance to the conference finals, joining the 2016-17 Predators... who went to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Canes are the big disrupters in the NHL this season. They spent year after year as everyone's Cinderella pick, and finally, they're at the ball again. Carolina has spent only 78.6 percent of the salary cap, which is the lowest of any conference finalist in the past eight years -- by far (the next closest is the 2012-13 Los Angeles Kings at 93.2 percent). They're also having a ton of fun and galvanizing the fan base. Their postgame storm surge celebrations irked some (well, specifically one) in the old guard of hockey media, earning their nickname as the "Bunch of Jerks."
If you don't root for Boston and you're sick of the city's professional sports teams' success -- well, you're not in luck. The Bruins are in the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2013, making it Boston's 28th appearance in a conference final in the four major sports since 2001. The next-closest city? Los Angeles, with 19.
What's more: The Celtics, Patriots and Red Sox have all appeared in the conference/league championship round in the past year, with the Red Sox and Patriots winning titles.
The nucleus of Boston's team looks a lot like its 2013 team, which lost to Chicago in the Stanley Cup Final. The Bruins' core isn't getting any younger, and though they were able to retool on the fly, this might be the best chance for Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Brad Marchand, Tuukka Rask, et al, to win another championship.
First line: Marchand, Bergeron and David Pastrnak were quiet to begin the second-round series against the Blue Jackets. And then -- reunited, perhaps for good these playoffs -- they started roaring, combining for 11 points over a two-game stretch. The Hurricanes have done some shuffling to their top six, with budding superstar Sebastian Aho as the constant at center. Depending on whom he lines up with (some combination of Teuvo Teravainen, Justin Williams, Warren Foegele and Nino Niederreiter) the Canes can present a very good top line, but not one that can exceed the talent and versatility of the Bruins'. Advantage: Bruins
Depth: In Carolina, Foegele has been a breakout star; even though he was a fringe roster add and could have used some minor league seasoning at times this season, he's here to stay and has performed (five goals, four assists in 11 playoff games). Carolina has been balanced; seven players have at least three goals this postseason. Meanwhile, Boston has benefited from surprise secondary scoring. David Krejci, in his age-33 season, is quietly having a strong spring, with 10 points through 13 games. The bottom six have chipped in more than expected. Trade deadline acquisition Charlie Coyle (slotted at third-line center) looks like the best version of himself, and he was at times the team's best forward in the Toronto series. Advantage: Even
Defense: The Canes' blue line is deep enough to withstand the season-ending injury to Trevor van Riemsdyk and not miss a beat. It's a talented group. Jaccob Slavin, in particular, is having an excellent postseason, especially offensively, as he leads the team with 11 points. Boston's blue line has been formidable, and the playoffs have been a coming-out party for Brandon Carlo, who, on most nights, is the Bruins' best defender by far. A big issue for Boston is the Game 1 suspension of Charlie McAvoy for his hit to the head of Josh Anderson in Game 6 of the series against Columbus. The Bruins surrendered a lot of shots to the Blue Jackets, and they'll be without a key cog for the series opener. Advantage: Hurricanes
Goaltending: Tuukka Rask is playing some of the best hockey of his life. He had a .955 save percentage at even strength in the last four games of the Blue Jackets series, also stopping 26 of 27 high-danger shots (for a .963 save percentage) at even strength in that span. The Canes have two very capable goaltenders in Petr Mrazek (who started most of the playoffs) and Curtis McElhinney (who closed out the Islanders series when Mrazek was injured). They both have the capacity to lock in and steal a game, but neither is on Rask's level right now. Advantage: Bruins
Health: The Canes lost defenseman van Riemsdyk to season-ending surgery. They welcomed back Andrei Svechnikov last round (concussion protocol after Alex Ovechkin fight) but played the entire second round without rugged forward Micheal Ferland. It's unclear when Ferland will come back, but it could be soon. Jordan Martinook is also managing an injury. Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller (knee) has made progress, but he won't be available in time for Game 1. Miller has yet to play this postseason. John Moore is also managing an injury. Advantage: Bruins
Special teams: Boston's power play is clicking, hitting at a 28.6 percent clip, best of any playoff team. The Bruins' penalty kill is average (83.8 percent). Carolina's penalty kill has struggled at times (75.0 percent), but the power play needs a lot of help; the Canes have just four goals in 38 opportunities this postseason (10.5 percent). Advantage: Bruins
Coaching: Bruce Cassidy has made the right tactical moves at the right times to keep his lineup in check and clicking. Rod Brind'Amour is a rookie head coach, but his confidence and emotional connection to this team is hard to ignore. Advantage: Even
Prediction: Bruins in seven
Tagged under
Working mom Icher qualifies for U.S. Women's Open without help of USGA, LPGA
Published in
Golf
Thursday, 09 May 2019 10:25
Nobody was more motivated to make it through U.S. Women’s Open sectional qualifying this week than Karine Icher.
She took all the frustration she is feeling as a working mom and turned it into fuel.
Icher blazed her way through the qualifier at Rush Creek in Maple Grove, Minn. She routed the field, taking the lone spot available among the 35 entrants. The five-time LET winner and four-time Solheim Cup veteran from France won medalist honors by five shots.
Icher, 40, did this while still freshly smarting from the rejection she felt after the USGA turned down her request for a special maternity exemption, something like the ones Stacy Lewis and Brittany Lincicome were offered this year. Lewis accepted, Lincicome declined and Icher fumed over why an exception couldn’t be made for her, too.
So Icher flew to Maple Grove on a mission.
“It was the best answer I could give … by [being] deserving [of] my spot and not stealing it,” Icher said of winning medalist honors.
There’s sarcasm in that comment.
Icher believes she was deserving of the same consideration Lewis and Lincicome received, even though they ranked considerably higher on the new interim maternity standard the USGA created this year to allow the organization more time to fully formulate a new maternity policy.
“The USGA is changing their rules for next year, but they’re already applying them to this year, after the deadline for entering the U.S. Women’s Open has passed,” Icher said. “I don’t understand how that’s fair to do, after entries were closed.
“Stacy and I had our babies a week apart. If they’re going to do this, why didn’t they do it for all the players who had babies?”
Icher gave birth to her second child, a daughter, Maya, on Nov. 3. Lewis gave birth on Oct. 25.
Originally, Lewis applied for a special exemption to this year’s U.S. Women’s Open, but it was denied. She appealed to the USGA, asking officials to review their maternity policy, which wasn’t nearly as flexible to a working mom’s needs as is the revamped new policy adopted by the LPGA earlier this year.
To the USGA’s credit, the organization listened to Lewis and acted quickly, announcing the new temporary maternity provision two weeks ago. It was designed to accommodate this year’s playing moms while giving the organization time to comprehensively update its policy.
“Similar to our own maternity policies for staff members at the USGA, we believe that a player should come back from maternity leave with the same status they went out with,” said Craig Annis, the USGA’s managing director for marketing and communications.
When Lewis left the tour to prepare for the birth of her daughter last year, she was No. 33 in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings. The top 50 are exempt to this year’s U.S. Women’s Open. She was granted a special maternity exemption based on that. Lincicome also received the offer based on her ranking inside the top 50.
Icher, however, was No. 95 in the world rankings when she left the tour last year to prepare to give birth. She also was outside the top-75 LPGA money list standard for the U.S. Women’s Open. She was denied the special maternity exemption based on that.
The USGA seemed to draw a reasonable performance line, but it still frustrated Icher.
In 2011, Icher said she was qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open but did not play because she was about to give birth to her first child, Lola.
“I didn’t get my spot back the next year,” Icher said.
Because Icher missed most of 2011, she didn’t meet any exemptions to play the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open.
To fully understand Icher’s frustration, you have to understand what a driving force she was in the LPGA’s overhaul of its maternity policy this year. Icher pushed for many of the changes that today’s and tomorrow’s LPGA mothers will enjoy, while Icher hasn’t received those same benefits. She wasn’t eligible for the new provisions she was so instrumental in creating.
Under the new LPGA policy, a player can compete in as many events as she chooses in the year she takes maternity leave. She can do so and still preserve the status she took into the start of her maternity year. In the past, a player was limited to 10 starts in the year she took maternity leave.
Also, under the new policy, a player can preserve the LPGA status she took into her maternity year for up to two years after the birth of her child, instead of that single year. This allows a player the flexibility to spend more time at home with her baby before choosing to return. Also, in yet another change, a returning mother has more than a calendar year to retain her status. She can choose to return at any time during a year and have a designated number of starts – spilling over into the following year – to retain her status.
Icher helped make all of that possible, but she played under the old policy while giving birth last year. She played 16 events in 2018 – six more than the former maternity leave allowed – and struggled once she got deeper into her pregnancy. She ended up finishing 110th on the money list, outside the top 80 and top 100 priority categories.
“My biggest mistake was trying to play as much as I did last year,” Icher said. “But how can you blame a player for that?”
Icher finished 40th on the money list in ’17.
If the new policy Icher helped create was in effect last year, Icher could have taken maternity leave in 2018, still played those 16 events last year, but, importantly, she would have retained her 2017 status as a top-40 money winner through last year and also through this year.
Icher did get a medical extension for leaving the tour to give birth last year. She was given seven starts this year to improve her 2018 status. In four starts so far this season, she has made one cut and $4,147.
“With this baby boom, a lot of players are learning how hard it is to come back after having a baby,” Icher said. “I asked if the LPGA board could grandfather me into the new policy, but I never heard anything back.”
LPGA tour operations officer Heather Daly-Donofrio said Icher’s situation is difficult, but it wasn’t something the board could act upon.
“It’s not a board issue,” Daly-Donofrio said. “It’s a regulation issue, so it falls under the purview of the management team to interpret the regulation. We looked at it, but as a matter of course, we don’t retroactively apply changes to our regulations that effect playing status.”
Daly-Donofrio said portions of the new maternity policy made sense to apply to moms who gave birth last year, but “to change playing status after the fact, to retroactively apply the maternity policy that way, could impact other members negatively. We don’t go back as a matter of course.”
Daly-Donofrio said she empathizes with Icher.
“I feel for her,” Daly-Donofrio said. “She was helpful through the whole process of making maternity leave changes. She was an agent of change. I can see how that frustrates her, where you’re an agent of change but you aren’t reaping the full benefits of the change. It’s very emotional and personal, and I understand that.”
A frustration for Icher is that she feels like there’s a “retroactive” change being made by the USGA this year, in creating new maternity exemptions after U.S. Women’s Open entries closed, and yet the LPGA won’t make “retroactive” changes that would help her benefit from changes she helped create.
“It just doesn’t seem fair,” Icher said.
Tagged under
With the course soaked from rain the previous day, there were birdies aplenty during the opening round of the AT&T Byron Nelson. Here's how things look at Trinity Forest in Dallas, where Denny McCarthy holds an early lead as he looks to win for the first time on the PGA Tour:
Leaderboard: Denny McCarthy (-8), Tyler Duncan (-7), Tom Hoge (-7), Matt Every (-6), Brooks Koepka (-6), Matt Jones (-6), Jonas Blixt (-6)
What it means: McCarthy was a former standout at the University of Virginia and already has a pair of top-10 finishes to his credit this season. But he's now the man to chase after turning in a colorful scorecard, with the tournament favorite just two shots off the pace. Like McCarthy, the two players in closest pursuit are also off to strong starts in search of their first wins on Tour.
Round of the day: McCarthy got out of the gates slowly with a double bogey on No. 4, but he never looked back. Four straight birdies on Nos. 6-9 followed and set the stage for a tremendous back nine, as McCarthy shot a bogey-free 29 that included a run of eight birdies in nine holes from No. 6 to No. 14. He added two more coming home, playing his final 13 holes in 10 under.
Best of the rest: Hoge made it around Trinity Forest without dropping a shot, carding four birdies on the back nine and adding three more while coming home on the front. It's been a lean year for Hoge, who has missed 13 of 21 cuts this season and hasn't cracked the top 25 since the Safeway Open in October. But he turned things around Thursday in Dallas, recording just his second sub-70 round in his last 10 individual starts.
Biggest disappointment: Former world No. 1 Luke Donald contended at the Valspar Championship in March as he returned from a back injury, but that comeback suffered a setback with a 5-over 76 in the opening round in Dallas. On a day when more than half the field broke par, Donald bogeyed half his holes and finished ahead of only two players despite carding a quartet of birdies.
Main storyline heading into Friday: Keep an eye on Koepka, who barely broke a sweat in his opener despite having never seen the front nine before. As the only player in the field ranked inside the top 10, he was an understandable pre-tournament favorite and backed up that billing with a 65 that puts him firmly into the mix as he looks to head to his title defense at Bethpage with a bit of extra momentum.
Shot of the day: Playing on a sponsor exemption, former quarterback Tony Romo gave the Dallas fans plenty to cheer about when he pitched in for eagle from in front of the green on the par-5 seventh.
Quote of the day: "I got a yardage book." - Koepka, whose front-nine practice round was rained out Wednesday. He responded by making five birdies over the nine-hole stretch in the opening round.
Tagged under
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Glen Day was 7 under through 16 holes to top the Regions Tradition leaderboard Thursday when bad weather halted the opening round of the first PGA Tour Champions major of the year.
After a two-tee start to try to beat the weather, lightning stopped play just after noon when Day was aiming for his second straight long birdie putt on Greystone's Founders Course. Tour officials announced more than four hours later that the first round would resume early Friday.
Defending champion Miguel Angel Jimenez and David Toms were two strokes back. Jimenez played 17 holes, and Toms finished 13.
Day made a third straight birdie on No. 16 and was lining up for a shot at another one when play was suspended.
Day predicted that ''the scores will go way low'' before the tournament is over - weather permitting.
Glen Day was 7 under through 16 holes to top the Regions Tradition leaderboard Thursday when bad weather halted the opening round of the first PGA Tour Champions major of the year.''Now, if we want to call the tournament right now, I'm all for it,'' he said, laughing. ''I mean, we can call it now. But if we get in four rounds, there will be a lot of birdies made.
''Plus, with the weather that's coming in, the golf course will be soft, the greens will be holding. They just firmed up a little bit and they're going to be really good. I think the scores will go way low.''
Day is seeking his first win on the senior tour. His only PGA Tour victory came in 1999.
Jimenez, who started on the 10th hole, shot 37 on the first nine. He then had birdies on six of his next seven. He won his first senior major last year at the Regions Tradition, when he held or shared the lead after all four rounds.
Billy Andrade finished with a 4-under 68 after posting six birdies and a pair of bogeys. Two-time champion Bernhard Langer, winner of a record 10 senior major championships, was 3 under with one hole to play.
Tagged under
Jordan Spieth couldn't sustain a hot start once the wind kicked up at the AT&T Byron Nelson.
Spieth made the most of the easiest portion of Trinity Forest, carding five birdies in his first seven holes to rocket up the early leaderboard. But he made a double bogey on the difficult ninth hole, then shot even on the back to finish the day with a 3-under 68. It left him five shots behind Denny McCarthy and in a tie for 37th on a day when more than half the field broke par.
After the round, Spieth told reporters that he was pleased with his ball-striking, especially off the tee. But he felt the wind started to freshen on the par-3 eighth hole and struggled to manufacture birdie opportunities coming home.
"We knew ahead going into it, it was forecast to be pretty tough for our wave," Spieth said. "Sometimes you get the good end, you get on the bad end sometimes. Certainly tomorrow morning looks to be pretty tough given that it's going to be 50 degrees and potential chance of rain and a 15 mph wind. It could be playing tough."
Spieth remains in search of his first top-20 finish of the season, having topped out with a T-21 finish at the Masters, and he is one of the headliners in the field this week in Dallas with many of the top names resting for next week's PGA Championship. But with another chance to complete the career Grand Slam waiting for him at Bethpage, Spieth continues to highlight the positives as he looks to get a lean year back on track.
"I've been in the last groups on Saturdays and I've told you guys ahead of time it's just a matter of time. This is different. I feel good," Spieth said. "I feel like I'm really in the right place. It stings because it may not show given the conditions that our wave faces. That's OK. I'll take it better next week than this week."
Tagged under
Tony Romo authored an early highlight, but the former quarterback ultimately succumbed to some difficult conditions at the end of his opening round at the AT&T Byron Nelson.
Romo played his entire NFL career for the Dallas Cowboys, and he is a member at Trinity Forest which is hosting the event for the second consecutive year. That local knowledge paid off on the par-5 seventh hole, where Romo chipped in from in front of the green for eagle to reach 2 under on his round and give the partisan crowds plenty to cheer about.
But that proved to be the last highlight on an otherwise difficult day, as Romo made a double bogey two holes later endured a five-hole stretch from Nos. 13-17 in which he was 5 over. Romo ultimately signed for a 5-over 76, which exceeded expectations in Las Vegas where the over/under was set at 77.5, but it left him ahead of just four players in the 155-man field.
"Couple of the tee shots really cost me just because they're penal in those areas. You can't miss them there," Romo told reporters. "The separation between these guys is the ability to do it for long stretches, consistency. I think just a few tee shots really cost me the round today."
Romo plays to a scratch handicap and is making his third career PGA Tour start as an amateur, having missed the cut each of the last two years in the Dominican Republic. While he was listed as a 10,000-to-1 longshot, Romo was a popular bet this week: the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook received more bets, both in terms of individual wagers and total money wagered, on Romo than on any other player in the field.
He'll have his work cut out just to make the cut with cooler temps expected Friday morning, but Romo remains optimistic about the gains his game has made in recent months.
"You work hard enough to put yourself in a position to hopefully continue to improve. I've improved from two months ago," he said. "I've got to continue to get more consistent and trust it. I think sometimes a little bit out there there's a trust factor of letting it go. When you play at the highest level of sport, you're going to let it go and play intelligently. Their swings are freed up."
Tagged under
Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: 
Email: 
