Anna Grzebien Golfer Bio

Career: Led Duke to team National Championships as a sophomore, junior and senior ... 2005 NCAA Individual Champion and East Regional Champion ... 2005 Honda Award winner as the National Player of the Year ... 2005 & 2006 NGCA First Team All-America ... 2007 NGCA Second Team All-America ... earned 2004-05 Blue Devil of the Year award from Blue Devil Weekly ... a four-time All-ACC honoree ... selected Words Unlimited Rhode Island Female Athlete of the Year in January of 2004 ... finished her career with 45 rounds of even or under par to rank third on Duke’s career list ... her 26 career top 10 finishes ranks fourth all-time at Duke.

2006-07: Received the Weaver-James Corrigan Honorary Award from the ACC ... second team NGCA All-America ... NGCA All-East Region ... All-ACC ... collected a 73.77 stroke average to go along with five top 10 and seven top-20 finishes ... totaled 15 rounds of even or under par, which ranked second on the Blue Devil squad ... turned in her second top 10 finish in a NCAA Championship as she was sixth with rounds of 80, 70, 72 and 70 for a total of 292 ... was sixth in the ACC Championship with a total of 222 ... finished the season ranked 24th in the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index ... listed seventh in the preseason players to watch by Golf World.

2006 Summer Action: Won the New England Women’s Golf Association Championship (NEWGA) and the 17th Massachusetts Women’s Open Championship.

2005-06: First team All-America and All-ACC selection ... collected a 73.55 stroke average, three top-five, six top-10 and eight top-20 finishes ... missed one tournament due to playing in the LPGA Kraft Nabisco, missing the cut with rounds of 80, 76 ... finished the season ranked No. 14 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index.

2005 Summer Action: Missed most of the summer resting an injured wrist.

2004-05: Came on strong at the end of the season winning her final two tournaments - NCAA East Regional and NCAA Championship ... All-ACC selection ... had rounds of 73-75-65-73=286 to become Duke’s third NCAA Individual Champion ... for the season, had a 73.88 stroke average to go along with four top-five, five top-10 and nine top-20 finishes ... concluded the season with two first place and two second place finishes out of her last five tournaments ... ranked 10th in the final Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index.

2004 Summer Action: Led the U.S. to a 32-28 win at the Collegiate Golf Championship in Japan ... won the New England Women’s Golf Association (RIWGA) Championship.

2003-04: A NGCA Honorable Mention All-America and All-ACC selection ... one of the top freshmen in the nation posting a 73.61 stroke average, which was the fifth-best freshman stroke average in school history ... posted three top-five, four top-10 and seven top-20 finishes ... finished the season ranked 17th in the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index ... had her best finish of the season at the ACC/SEC Challenge with scores of 69-71 to place second ... had a career-best round of 68 on three different occasions in the final round of competition.

2003 Summer Action: Won the RIWGA title in a sudden-death playoff, after carding a final round 65.

Prep: Attended Narragansett High School in Narragansett, R.I., where she was a three-year letterwinner ... a three-time winner on the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) ... registered 20 top-10 finishes on the AJGA ... won the 2002 AJGA Greater Hartford Jaycees Junior Classic with rounds of 72-68-72 (212) ... a 2002 Honorable Mention Polo Golf Junior All-America ... medalist at the 2002 AJGA Polo Junior with scores of 68-70 and then lost in the quarterfinals of match play ... a two-time HP Scholastic All-America Team selection ... ranked 24th in the final 2001-02 Golfweek/Titleist Performance Index ... a 2001 second team Polo Golf Junior All-America ... won back-to-back AJGA events in 2001 at the Marsh Junior at Bethpage State Park and the Lessing’s AJGA Classic ... the win at the Marsh Junior marked the third year in a row a member of her family had won the tournament as her sisters Mary Ellen and Lauren won the two years before ... won the 2001 Rhode Island Interscholastic Girls State Championship ... lost in the second round of the 2001 AJGA Polo Golf Junior Classic to teammate Liz Janangelo (2 & 1) ... advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2000 U.S. Women’s Amateur.

Personal: Born April 29, 1985 ... daughter of Tom and Marnee Grzebien ... has two sisters, Lauren and Mary Ellen ... Lauren and Mary Ellen graduated from Northwestern and were members of the golf team ... member of National Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, nominated for the Heisman Scholarship and nominated to the National Leadership Conference ... began playing golf at age five at the Point Judith Country Club in Narragansett, R.I. ... majored in psychology.

Yung Jan Tennis Stars

Yung Jan Chan US Open
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MediaTakeout Misses The Mark-- These Exotic, Strange Stilettos Are Actually Nice!!

           

Many people on MediaTakeout was talking about these Alexander McQueen Floral Wedge T-Strap sandals. It has a solid construction to it and plus has solid gold on it. MediaTakeout.com called it ATROCIOUS; they apparently don't know haute couture. And... no one can tell me any different, unless you have HIGHER fashion sense than me, these shoes are HOTT and it glorifies any ladies' feet and beautiful legs.

It's BEAUTIFUL!! Women, imagine walking on real gold leaves, QUEEN OF YOUR OWN EMPIRE.

It's has a price fit for a queen, too: 

$3,500 

Yikes... it's nice but we ain't crazy (guys to buy these shoes for their honey and women to buy these shoes. But hey... there's somebody out there who will...)

It would look good... just remember to lotion up those feet.

A fashion scoop from the 2011 Australian Open: the land of horrors!

Not sure what happened to the sportswear manufacturers this year, but the Australian Open looked grotesque and scary. Starting with the green and pink Adidas outfits and finishing with Venus Williams and her odious pieces, this year was a genuine fashion faux pas.
 

Tsonga, Justine Henin, Alicia Molik, even poor Maria Kirilenko (otherwise a true fashionista) had to endure the horrors of wearing that terrible combination of vibrant mint-green and intense cyclamen. Some did it with style though. Toning it down by adding a white skirt, respectively, a top, they've managed to look decent on court. However, there were cases (i.e. Dolgopolov or Date Krumm) when the outfits were visually challenging. Wearing green and pink cap-a-pie, I felt my eyes being bruised by the powerful colours.

 

Venus Williams made a long awaited return by causing an uproar. Wearing her signature EleVen outfits, she walked on court with a short shirt (I assume it was intended to serve as a dress), really plain looking and totally unsuited for tennis. A more glamorous version was showcased in her third round encounter with Petkovic. Things didn't stop there unfortunately, as she introduced us to what she called the 'Alice in Wonderland' dress. Words are pointless in describing the monstrosity:

I've always been a fan of her style. She used to push fashion forward but her recent lack of results seems to have affected her inspiration. Get some treatment and return as strong as ever ;).

This year's championships had everything. I've noticed it bore a strong resemblance to the Oscar nominees list. Venus wasn't the only one to star in it. Caroline Wozniacki matched another Hollywood front-runner  in her 'Danish Swan' dress, courtesy of Stella McCarthy. In her case, it actually proved an excellent choice, very bold too.

photos (top-down / left-right): GETTY IMAGES, Ben Solomon (x3), ?, Ben Solomon, ? ,  GETTY IMAGES (x4)

Tough Mamma!

Everyone said Clijsters was the favourite to win the Australian Open this year. Although I am sure they all believed she has the weapons to do it, I am not certain how many of them (including myself in this category) really saw her go all the way. Judging based on her Slam history, she's done a great job in New York where she is the undisputed queen having won three titles and riding on a 21 matches winning streak. However, in the other Slam she entered after returning to the tour, her results were not that impressive: she lost that horror match against Petrova in Melbourne and stumble against Zvonareva at Wimbledon. She seems to be tougher mentally now, but even so, winning here might be a more difficult job than expected. At the beginning of the fortnight, I thought it might be Justine's year. I felt she was the best player in the draw. Clijsters might have grown stronger, but she's not as consistent as her fellow Belgian opponent. Justine just has that winner stamina. Even though she's troubled, she finds a way to win it. At least she used to before retiring.

My prediction proved wrong, as Henin lost to Kuznetsova in the third round. Immediately after, she announced her retirement from the sport due to injury. Kim on the other side looked in control. After thrashing Safina in the opener, she lost her focus a bit but squeezed wins against Makarova and Radwanska. Just at the right time, she reached her ultimate level and beat Zvonareva easily in the semis. In the final though, she was about to face a seriously improved Chinese Na Li who was playing the tennis of her life. I saw some of her matches and she was incredible. Azarenka and Petkovic, players who hit the ball really hard and are very aggressive just couldn't find a way to beat her. She won those matches easily and after passing Wozniacki in the semis, she looked set to make history for her country by becoming the first Chinese to win a Glam Slam. After announcing this might be her last Australian Open, the crowd was behind its 'Aussie Kim'. The first set was tense, Kim facing the same difficulties in breaking Li's game. The Chinese won it 6-3. But then the miracle happened. She did something, not really sure what, but managed to turn it around. She won it in three sets. Her first Glam outside the US. Finally! 

This is probably one of the best sensations I, as a viewer, experience while watching tennis. When your fave is down and out, seeing her come back from the bring of defeat and win it makes it so much more special. It's incredible how the player who previously used to lose matches being up 5-1 and match points managed to transform into this fierce competitor who takes every chance and wins almost every important tournament she enters. I would classify this as her second turn-around of her second career (the first being in the Cincinatti final against Sharapova last summer). Great job Kim! I just hope you'll keep on playing!

With this post I want to thank her for being such a great champion and for winning in Australia. After the Federer blow, I was really yearning some success. And yes Kim, now you truly deserve your 'Aussie Kim' nickname!

PS: Green seems to be the colour for Kim. Her uncle wore a pair of green pants to every match to ensure the winning streak. Also, her outfit was entirely green!

photos (top-down / left-right):  AP, GETTY IMAGES (x2)

KOOL-AID Cool: Kevin Durant's New Whip

OKC Thunder baller KEVIN DURANT got a new car: a 2011 Chevy Camaro...all-red. What a way to be FULLY CUSTOMIZED and still have money left over. The Camaro is priced right around $30,000, an the customization was reportedly $30K more (lovin' the custom matte paint--the textured paint of choice these days--and matching 22" rims).

I like the car; I would rock it on a special day.. ooh, ooh, ooh.. VALENTINE'S DAY. Imagine that. My brother says "IT'S TOO RED."

Oh well...

 

Source: MediaTakeout

Oh, Federer you didn't do it again!

 

The Australian Open is done now and so are my hopes of seeing Federer win another Grand Slam. This, of course, is the main story from Down Under for me. The odds seemed to be on his side after a great end of the 2010 season. He had won 4 of his last 5 tournaments coming to Melbourne (his only loss came surprisingly to Monfils in a 3rd set tie-break in Paris) and was riding on a 16 matches winning streak (during which he defeated Nadal to claim the Masters title). He glowed with confidence and talked about having improved his games and about aiming at being more aggressive. My hopes were high again. I could see him doing it again. Last year when he won the trophy I had my doubts. Davydenko looked utterly sharp and I still don't know how he managed to win that one. This year though, after beating Simon (always a tricky opponent for him) I envisioned his smooth path to the final. After Nadal was out (ya, a relief) I thought that this is clearly his tournament. Then the match with Djokovic came. Watching it, I was amazed. It was another example of him losing his grip, and big time. Especially with Djokovic, he lost several disputes even though it was clear he could have easily been the winner. As in other cases, he just couldn't serve. He couldn't hit winners. I found myself cheering after he won a point. C'mon that sad! It was one of those painful matches in which I was wondering why isn't he able to do something. But really, not anything?! Djokovic even choked under pressure by allowing Federer to break back for 4 all in the 3rd. It was to no avail though, as he served poorly and lost the game and then the match. And with it, another great opportunity has passed. It's clear he has the game. Maybe he should try and improve his mental strength and his focus. I am sure he is still the best player in the world and that he'll win more Slams, I am just hoping he'll get back to that winning way in Slams soon.

After the match my interest in the men's tournament dropped considerably. However, I was still amazed that Djokovic won the final. I don't know how he succeeded. Probably Murray collapsed physically, as I believe he's the better player. This was his chance and once again he failed to take it. Conversely, cold-blooded Djokovic did exactly what he was supposed to do. Thus he was rewarded with his second Australian Open. I cannot say I was glad for him, but I must admit he deserves congrats for taking advantage of the situation.

I still expect a great 2011 from Federer. May he find his confidence and win some Slams! Amen!

photo: GETTY IMAGES