Big Break Returns for 12th Season at Walt Disney World Resort

Big%20Break The GOLF CHANNEL’s popular Big Break series returns for a 12thseason  of Big Break Disney Golf, a reality show that will make one contestant’s dream of playing on the PGA TOUR come true.

Big Break Disney Golf will have 12 males competing for the opportunity to fulfill the desire to play professional golf at the highest level. Competitors range from an Olympic gold medal medalist to several contestants with famous parents hoping to golf professionally.

The winner of the 10-week series will receive an exemption to compete in the 2010 Children’s Miracle Network Classic. The series marks the first time that a Big Break winner will compete in a TOUR event on the same course in which the series was filmed.

To earn the exemption and prizes, the champion will have to defeat highly skilled golfers in a variety of challenges that test their physical skills and mental toughness.

Big Break Disney Golf’schallenges also will take place at various locations throughout the Walt Disney World Resort, including Main Street U.S.A., Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex and the Walt Disney World Speedway. There will also be several cameos with PGA pros throughout the series and will also feature memorable moments from the Children’s Miracle Network Classic.

The contestants are: Andrew Giuliani (New York, N.Y.) – Son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Donna Hanover, Andrew is looking to make a name for himself in golf.

Ed Moses (Hollywood, Calif.) – A gold and silver medal winner as a member of the United States swim team at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, Moses’ goal is now the PGA TOUR.

Andreas Huber (Scottsdale, Ariz.) – Actress Susan Lucci’s son, the former Wall Street broker left the

Aspiring golfer Andreas Huber posing with his family. (L-R) Father, Helmut Huber; sister, Liza Huber; Andreas Huber and mother, Susan Lucci

Aspiring golfer Andreas Huber with his family. (L-R) Father, Helmut Huber; sister, Liza Huber; Andreas Huber and mother, Susan Lucci Photo: Steve Bergman

field for a career as a pro golfer.

Gipper Finau (Lehl, Utah) – Joins Tony as the first brother duo to play in the same Big Breakseries. Gipper turned professional at 16.

Tony Finau (Lehl, Utah) – Brother of Gipper Finau.  Tony turned professional when he was 17 and made a cut on the PGA TOUR the same year.

Mike Perez (Scottsdale, Ariz.) – After playing the Nationwide Tour, Perez is looking for the chance to join brother Pat on the PGA TOUR.

Vincent Johnson (Portland, Ore.) – Received the Charlie Sifford exemption to play in the 2009 Northern Trust Open. He was close to making the cut  in his first PGA TOUR start.

J.R. Reyes (Omaha, Neb.) – Reyes is not your typical golfer. While not looking the part, he has the talent to fit in on the PGA TOUR.

Kevin Erdman (Arcadia, Calif.) – Husband of golfer and Big Break Kaanapalialum Courtney Erdman.

Kevan Maxwell (Charleston, S.C.) – Aspiring golf professional.

Blake Moore (Monrovia, Calif.) – Friend of former Big Break competitor and PGA TOUR rookie James Nitties.

Sean Kalin (Delray Beach, Fla.) – A junior standout who gave up golf for 20 years after being kidnapped, he is looking for a second chance in the game

Vince Cellini and Stephanie Sparks will once again will co-host the series. The series will premiere on October 13 at 10pm EST on the Golf Channel.

Michael Phelps Strikes Gold At The ESPYS

Michael Phelps Photo: Sports Illustrated

Michael Phelps Photo: Sports Illustrated

Here are list of 2009 ESPY Award Nominees & Winners (Winners are noted with *). As expected, swimmer and Olympic champion Michael Phelps won 5 awards including Best Male Athlete:

Best Male Athlete
* Michael Phelps Swimming
Kobe Bryant NBA
LeBron James NBA
Jimmie Johnson Auto Racing

Best Female Athlete

* Nastia Liukin Gymnastics
Natalie Coughlin Swimming
Maya Moore NCAA Basketball
Candace Parker WNBA
Serena Williams Tennis

Best Moment
* US swim team wins thrilling finish in Olympic relay
Florida’s Tim Tebow’s speech
Helio Castroneves wins the Indy 500

Best Team
* Los Angeles Lakers
Connecticut Women’s Basketball
North Carolina Men’s Basketball
Philadelphia Phillies
Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Steelers

Best Coach-Manager
* Phil Jackson Los Angeles Lakers
Geno Auriemma Connecticut Women’s Basketball
Dan Bylsma Pittsburgh Penguins
Joe Maddon Tampa Bay Rays
Mike Tomlin Pittsburgh Steelers

Best Game
* Steelers vs. Cardinals Super Bowl XLIII
Federer vs. Nadal 2008 Wimbledon Final
Syracuse vs. Connecticut Big East Tournament Quarterfinals

Best Championship Performance
* Michael Phelps Olympic Swimming
Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers
Cole Hamels Philadelphia Phillies
Misty May-Treanor & Kerri Walsh Olympic Beach Volleyball

Best Play
* Roethlisberger to Holmes Super Bowl Winning TD
Ovechkin vs. Rangers
Pacquiao KO’s Hatton
Texas Tech’s Michael Crabtree makes game-winning catch vs. Texas

Best Upset
* US Soccer shocks Spain in the Confederations Cup Semifinals
Mine That Bird
Oregon State stuns then #1 USC
Tampa Bay Rays win the American League Championship Series

Best Breakthrough Athlete
* Matt Ryan Atlanta Falcons
Shawn Johnson Olympic Gymnastics
Evan Longoria Tampa Bay Rays
Derrick Rose Chicago Bulls

Best Record Breaking Performance
* Michael Phelps Olympic Swimmer
Usain Bolt Olympic Sprinter
Larry Fitzgerald Arizona Cardinals
Phil Jackson Los Angeles Lakers

Best Sports Movie
* The Express: The Ernie Davis Story
Sugar
The Wrestler

Best Male College Athlete
* Tim Tebow Florida Football
Sam Bradford Oklahoma Football
Matt Gilroy Boston University Hockey
Blake Griffin Oklahoma Basketball
Stephen Strasburg San Diego State Baseball

Best Female College Athlete

* Maya Moore Connecticut Women’s Basketball
Kerri Hanks Notre Dame Women’s Soccer
Courtney Kupets Georgia Gymnastics
Danielle Lawrie Washington Softball
Dana Vollmer California Swimming

Best Male Athlete With A Disability

* Jason Lester Ironman
Jeremy Campbell Track and Field
Will Groulx Wheelchair Rugby
Oscar Pistorius Track and Field

Best Female Athlete With A Disability
* Erin Popovich Swimming
Jessica Long Swimming
Maureen McKinnon-Tucker Sailing
Asya Miller Goalball

Best Male International Athlete
* Usain Bolt Jamaica, Sprinter
Pau Gasol Spain, Basketball
Lionel Messi Argentina, Soccer
Rafael Nadal Spain, Tennis
Cristiano Ronaldo Portugal, Soccer

Best Female International Athlete
* Lorena Ochoa México, Golf
Yelena Isinbayeva Russia, Pole Vault
Marta Brazil, Soccer
Stephanie Rice Australia, Swimming
Dinara Safina Russia, Tennis

Best Baseball Player
* Albert Pujols St. Louis Cardinals
Roy Halladay Toronto Blue Jays
Ryan Howard Philadelpia Phillies
Dustin Pedroia Boston Red Sox
Francisco Rodriguez Los Angeles Angels/New York Mets

Best NBA Player
* LeBron James Cleveland Cavaliers
Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers
Dwight Howard Orlando Magic
Dwyane Wade Miami Heat

Best WNBA Player
* Candace Parker Los Angeles Sparks
Deanna Nolan Detroit Shock
Diana Taurasi Phoenix Mercury
Lindsay Whalen Connecticut Sun

Best NFL Player
* Larry Fitzgerald Arizona Cardinals
James Harrison Pittsburgh Steelers
Peyton Manning Indianapolis Colts
Adrian Peterson Minnesota Vikings
Kurt Warner Arizona Cardinals

Best NHL Player
* Sidney Crosby Pittsburgh Penguins
Pavel Datsyuk Detroit Red Wings
Evgeni Malkin Pittsburgh Penguins
Alexander Ovechkin Washington Capitals

Best MLS Player

* Landon Donovan LA Galaxy
Juan Pablo Angel New York Red Bulls
Jon Busch Chicago Fire
Kenny Cooper FC Dallas
Guillermo Barros Schletto Columbus Crew

Best Male Action Sports Athlete

* Shaun White Snowboarding/Skateboarding
Ryan Sheckler Skateboarding
Kelly Slater Surfing
James Stewart Motocross

Best Female Action Sports Athlete

* Maya Gabeira Surfing
Torah Bright Snowboarding
Sarah Burke Skiing
Ashley Fiolek Motocross

Best US Male Olympian

* Michael Phelps Swimming
Bryan Clay Track and Field
LaShawn Merritt Track and Field
Angelo Taylor Track and Field

Best US Female Olympian

* Shawn Johnson Gymnastics
Natalie Coughlin Swimming
Dawn Harper Track and Field
Nastia Liukin Gymnastics

Best Bowler
* Norm Duke
Chris Barnes
Wes Malott

Best Driver
* Jimmie Johnson
Helio Castroneves
Scott Dixon
Lewis Hamilton
Tony Schumacher

Best Fighter

* Manny Pacquiao Boxing
Lyoto Machida MMA
Shane Mosley Boxing
Anderson Silva MMA

Best Male Golfer
* Tiger Woods
Padraig Harrington
Phil Mickelson

Best Female Golfer
* Lorena Ochoa
Paula Creamer
Suzann Pettersen

Best Jockey
* Calvin Borel
Garrett Gomez
Mike Smith

Best Male Tennis Player
* Roger Federer
Rafael Nadal

Best Female Tennis Player
* Serena Williams
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Dinara Safina

Under Armour All-America Moment
* Andre Debose & Russell Shepard Football
Jake Bernhardt Lacrosse
Tara Glover Softball
David Renfroe Baseball
Hannah Werth Volleyball

Special Awards
Arthur Ashe Courage Award: President Nelson Mandela
Jimmy V Award For Perseverance: Don Meyer, N. State University coach
Best Comeback: Dara Torres, Olympic swimmer.

The Ugly Truth: Red Carpet Premiere

The premiere of the feature film “The Ugly Truth” in Los Angeles on Thursday, July 16,  2009. The film stars Gerard Butler and Katherine Heigl.

Gerard Butler Photo: AP/Dan Steinberg

Gerard Butler Photo: AP/Dan Steinberg

Eric Winter and Roselyn Sanchez Photo: AP/Dan Steinberg

Eric Winter and Roselyn Sanchez Photo: AP/Dan Steinberg

Serena Williams Photo: AP/Dan Steinberg

Serena Williams Photo: AP/Dan Steinberg

Katherine Heigl

Katherine Heigl Photo: AP/Dan Steinberg

America’s Favorite Past Time: President Obama Throws Out first pitch of 2009 All Star Game

President Obama took a break from The West Wing to enjoy a game. Here he is throwing out the first pitch at Tuesday’s All Star Game. Almost 15 million people tuned in to see the game.

Serena Williams Beats Sister Venus For Third Wimbeldon Championship

Serena Williams Wins Third Wimbeldon Title Photo: Reuters/Eddie Keough

Serena Williams Wins Third Wimbeldon Title Photo: (Reuters/Eddie Keough)

The Williams Sisters, Venus and Serena, met on center court at Wimbeldon for the fourth time.  In an exciting game of tennis, Serena beat her sister in straight sets in a relatively short match, 7-6 (3) and 6-2.

“She had an answer for everything,” Venus said during the trophy presentation. “She played the best tennis today, so congratulations.”

Serena had 12 aces in the final, giving her an impressive 72 for the entire fortnight. “I needed to serve that well against Venus,” Serena told Mary Carillo on NBC after the match. “It feels good, because I feel like I should have had a title before. Nothing like working hard to get back.

Additional Information: New York Times