There’s a right way to handle misconduct and… there’s the other way. Former New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor was arrested on charges of rape and soliciting prostitution involving a 16-year-old girl.  One of the NFL’s greatest defensive players, Taylor denied the charges and was released after posting a $75,000 bond. This isn’t the first time Taylor’s been in trouble.  His thirteen-year...

When Hieronymus Bosch painted The Conjurer, in the 1500s, I’m sure he never imagined that the cups and balls routine he rendered would morph into a variety of schemes, scandals and shell games. Here’s just a few that make this month’s list. The Eric Massa mess – Among the newly uncovered allegations: “Beginning in March 2009,” the New York Times reports, “male staffers...

“Within yourself, deliverance must be searched for, because each man makes his own prison.”– Edwin Arnold, English poet Take a look at this picture.  It’s a point of view directly behind Tiger Woods on his first day at The U.S. The Masters, golf’s golden crown. Imagine the pressure. Look at the background, the crowd, the cameras, the media – most of which...

During the 1920s, Americans enjoyed sports like never before, and why not when they could enjoy the likes of baseball’s Babe Ruth, boxing’s Jack Dempsey, football’s Red Grange, and tennis champ Bill Tilden. However, none exemplified the truest principles of sportsmanship better than Robert Tyre “Bobby” Jones, Jr. During the 1925 U.S. Open, Jones’s ball ended up in the rough...

The Hurt Locker opens with a quote that sums up the ideology of its central character. “The rush of battle is a potent and often lethal addiction, for war is a drug.” With few modifications, the quote could easily apply to some Hollywood producers that express a win-at-any-cost attitude. Maybe some politicians, too. If director Kathryn Bigelow’s suberb 2009 film The Hurt Locker wins...

This was the picture that started it for me. I was in a sporting goods store looking for a pair of hiking boots when I noticed a bunch of equipment in one corner: ropes and boots, pitons and carabineers (pins and ‘beeners are what climbers called them back then).  I picked up my first copy of Climbing magazine. Inside was a picture...

One of the things that distinguish great sports figures from the rest of the pack is their direct and honest approach to both their work and their life. They consistently strive to live up to their own highest standards for both themselves and the rest of us. A good example is Joe Paterno, Head Football Coach for the Nittany Lions...

Sam Adams, world-class decathlete, coach and mentor to numerous athletes passed away Tuesday, January 12. “The finest decathlon coach in American history,” wrote Frank Zarnowski for The Decathlon Association newsletter.  “The decathletes, pentathletes and heptathletes who trained under Sam’s watchful eye read like an American Who’s Who. You start with Bill Toomey and Jane Frederick, and Russ Hodge, and, well the list would...

On Monday, (Jan. 11) former St. Louis Cardinal slugger and current holder of baseball’s single season home run record (70), Mark McGwire finally admitted to using steroids in the ’90s In a sincere, at times, tearful interview with sportscaster Bob Costas, McGwire said, “I apologize to everybody in major-league baseball, my family, the Maris’ [Yankee Roger Maris was the former record holder], Bud...

On Fox News Sunday (Jan. 3) former anchor, current pundit, Brit Hume made the following statement regarding Tiger Woods: “He’s said to be a Buddhist; I don’t think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. So my message to Tiger would be, ‘Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a...