Follow-Ups: Tony Awards and Big Break Performances

HUGE Congratulations go out today to The Grandstander's Broadway Correspondent, Bill Montrose, aka Big Poppy.  Bill hit on 11 of his 12 predictions for Tony Award winners, missing only in the category of Best Actress in a Musical.  As they might say on the Great White Way.... Bravo, and what can you possibly do for an encore!

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Medium Congratulations go out today to "Big Break Florida" winner Jackie Stoelting.  Her "big break" was an entry in the LPGA ManuLife Classic, which was played this weekend.  Jackie made the cut, finished with a T-71, shot even par for the tournament (23 strokes behind the winner), and cashed a check for $2,923.  Not great, but considering how many of these Big Break winners fare, that was pretty good, and here's hoping that we hear more from Jackie Stoelting in the years ahead.  Which leads us to.....

Major Condolences to the male winner of "Big Break Puerto Rico/NFL", Isaac Sanchez.  The "big break" for Isaac was entry in this past week's PGA FedEx St. Jude Classic.  Sad to say, Isaac failed to make the cut, and he did so in spectacular fashion.  He shot 86-81, a whopping 27 strokes over par, and finished dead last (although, to look on the bright side, ten golfers withdrew during the course of the tourney, so I suppose you could say Isaac finished ahead of them).   After watching Isaac in two different versions of "The Big Break", I had no expectations for him when he teed it up with the big boys, but to see such a major flameout , well, I do feel a bit bad for him.  Still, he did have his fifteen minutes of fame on the PGA Tour, which is more than any of us will ever have.

Emily Talley's Big Break

Last December, 23 year old Emily Talley won $50,000 as the female winner of Golf Channel's "Big Break NFL Puerto Rico", and, the biggest prize, an exemption into the ShopRite LPGA Classic, which is being contested this week in New Jersey.

Sorry to report that Emily's Big Break ended yesterday when she failed to make the cut in the tournament.  She shot 75-72 (5 over par), thirteen shots behind leader Stacey Lewis.  However, Emily can take solace in the fact that her +5 score tied her with twelve other golfers, and that she actually finished ahead of twenty-seven other golfers, including one time LPGA major champion Morgan Pressel.

It's not what she wanted, I'm sure, but she has to be encouraged.  Here's hoping that we hear more from Miss Talley in the years ahead.

Meanwhile, the male winner of "Big Break NFL Puerto Rico", Isaac Sanchez, gets his big break this coming week in the PGA Tour's FedEx St. Jude Classic.  Also, recent "Big Break Florida" winner, Jackie Stoelting gets her big break in LPGA ManuLife Financial Classic this week, as well.

I shall be watching.

Following Up on The Big Break

This coming weekend will see the playing of the Shoprite Classic on the LPGA Tour.  This is significant in that one of the participants will be Emily Talley, who was the female winner of the Big Break NFL last year.

Emily's Big Break was a spot in the field of this LPGA event.  The Grandstander will be following her in this event and will report on her progress.  Good luck, Emily!

SPOILER ALERT:  The remainder of this post will discuss the recently completed Big Break Florida.  If you have saved these episodes on your DVR and have not yet seen them, stop reading now and come back later.

The season concluded last Monday night with a match between finalists Jackie Stoelting, 27, 

and Fiamma Felitch, 24.

Both were likable, attractive, and good players throughout the season, and I would have been happy had either young lady prevailed.  However, the championship  match offered little suspense, as Jackie dominated from the first hole on and won the match, 5 and 4.  As part of her Big Break, Jackie will have a spot in the LPGA Manulife Financial Classic in Ontario that will be played from June 5-8.  I shall be reporting on that event as well.

What was the best news of the finale was the fact that the "villainess" of the series, the equine-like and foul-mouthed Mary Narzisi, 24,

was not a part of the championship match.  She did make it to the Final Four of the series, and she got more irritating and unlikable with each passing show.  I was hoping she'd have been gone by week two.

Anyway, another great edition of the only "reality show" that I watch.  Can't wait for the next one.

The Big Break NFL Concludes

SPOILER ALERT: If you recorded the concluding episode of Gold Channel's "Big Break NFL" and are planning on seeing it later, you may wish to delay reading this entry, as I will divulge who won.  If you are so inclined, please come back and read when you have seen the show.

Golf Channel's latest rendition of its Big Break series concluded last night when Team Dolman, the only team that did not suffer a loss in the series, came up against Team Rice in the "four quarters" of match play.  Kind of hokey, but Golf Channel had to stick with its football theme.  I found myself rooting for Jerry Rice and his squad because (a) Rice was a likable sort throughout the series, and (b) Chris Dolman was not.  I felt bad for the two golfers who were paired with Dolman throughout, but they were in the final show, so maybe his methods worked somehow.

Of the two football players, Rice was clearly better than Dolman, as evidenced by a scrambling par 5 that Rice made after driving in grass that was as high as his shoulders on one hole, and by a topped drive on one hole by Dolman that didn't clear the ladies tees.

In any event, the winning team was........

TEAM RICE!!!!!

Big Breakers Emily Talley and Isaac Sanchez won exemptions into primo tournaments on the big circuits.  Talley will play in the LPGA Shoprite Classic that will be held from May 30-June 1, and Sanchez will play on the PGA Tour's FedEx St. Jude Classic on June 5-8.   As I did with the winner of Big Break Mexico's Taylor Collins, I will follow up and report on how Emily and Isaac do when they get their Big Breaks come June.

Another entertaining entry in this Golf Channel Series.  Can't wait for the next one!