Welcome to The Fringe, Back9Network’s daily feature to keep you up-to-date on the best stories happening in golf, social media and pop culture.
Gary Player: Rory Will Win The Masters In 2015, Complete Grand Slam
Gary Player is one of five players to complete the career grand slam, winning each of the four majors at least once. It’s an exclusive club featuring names like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, but the group may be growing to accommodate a sixth member — according to Player, at least.
Player came out and made a bold prediction regarding the Masters in 2015. No, he didn’t say that he’ll win it himself, but he did take a stab at who will take home the green jacket: Rory McIlroy.
“There is no question in my mind he will be the next winner of the career Grand Slam and he’ll go on to win many more major championships, Player said to SportLive.com.
“I predict that he will do it (win the career Grand Slam in 2015) because the Masters is just made for him. There is no golf course I can think of that is made for him more than Augusta National.”
McIlroy’s name has been thrown around plenty in talks of who will win the Masters in 2015, especially after the year he had in 2014. But Player’s statements sound more like guarantees than predictions, and that’s perfectly fine.
According to Bovada, McIlroy is the outright favorite to win a green jacket in 2015 at 9-2 odds, ahead of Tiger Woods at 10-1 and Jordan Spieth at 12-1.
While Player’s prediction is obviously a bold one, it’s nowhere near as crazy as some guarantees we’ve seen in the past. Anyone recall Joe Namath guaranteeing victory in Super Bowl III?
Here are some of the boldest sports predictions ever made:
Joe Namath guarantees victory in Super Bowl III, backs it up with win
Possibly the boldest prediction of all was when “Broadway” guaranteed a victory for his New York Jets in Super Bowl III just a few days before kickoff. Of course, the Jets would go on to win the game 16-7, saving Namath from making a terribly wrong prediction.
Chad Ochocinco says Bengals will make playoffs in 2009, successfully do so
In 2009, Chad Ochocinco said his Cincinnati Bengals would make the playoffs. It came as no surprise that Ochocinco made that call being the guy that he is, but his game backed it up and the Bengals successfully made the postseason.
Terrance Knighton guarantees Super Bowl win for Denver Broncos this year
Denver Broncos defensive tackle Terrance Knighton said not too long ago that his team would win the upcoming Super Bowl, even if they have to go through the New England Patriots. His guarantee has yet to come to fruition obviously, but the Broncos have a chance as they sit with a first-round bye.
Muhammad Ali dreams about Liston knockout, comes true in first round
Prior to knocking out Sonny Liston in the 1965 rematch, Muhammad Ali said he had a dream about knocking out his opponent in the first round. Sure enough, Ali went to knockout Liston in the first two minutes.
Related Link: Gary Player Says He Could Fix Tiger’s Swing In An Hour
In Case You Missed It
Test Drive: Custom McLaren P1 & The Best Modified Rides
When you buy a $1 million car, the plan probably isn’t to customize it and paint it a ridiculous color. Maintaining the car’s sheer beauty is what most people do, but not everyone. This is not only shown in some of these athlete’s ridiculous rides, but also in Canadian venture capitalist Miles Nadal’s $1.15 million McLaren P1. Read More
The Clubhouse’s 20 for 2015: No. 4 Dustin Johnson
Very few guys played less golf in 2014 than Dustin Johnson. He missed much of the season after taking a leave of absence in July and has yet to return to competitive golf, however he’s expected to make his return in February at Torrey Pines. Read More
Is This Ridiculous Backstop-Putt Better Than The Original?
A few months ago, we brought you this incredible video of the longest 3-foot birdie putt you’d ever seen. It was ridiculous and even dubbed fake by some, but nonetheless, the putt was well-deserving of the hoopla it received. With the world being a place of copycats and “anything you can do I can do better”-type attitudes, we were bound to see putts eerily similar. And yes, it happened. Read More
Out of Bounds
Shaquille O’Neal is a big man. Standing at 7-foot-1 and 325 pounds, he’s a tough man to move, something hundreds of NBA players learned over the course of their careers. With that being said, Kenny Smith may have figured out how to move the big fella … and with ease.
Smith threw Shaq into a Christmas tree on the set of NBA on TNT after the two of them bolted from the desk and raced to the back of the set for whatever reason.
Nonetheless, it was hilarious:
Related Link: Haney’s New Practice Area & ‘Santa Claus Is Coming To Town’
Other Hot Links:
– Is This Ridiculous Backstop-Putt Better Than The Original?
– The Clubhouse’s 20 for 2015: No. 4 Dustin Johnson
– Test Drive: Custom McLaren P1 & The Best Modified Rides
– 9 Must-Have Golf Apps For Your New iPhone
– 5 Questions With COBRA GOLF’s Ian Barrett
