Zigeunerzelt » hes going to win the U.S

Hot Springs, AR (SportsNetwork.com) - Monday, while the nation observes Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Oaklawn Park begins its series of stakes for 3- year-olds with the one-mile, $150,000 Smarty Jones Stakes. The Smarty Jones, named for the locally raced colt that won the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness, is followed by the Southwest Stakes on Feb. 16 and the Rebel on March 14 with the Arkansas Derby on April 11. Trainer Steve Asmussen will saddle a pair of 3-year-olds among the nine entered Monday. Leaving from post 7 will be Bayerd, winner of the Springboard Mile last year at Remington Park. The colt, owned by Clark Brewster, will be ridden by Ramon Vazquez. Bayerd is a nice horse who has run five very good races, Asmussen said. He won his last race at a mile so the Smarty Jones is a good spot to start his 3- year-old campaign. Im anxious to see how he does at Oaklawn, which can be a horse specific course sometimes. Joining Bayerd will be Lucky Player, owned by Jerry Durant. The colt will be ridden by Ricardo Santana Jr. from post 6. Lucky Player won the Iroquois Stakes at Churchill Downs after being second in the Prairie Meadows Juvenile. Hes a nice horse too, Asmussen said of Lucky Player. Well see if he can handle two turns at this time of year. Neither one is quirky. They are both straightforward colts and easy to be around. They are young, good-feeling boys. We have hopes and dreams for them. Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas will start battled tested Mr. Z. The chestnut colt, owned by Zayat Stables, will break from post 3 with Jon Court riding. Mr. Z won his debut effort last June at Churchill and then saw nothing but stakes competition. He was second in Saratogas Sanford and Saratoga Special, fifth in the Iroquois, second in Keenelands Breeders Futurity, fifth in the Breeders Cup Juvenile, second in the Delta Downs Jackpot and third in the Los Alamitos Futurity. Mr. Z has earned $499,726 in eight starts. Here is the field for the Smarty Jones from the rail out: Far Right, Mike Smith; Paid Admission, David Mello; Mr. Z, Jon Court; American Sailor, Joe Rocco Jr.; Hebbronville, Shaun Bridgmohan; Lucky Player, Ricardo Santana Jr.; Bayerd, Ramon Vazquez; Private Prospect, Alex Birzer and Runaway Bling, Glenn Corbett. The Smarty Jones has an approximate post time Monday of 5:38 p.m. ET. Last years Smarty Jones Stakes was won by Tanzanite Cat one year after Will Take Charge won on his way to being voted 2013 champion 3-year-old male. Cheap Jordans .com) - Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, Detroit Red Wings forward Tomas Tatar and New York Islanders right wing Kyle Okposo were named the NHLs players of the week on Monday. Original Air Jordans Shoes Wholesale . A groundswell for raising the number of playoff qualifiers to seven in each conference figures to get plenty of support from the 32 owners. Most notably, Arizonas Bill Bidwill, who saw his Cardinals go 10-6 and not get in, while Green Bay (8-7-1) qualified by winning the NFC North. http://www.cheapairjordanshoes.com/ . Off-Season Game Plan looks at the Capitals possible summer plans, with the understanding that its tough to plot a direction without a general manager or head coach around which to set those expectations. Cheap Jordan Shoes .com) - Nathan MacKinnon scored the winning goal in the shootout as the Colorado Avalanche rallied for a 3-2 win over the Boston Bruins on Wednesday. Cheap Air Jordan Retro . In fact, with a few improvements, this could very well be a decent team over the next few seasons. I will go into more detail when digging into the Canucks Off-Season Game Plan, which will be coming earlier this year since they are part of the non-playoff contingent, there are some reasons to think this is a favourable situation for President of Hockey Operations Trevor Linden and whomever he selects to be the new general manager.PINEHURST, N.C. -- Even in the best of times, Phil Mickelson has ample reason to expect the worst at the U.S. Open. More than two decades of play in the major known as the toughest test in golf has produced everything from agony to aggravation, mostly torment, never triumph. And all Mickelson has to show from the U.S. Open are silver medals -- a record six of them -- for finishing second. "He could have won six, and he hasnt won one," Ernie Els said. "I believe hes going to win one. Hes still young enough. His game is still good enough." The U.S. Open took on even greater importance to the 43-year-old Mickelson last summer when he won the British Open at Muirfield, leaving him one major away -- the U.S. Open, of course -- from joining five other greats who have the career Grand Slam. For all his heartache in golfs toughest test, his optimism hasnt wavered. Never mind that he has been linked to an insider trading investigation involving activist investor Carl Icahn and Las Vegas gambler Billy Walters, in which FBI agents paid him a visit after his first round at the Memorial. Or that Mickelson hasnt won this year, his worst start to a season since 2003. Mickelson not only believes hes going to win the U.S. Open, he thinks hes going to win more than one. "Some people view it as though, Hes come close and hes never done it. I see it as though Ive finished second six times in this event," Mickelson said. "I played some of my best golf in this event, and I should have an opportunity -- and more than one opportunity -- to close one out here in the future." The U.S. Open returning to Pinehurst No. 2 only adds to the intrigue. Thats where Mickelson picked up his first silver medal in 1999. He had a one-shot lead with three holes to play and had a 6-foot par putt on the 16th hole, while Payne Stewart was 25 feet away from par. Stewart made his putt, Mickelson missed and they were tied. Stewart took the lead with a short birdie on the 17th, then famously won the U.S. Open with a 15-foot par putt on the final hole. No worries. Mickelson surely would get another chance, and he did. He just doesnt have the trophy. Five years later, he was tied for the lead on the 17th hole at Shinnecock Hills when he hit into a bunker, blasted out to 5 feet and three-putted for double bogey. "It was like being in a morgue walking up the 18th," said Fred Funk, who was paired with him that day. The most crushing blow was at Winged Foot in 2006. Mickelson had a one-shot lead on the 18th hole. His tee shot clangged off a corporate tent.ddddddddddddThe bigger mistake was going for the green with a 3-iron and hitting a tree. His third shot plugged in the bunker. His fourth shot raced across the green. He made double bogey and lost my one. There was Mickelson, crouched on the green, hands cupped over his head. "I am such an idiot," he said. "Phil handled the whole thing like a true gentleman," said Kenneth Ferrie, who played with him in the final pairing. "He had nice words to say to me coming off 18 and was amazingly courteous and polite to the volunteers and officials considering what had just happened." And yet he keeps coming back for more. Sam Snead, who holds the PGA Tour record with 82 career wins, never won a U.S. Open. Lee Trevino never won the Masters. Arnold Palmer and Tom Watson never won the PGA Championship. Even so, none of those greats ever had as many chances to win the missing major as Mickelson. Hunter Mahan paid him the ultimate respect at Bethpage Black in 2009. Mickelson was tied for the lead with four holes to play until missing short par putts on the 15th and 17th holes. Another U.S. Open bid over, Mickelson was walking up to the 18th green when Mahan -- who had just as good of a chance to win that day -- began applauding, and thousands joined him. Mahan has played with Mickelson twice on Sunday when Lefty was the runner-up. The other occasion was last year at Merion. Mickelson twice made bogey with a wedge in his hand on the back nine. His last hope was to chip in from 40 yards to force a playoff with Justin Rose. He missed. "I looked at him and said, Good try, Phil. You can only do what you can do," Mahan said. "At some point, youve got to get a bounce or two and make a putt. I think he wants to win that tournament more than anything." The thought of Mickelson at Pinehurst stirs emotions. Stewart died in a freak plane crash four months after he won that U.S. Open. Mickelson carried a pager in his golf bag that week and pledged to withdraw if his wife went into labour. His first child, Amanda, was born the next day. Fifteen years later, the pressure is only greater. "Maybe it is his strength of mind, or his short game, that has enabled him to put himself in contention as so many times," Ferrie said. "As each year has gone on and he has won other majors, the focus has become more and more about the U.S. Open. As a player, when you want something so much, its even more difficult to achieve. Yet he keeps giving himself a chance." 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