NEU » Eckhart.I first met the real-life

Thursday notes from the U.S. Open Im not sure if anyone has ever commuted as far as Phil Mickelson did for his day at work on Thursday. Lefty flew through the night from California to Philadelphia after attending his daughters graduation. He landed at 3:30am, got an hours sleep then headed to the golf course where he put together a very impressive three-under round, which is the clubhouse lead. Strange? Nothing seems to be that crazy when youre talking about Phil, who says he makes the red eye trip a half-dozen times a year for outings. But this is the U.S. Open and Phil never seems to do anything typical here. Oh, did I mention that his bag this week has five wedges in it and no driver? Renewed Game Mike Weir admitted that he looked up and saw his name on the leaderboard on Thursday. "Of course I did," he said with a chuckle. "Its been a while since its been up there." The lefthander was cruising along nicely through the difficult parts of Merion Golf Club before stumbling with four consecutive bogeys over his closing holes. Only a birdie at the last left him feeling good about his day. "They say its a game of inches," Weir stated. "Well those holes could have been birdies – one hole I flew it a yard too long and another a yard short." What was odd about Weirs round was the club thats been giving him the most trouble – the driver – was solid. He hit it six times and every one of them was in the fairway. Weir only missed two fairways on the day (although the stats show it being just one). Conversely, the strength of his game – his wedges and putter – were the weak link in Round 1. If he can sharpen those up, he should be able to post a good score. Just Like Home One of the many quirks about the set up of this tournament is that the players locker room and dining areas are set up at the driving range, which is located at the West Course at Merion, about a 15-minute shuttle ride from the first tee. Theres a massive tent set up in the backyard of a home neighbouring the course and parts of the home are being used as well. The strange thing is that the family living in that house hasnt moved out. Weir said he was sitting in a room in the home set up for dining, watching SportsCenter on ESPN before his morning round on Thursday when one of the kids who lives at the home walked in, sat down and changed the channel. "He was eating breakfast and just came in and changed it to Golf Channel," said Weir. According to Weir, the kid seemed oblivious to what was going on and didnt ask for autographs or even talk to the players. Positive Vibes With the exception of just a few loudmouths, Sergio Garcia walked around yesterday without hearing any negative comments. In fact, they were probably more positive than anything. One drunk was thrown out early in the round and later in the day, three more over-served guys were given the boot. Garcia had enough troubles to worry about, hitting two balls out of bounds on consecutive holes and posting a six and an eight back-to-back. Canadian Content Mackenzie Hughes was able to have a little fun during his first round at the U.S. Open but he admitted that Merion was easily the hardest golf course hed ever played. Hughes posted a very respectable five-over-par score. The Dundas, Ont.-native was also sporting a new logo on his shirt during the first round. The Score television network came up with a last-minute sponsorship, apparently after learning of the young golfers tight financial situation. Calgarys Ryan Yip admitted that he was fooled by the speed of the greens in the early going, saying they were much faster than theyd been in the practice rounds. And, after getting off to a slow start, he tried to force matters. "I tried to get aggressive and learned pretty quickly that the U.S. Open is not the place to do that," he said, still smiling. Yip said that for as bad as he hit it, his score of six-over was a bonus.Luis Gonzalez Diamondbacks Jersey . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. Zack Greinke Diamondbacks Jersey . Aside from the trilogy main event title fight, there are a number of intriguing matchups in the heavyweight, welterweight and lightweight divisions. http://www.diamondbackssale.com/diamondbacks-wilmer-flores-jersey/ .Y. -- Knicks coach Mike Woodson said Wednesday that J. Archie Bradley Diamondbacks Jersey . Galatasaray said in a statement on its website Monday that Mancini signed a three-year contract and will be paid 3.5 million euros for the upcoming season, with his salary upped to 4. Matt Andriese Diamondbacks Jersey . The native of Mont-Tremblant, Que., captured a World Cup downhill event Saturday, his second this year and fifth career victory on the circuit.For more than a decade and a half, my typical work week is hard to explain. Especially the part of keeping an eye on chiseled men taking center stage and stripping down to bikini briefs. A Chippendales consultant, Im not. Boxing weigh-ins are unlike anything else in sports. Calling fights week after week on national TV fosters an appreciation for them, the texture and passion of the sport is why its one of Hollywoods all-time favorite storytelling crutches to lean on. At least parts of it are.The overused late-round drama crescendo is an easy go-to for directors. But the day before the fight weigh-in? Its mostly ignored. Or its dismissed as a convenient scripted smack-talk moment.Then comes the 2016 biopic Bleed For This, the story about former five-time champion Vinny Paz. In what is as authentic a scene I have ever enjoyed in a fight film, native New Yorker Ben Younger perfectly captures the weigh-in for Pazs fight against Roger Mayweather 26 years earlier. He gets it. His film gets it.Forget the hackneyed approach to rating a boxing flick. You know the sports fan review where bona fides are based on how valid the in-the-ring action looks. Although it is quite good, it doesnt need to apply here.What Younger and his team were able to do in the opening 10 minutes of Bleed For This impressed me. It drew me in. It revealed enough of the world champion Paz to demand I needed to know it all. And for lead actor Miles Teller, it probably revealed more than he ever thought hed have to as well.Teller, who has a lot of natural born fighter traits to him, was on the scale in nothing but a small swath of animal print. As the real-life Vinny told him during production, Stuff a banana in your undies. From that outrageously entertaining opening round this film goes on to stuff a lot into its power punch.Ive known the real-life characters fairly wwell for many years now.dddddddddddd They are mined from the cross-section of society boxing exposes us to and welcomes in.Vinny Paz grew up in Providence, Rhode Island -- a hard working prideful town that is a character unto itself in the film. The Pazienza family was woven into Vinnys life tighter than the canvas tautly pulled over the local ring mat he called home.His manager, Lou Duva, was captured well by veteran actor Ted Levine. And as for the role of trainer Kevin Rooney, it was a superb job climbing a challenging mountain of portrayal by Aaron Eckhart.I first met the real-life Rooney when I was 15 years old. I was a fan ringside at a local club show and he was in the corner of soon-to-be heavyweight champion Mike Tyson. Years later, I was now the boxing expert, still talking the sweet science with Rooney as he was in the later stages of an often interrupted career. Alcohol abuse and this game can take a toll. You play baseball and basketball. You dont play boxing. Eckhart gave us an excellent glimpse of the real Rooney.Bleed For This does what many fight films fail to do. It defines the champion from the inside out. It takes us into his psyche.It doesnt play on underdog themes overcoming impossible odds. It doesnt care if the champ is winning to right some wrong or avenge some injustice. It doesnt try to wow you with a dramatic get-up-off-the-canvas climbs.Yes, its a comeback story. However, its really a story of understanding what it means to be a fighter. To be wired differently from the rest.Heavyweight king of yesteryear Jack Dempsey was wont to say, A champion is someone who gets up even when they cant.That is what Bleed For This captures. And its exactly why it will capture your attention. ' ' '