This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.
Good morning, Winners! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for tapping in with us today. We appreciate you here.
It’s about that time, people. The tradition, unlike any other, has returned. The Masters is back and Tiger Woods is in it again. He’s been a fixture in this tournament for so much of our lives. For most of it, we’ve expected him to dominate.
Sure, he’s old. But he’s still Tiger Woods. And he told us, “If everything comes together, I think I can get one more.”
He’s earned having that mentality with his long history of dominance on this course. Of course, Woods believes that. Why shouldn’t he? This is the same guy who Augusta altered its course for back in 1997. I’m always going to give that guy the benefit of the doubt. Plus, we’ve seen what it looks like when everything comes together for him. Just go back and watch clips from his incredible 2019 run at The Masters that still feels so improbable today.
But we’ve got to be realistic. As much as we want to believe in this guy, rooting for Tiger Woods at The Masters in 2024 is simply hoping he can complete the course these days.
While that 2019 Masters run does exist, it feels like centuries ago. When you look at Woods’ recent history, things aren’t so rosy.
He withdrew from the Genisis Invitational earlier this year because of an illness. Last year, he withdrew from The Masters after making the cut for a record-tying 22nd time because of plantar fasciitis. After all his body has been through over the years, it isn’t cooperating anymore. It can’t operate like this for long stretches.
That’s why Woods simply making the cut would be an accomplishment. A good 36 holes from Tiger would be great. If he can finish the tournament? Whew, boy. We’re cooking with gas there.
The reality is that this Tiger isn’t that superhuman Tiger we’re all used to—he’s a bit closer to you and me these days. That’s OK. That’s life. That’s what makes him even going for it here so special.
Let’s hope he can give us a few special moments here to cheer for. We don’t know when it’ll be the last one.
RELATED: Here’s Tiger’s scheduled Masters group and tee time for Rounds 1 and 2.
Shohei Ohtani is in the clear
The Shohei Ohtani translator scandal seems to be over, I guess? We all still had questions about Ohtani’s involvement with Ippei Mizuhara’s gambling problems and how his former translator could steal money from right under his nose.
It seems that those questions have been answered. Well, at least they were for federal investigators, anyway.
Mizuhara is reportedly in negotiations with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to theft, according to the New York Times. Ohtani has been cooperating with the federal investigation into the theft and an MLB investigation that seemingly puts him in the clear.
Things are still confusing, though. We don’t have any answers to how on Earth Mizuhara managed to move such massive amounts of money from Ohtani’s accounts without being caught.
Once details of this investigation are revealed, we may get the answers we’re looking for. Until then, we’ll just be confused.
SO. MUCH. CAITLIN. CLARK.
Caitlin Clark hasn’t even been drafted yet and she’s already a huge part of the WNBA’s plans for this season. We’ll see a lot of her on TV this year — more than we’ll see the defending WNBA champs, the Las Vegas Aces.
Meg Hall has more here:
“On Wednesday, they released their television broadcast schedule for the upcoming season, which will have several games shown on networks like ESPN, ABC and CBS but will also spotlight the Indiana Fever with 36 nationally televised games. That’s more than the defending champion Las Vegas Aces (35 games) and the runner-up New York Liberty (31 games). That’s also a 35 percent increase from the 2023 season when the Fever had 22 games on national television.”
I’ve got to be honest, folks. This is ridiculous. To be fair, all of them aren’t on ESPN. Some games will appear on Ion and NBA TV. You can argue that those games might not count. But still, man. This is a lot of Caitlin Clark. It’s easy to see why players like Diana Taurasi will go so hard at her. The league is doing all this for Clark and she hasn’t done anything yet.
Good luck, Caitlin. You’re going to need it this year.
READ MORE: Five ways Caitlin Clark’s impending WNBA debut is already impacting the league
Quick hits: Coyotes on the move? … New Masters tee times … and more
— Here’s Mary Clarke with more on a potential move for the Arizona Coyotes to Salt Lake City.
— Charles Curtis has you updated here on the new tee times for The Masters after a rain delay.
— This morbid joke from Tara Van Derveer on her retirement is so on-brand. Meg Hall has more.
— Prince Grimes has five picks to finish in the top 10 at The Masters here.
— Here’s a hole-by-hole look at the course at Augusta National. This is so beautiful, man. Charles Curtis has the details.
— John Calipari’s blunt assessment of his roster at Arkansas is hilarious. Here’s Cory Woodroof with more.
Thanks so much for reading today, folks! Hope you enjoyed the newsletter. Let’s do it again tomorrow. Until then! Peace. We out.
-Sykes ✌️