David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

LPGA Legends Classic Bargain for Fans

Posted on August 7, 2022 by David Shama

The Land O’Lakes Legends Classic presented by The Meadows at Mystic Lake is an opportunity to see some of the greatest women golfers this coming Saturday and Sunday while going easy on the inflation-weary family budget.

Tickets cost $25 each per day or $40 for a two-day pass, plus free parking adjacent to the golf course. Anyone 17 and under accompanied by a ticketed adult is admitted free. Active and retired military with ID also receive free admission.

“I love the fact fans can get right up next to the players,” Jim Lehman said. “We don’t have ropes and stakes. …They can get autographs at the end of the round. We don’t have the same limitations on fans that you might see at the 3M (Open) or other major tournaments.”

Lehman is co-owner of the Legends Classic with former Golden Gophers women’s coach Michelle Redman. It was about three years ago Redman came to Lehman with the idea of making the Minneapolis area a tour stop for The Legends of the LPGA. The tour dates back to 2000 and provides competitive opportunities for LPGA Tour professionals and eligible amateurs age 45 and over.

Lehman, who has been running his local sports talent management company for 30 years, liked the idea of putting the Legends on the August golf map in Minnesota and giving the public an opportunity to see some of the biggest names in women’s golf. “Minnesota people love golf,” Lehman told Sports Headliners. “They love golf competitions, and we’re hoping that we can continue to grow the Legends event at Mystic Lake.”

The first Legends tournament in Minnesota was last year. “I’m really excited about the field this year,” said Redman, a two-time LPGA Tour winner with four wins on the Legends of the LPGA. “I think it will be even more competitive than last year. I have been working on my game pretty hard to get ready, but I’m also just really looking forward to seeing everyone out here. It will be a great celebration of women’s golf.”

LPGA and World Golf Hall of Famer Juli Inkster is back to defend her championship, and there are newcomers of note. “I thought last year’s field was really good,” Lehman said. “This year is even better.”

Newcomers include Amy Alcott, a World Golf and LPGA Hall of Fame member with 29 LPGA Tour wins and five major championship titles, and World Golf Hall of Famer and 16-time LPGA Tour champion Jan Stephenson. Others making their debuts are Liselotte Neumann (13 LPGA wins), Danielle Ammaccapane (7 LPGA wins), Brandie Burton (5 LPGA wins), Maria Hjorth (5 LPGA wins) and Lorie Kane (4 LPGA wins.)

Returning to Mystic Lake with Inkster are Hall of Famers Nancy Lopez and Hollis Stacy along with LPGA Tour past champions Rosie Jones (13 LPGA wins), Christa Johnson (9 LPGA wins), Tammie Green (7 LPGA wins), Michelle McGann (7 LPGA wins), and Pat Hurst (6 LPGA wins).

Lehman remembered a story from last year illustrating the depth of accomplishment by the women in the field. He was enjoying the company of Stacy and inquired what year she won the U.S. Women’s Open. Her response: “Jim, I won it three times.”

Forty LPGA legends compete in the tournament, along with four senior amateur women who appeared in last year’s event and have been invited to return: Leigh Klasse of Cumberland, Wisconsin, and Minnesotans Adele Peterson of Eden Prairie, Claudia Pilot of Brainerd, and Brenda Williams of Hopkins.

Official tournament rounds of 18 holes each will be played Saturday and Sunday with tee times starting at 9 a.m. both days. Inkster won $24,750 at last year’s tournament with a purse of $165,000. This year’s purse is $250,000.

Lehman said the pandemic was a setback for the Legends tour with events cancelled. There were about twice the number of tour stops as there are now. The result has been high interest from players to compete at Mystic. “We had a lot of women on a wait list trying to get in,” Lehman said.

The Meadows is an acclaimed golf course and it will challenge the players next weekend including with its water hazards. “They have to hit it pretty straight,” Lehman said. “That’s probably the challenging part about the golf course. Keeping the ball in play and hopefully making a couple of putts for birdies.”

The 18 holes will be set up to play under 6,000 yards. “We don’t kill them with distance but they have to hit it straight, and the greens will be fast,” Lehman said. “It will be pretty similar to last year.”

Land O’Lakes as the title sponsor and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community as the presenting sponsor are vital to the tournament’s existence. “It’s definitely profitable,” Lehman said about the tournament that made money last year and will again.

The support from the sponsors and others including the fans make Lehman optimistic about the event’s future. “We definitely want to keep this event going. … We’re going to make every effort to make that happen.”

Golf ties run deep in the Lehman family originally from Alexandria, Minnesota. Jim, a former Minnesota amateur champion, represents golfers with his Minnetonka-based Medalist Management company including brother Tom who won the 1996 British Open. Another brother, Mike, is a former Gopher golf captain.

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Thielen: Kirk Cousins Ignores His Critics

Posted on August 2, 2022August 2, 2022 by David Shama

Vikings notes from training camp and beyond:

Quarterback Kirk Cousins, 33, is in training camp preparing for his fifth season with the Vikings and 11th in the NFL. Is there anything different about Cousins, who often has been harshly criticized by fans and blamed for the team’s failures that include two straight years of missing the playoffs?

The answer is no, per teammate and veteran wide receiver Adam Thielen. “That’s the great thing about Kirk. He is always the same Kirk,” Thielen told Sports Headliners. “He’s a guy that comes out here (and) he doesn’t care what people say about him. He doesn’t care what people think about him. He’s going to come out here (and) he’s going to bust his tail. He’s going to do whatever it takes to prepare.

“I don’t want to see anything different from Kirk. I want to see the same Kirk we’ve seen…the last four years that he’s been here, and a guy that…does everything to try to make his teammates better and help this team win.”

Thielen, 32, is in his 10th season with the Vikings. A zero handicapper, he intends to pursue a professional golf career when finished with football. Does he have a clear plan right now to make that transition?

“I have no idea,” Thielen said. “I just know that I am going to try and get as good as I can get, and see where it takes me.”

Where does his golf game have to improve? “Probably just consistency,” he answered. “I feel like I can kind of do everything at certain times but I am very, very inconsistent.”

Thielen’s best advice to hackers? “Just keep it (the ball) in play. Keep it in play because I feel like that’s one of the things I always struggle with a little bit is I bring trouble into play too much, and swing too hard when I don’t need to, or hit the wrong club. But this game is so much easier if you can just get it around the course, keep it in play.”

ESPN.com recently published top 10 NFL players by position groups as determined by Madden NFL 23 for its upcoming launch. The rankings show a talent discrepancy between the Vikings and Packers who are the betting favorite to again win the NFC North Division.

While Green Bay players are ranked, Minnesota has no top 10 representatives at quarterback, offensive line, interior defensive line, cornerback and edge rusher. The latter will draw the ire of Vikings fans with Green Bay’s Rashan Gary ranked No. 10, while Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith are near misses in the rankings.

A sore point for Packers fans? Davante Adams, who Green Bay lost in free agency to the Raiders earlier this year, is the No. 1 wide receiver in the Madden rankings. Justin Jefferson from the Vikings is No. 6.

The Packers had no top 10 safeties, while Minnesota’s Harrison Smith tied for 7th with three other players. Former Gopher De’Vondre Campbell, now with the Packers, ranked No. 9 among linebackers, while Eric Kendricks from the Vikings is in a 7th place tie with Micah Parsons of the Cowboys.

Because of injuries the gifted Hunter missed the entire 2020 season and 10 games last year. He wants to break Jared Allen’s single season franchise record of 22 sacks. “That’s the kind of drive you like to see,” Allen said. “That dude could be insanely special. …The key to his game, stay healthy.”

Allen will become the seventh defensive lineman to be part of the Vikings’ Ring of Honor when he is inducted at the October 30 home game against the Cardinals. There are 21 other players that are Ring of Honor recipients and the largest representation is d-linemen. When Allen played for the Vikings he was aware of the greats who had come before him like “Purple People Eaters” Carl Eller, Jim Marshall and Alan Page. “Certain organizations kind of have a knack for certain position groups,” Allen said.

After Allen joined the Vikings in 2008, Marshall soon reached out. Marshall told him players come and go, stats are what they are, but championship banners last forever. “I’ve got a special place in my heart for Jim Marshall,” Allen said.

The Vikings’ three preseason games will be broadcast on Fox 9 and KFAN with a simulcast crew of Paul Allen (play-by-play) and analysts Pete Bercich and Ben Leber. The fourth member of last year’s KFAN crew, Greg Coleman, has retired.

Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen from Fox Sports are likely to be the TV talent for the much anticipated Packers-Vikings game in Minneapolis on September 11. Minnesota’s second game of the regular season will be in Philadelphia for a Monday night national telecast on ABC with Joe Buck and Troy Aikman.

Remembering Bill Russell

In the late 1950s and into the early 1960s Sunday afternoons were appointment TV viewing for NBA fans across the country. The barnstorming league was trying to establish itself on the same level as baseball, the NFL and college football. There were only eight teams in the NBA in the 1950s and up to 1960 no franchise on the West Coast until the Lakers moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles.

Sunday afternoon viewers got a steady diet of match ups between Bill Russell’s Celtics and Wilt Chamberlain’s Warriors. Watching these extraordinary athletes compete against one another was a rivalry and show not seen before or since. Russell, a lean 6-9, and Chamberlain, 7-1 with legendary strength, had contrasting physiques but put up rebounding, shot blocking and scoring performances for the ages. Theirs was a battle of not only bodies but wits.

News of Russell’s passing Sunday prompted national mourning for the man and the basketball player. Chamberlain, although two years younger than Russell, died in 1999. Both were players with skills ahead of their time. Russ and Wilt could drop into today’s NBA and be superstars.

Sid Hartman wrote in his autobiography Sid that the Minneapolis Lakers tried to secure Russell by getting the No. 1 NBA draft pick in 1956. The Lakers were faltering during the 1955-56 season and Hartman, who worked for the team, wanted to trade muscular forward Vern Mikkelsen to the Celtics who coveted rebounding help. Trading Mik would have nosedived the Lakers and probably resulted in the league’s worst record and being rewarded the first pick in the draft.

Hartman said the Celtics agreed to take Mikkelsen in exchange for three Kentucky players who were in military service but that Lakers owner Ben Berger nixed the deal. In Hartman’s book he wrote: “We argued for a few minutes, and I said, ‘Fine, Bennie. I’ll call Walter Brown (the owner of the Celtics) and cancel the deal, and we can regret it for the rest of our lives.’ “

That may not be an exaggeration. Russell’s Celtics won 11 NBA titles and perhaps saved the Celtics franchise from relocation. If Russell had joined the Minneapolis Lakers it’s possible the team never would have left for Los Angeles in search of better home attendance and fan support.

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Ex-GM Predicts 10-7, Playoffs for Vikings

Posted on July 31, 2022 by David Shama

Jeff Diamond, the former Vikings general manager who was the 1998 NFL Executive of the Year, is upbeat about the 2022 team and predicts a 10-7 record, possibly better.

“I think that gets you a Wild Card,” Diamond told Sports Headliners earlier this month. “And they could do better than that (10-7 record). I think once you get the momentum, then things can start rolling.”

The Vikings’ record last season was 8-9 and that wasn’t good enough to make the playoffs. Most of the key personnel is back under a new coaching staff that will use new schemes on offense and defense. The Vikings have 10 starters returning on offense, seven on defense.

There have been significant changes with the defensive roster including linebacker Za’Darius Smith and high draft choices Lewis Cine (safety) and Andrew Booth Jr. (cornerback). The defense was a liability last year (No. 25 in points allowed) but Diamond expects the unit to be improved.

The schedule is another reason Diamond is optimistic about his old team. “I think the schedule is favorable because they’ve got the extra home game this year. Compared to last year they had only eight home games, this year they have nine home games. Then they have the neutral site game with the Saints in London so there’s really only seven true road games so I think that’s an advantage schedule wise.”

To Minnesota’s benefit, too, is that the quality of opponents doesn’t appear to be daunting. The strength of schedule for 2022 ranks No. 20 in the 32-team NFL.

There is a wagering trend that the Vikings will earn around eight wins in the coming season. Forecasts for a bad year such as 6-11 will be difficult to find, and at the other extreme national talk show host Colin Cowherd is forecasting a 13-4 record and a NFC North Division title.

Worth Noting

Consistent with recent NFL concerns about protecting the health of its players, don’t expect to see a lot of Vikings starters in the team’s preseason games. “I think you’ll see them (starters) probably play a total of three-quarters in the three games, would be my guess,” Diamond said. “…I just think they’re very cautious and some of them like (running back) Dalvin Cook probably won’t play at all, or maybe one series.”

Vikings’ Ring of Honor members Carl Eller, 80, and Chuck Foreman, 71, signed autographs for fans yesterday at TCO Performance Center in Eagan.

Gophers fans can watch the football team practice starting at 2 p.m. Saturday, August 6 at Huntington Bank Stadium. Enter Gate E for the free event that includes a Fan Zone in the West Plaza with inflatables, yard games and photo stations.

Former Gophers head coach Tim Brewster is an assistant on head coach Deion Sanders’ staff at Jackson State. Brewster’s former defensive coordinator Ted Roof has that same title at Oklahoma, while his ex-offensive coordinator Jeff Fisch is starting his second season as Arizona’s head coach.

Spire Credit Union is airing TV commercials with Olympic gold medalist wrestler and Minnesota native Gable Steveson. Spire prez and CEO Dan Stoltz told Sports Headliners Steveson, Twins Hall of Famer Tony Oliva and Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins will appear on billboards this fall for his company. A sports enthusiast, Stoltz was named 2020 Most Admired CEO by Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal.

World Golf Hall of Famers Amy Alcott, Juli Inkster, Nancy Lopez, Hollis Stacy and Jan Stephenson are scheduled to compete in the Land O’Lakes Legends Classic presented by The Meadows at Mystic Lake on August 13-14 in Prior Lake. Inkster, the defending champion from last year’s inaugural event, is also a member of the LPGA Hall of Fame as are Alcott and Lopez. http://LegendsClassicMN.com

The Twins will play 20 home games at Target Field in August, the most in 45 years dating back to when the club was based at Met Stadium. In addition to Central Division rivals the Royals and Tigers, there are games against the Blue Jays, Rangers and Red Sox—with those clubs making their only 2022 Minneapolis appearances. In an interleague series, the NL Giants come to Target Field (opened in 2010) for the first time ever. The Twins’ home record is 27-22 and on the road 26-25.

Outfielder Matt Wallner, the powerful hitting Forest Lake, Minnesota native, draws speculation he could be part of a Twins’ trade deadline transaction to acquire pitching. But the 6-5, 220-pound Wallner has struggled at the plate in July hitting .118 since being promoted from Double-A Wichita to the Triple-A Saints.

Jim Kaat, now a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame, spent the early part of his long career with the Twins but ended his MLB days with the Cardinals who won the 1982 World Series. In a July 23 New York Times story he told writer Tyler Kepner “no athlete in any professional sport has played 24 seasons before getting a championship ring.”

Terrin Vavra, the former Gophers shortstop (2016-2018), is hitless in three at bats with the Orioles since being promoted from Triple-A Norfolk last week.

Cameron Christie, the Rolling Meadows, Illinois shooting guard who has verbally committed to the Gophers for the class of 2023, is the second best player in his state per 247Sports but in its composite rankings lists him as a three-star recruit, not a four or five.

The first ever volleyball Big Ten Media Days will be Monday and Tuesday. The Big Ten Network will have coverage from 7 to 8:30 p.m. (CDT) Monday and 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday.

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