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Diaz or Pacquiao - Who will win.....

Will WBC Lightweight Champion David Diaz defeat boxing mega star Manny Pacquiao? Can a tough champion with a good motor overwhelm an icon with devastating power? Is gritty determination enough or does speed kill? The world will know on Saturday, June 28, when David Diaz puts his belt on the line against WBC Super Featherweight Champion Manny Pacquiao.

Making a case for a Diaz win is not too daunting a task. Diaz has fought big names on big stages and no fighter earns 34 victories by chance. Diaz is a strong lightweight with a superior work rate and a durable chin. He had a stellar amateur career topped off by out pointing Zab Judah twice to advance to the 1996 Olympic games. As a professional Diaz has wins against title contenders Ener Julio, Jaime Rangel and Jose Armando Santa Cruz. In the biggest fight of his life Diaz charged from behind to defeat legendary brawler Erik Morales. In his typical, aggressive style Diaz out worked Morales eventually breaking him down. The unceremonious beating sent Morales into retirement. Diaz is a career lightweight or heavier who has victories over true welterweights (Pacquiao first campaigned at the light flyweight limit of 108 lbs).

Manny Pacquiao is ranked #1 pound-for-pound by The Ring magazine. He possesses a lethal combination of speed and power that overwhelms his foes and covers his flaws. Pacquiao has 35 KOs in 51 fights for a knock out rate of 68%. In his last dozen fights Pacquiao is an outstanding 10-1-1. His record is all the more impressive when you consider whom he has faced. During this span Pacquiao twice defeated Marco Antonio Barrera. Juan Manuel Marquez is 0-1-1 against him. Morales defeated Pacquiao the first time they met and then lost the rematch and the rubber match. Throw in victories over Mexican warriors Emmanuel Lucero, Hector Velazquez, Oscar Larios and Jorge Solis and it is no wonder some call him the Mexican Assassin (David Diaz’ family is from Guerrero, Mexico).

TSS Nation, log in for round by round coverage of the Pacquiao v. Diaz lightweight championship tilt on Saturday June 28, starting at 9 pm EDT / 6 pm PDT. TSS will be ringside to bring you the action as it unfolds.

Typhoon Frank dampens festivities in Tacloban

TaclobanCity (June 21) -- At least 450 families have already been evacuated and the number is rapidly increasing, no less than Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez informed the Philippine Information Agency.

Typhoon Frank wrought heavy rains and strong winds causing floods and still undetermined total damages to properties in the city of Tacloban and the nearby municipalities.

Initial reports had it that a number of electric post toppled down and the others inclined causing power failure at noon of June 20. As early at mid-morning, power failure was already felt in Eastern Samar, reports from the Province revealed.

Even the Tacloban Ampitheater which has been newly-built at Balyuan Park was toppled down by the strong gusty winds. The Ampitheater was speedily built in time for the Tacloban City Fiesta on June 30, to be the venue of the Sangyaw Festival on June 29.

Reports of lack of potable water in several areas of the City, was also reported. Houses particularly along the seashores were reported to have partial damages.

Mayor Romualdez has mobilized the City's rescue team and the staff of the City Social Welfare and Development Office in order to take care of the needs of the evacuated families, including hot food.

Mayor Romualdez assured that the City Government under his leadership, is on top of the situation and has been monitoring and evacuating people in the flood-prone areas of the City to the identified evacuation centers.

Earlier, several government agencies in the City cut short their office hours in order to rush home as the typhoon was observed to be getting stronger and street started to become flooded. (PIA 8)

Ces Drillon, Prof. Octavio Dinampo & Cameraman Jimmy Encarnacion being released by the kidnappers

Good news! Kidnap for ransom gang in Sulu responsible for abducting Ces Drillon, Prof. Octavio Dinampo & Cameraman Jimmy Encarnacion released the trio around 11 pm in Barangay Kagay, Talipao.

According to DJ of Philippine Commentary, the official line that is being repeated on the 10 o'clock PM main news program on ANC claims that no ransom has been paid but that "livelihood projects" have been offered to the kidnappers.

Ces Drillon and company were held for 9 days in the bandits’ lairs in Maimbung and Indanan towns. The trio is now under police protection and will be flown to Zamboanga for medical check up and debriefing.

Sulu Governor Sakur Tan prior to the release of Ces Drillon and company ordered Mayor Alvarez isnaji an MNLF leader to stop the negotiations. This is kind of odd but this is probably how things are done in the land of political grandstanding where the people working their butt off was suddenly shoved out of the sideline to give way to the new “hero of the day.” We now see that Sulu Governor Sakur Tan in an instant the lead in the negotiating team together with Vice-Governor Hadja Nur Ana Sahidullah. Actually who cares whose name is plastered on the newspapers, what is important is that Ces Drillon, Prof. Octavio Dinampo and Jimmy Encarnacion are safe and out of harms way.

Will the PNP (Philippine National Police) pursue the “rebel” group responsible for the kidnapping? They should but the question is how effective and how efficient considering what Ernie Maceda jjust revealed in his column, to quote:

And hear this: The fact that we do have an incompetent police organization is proven by the result of the latest Police Executive Service Eligibility (PSEE) test for promotion where only 149 or only 1/4th out of 542 senior officers passed the test.

But while this police incompetence, if not outright criminal activity, has surfaced over and over again during the last six years, GMA never, not once, issued an order to investigate the matter. On the contrary, on every PNP anniversary, she would come out with lavish praise for the PNP for doing a good job.

If policemen are corrupt or criminal, GMA is a principal by indispensable cooperation for her failure to take measures to enforce discipline and clean up the organization over a long period of time. It is clear that GMA, like Ces Drilon, is a hostage.


In case there is credence on the police sketch of the main suspects POGB is posting it here, hopefully for people to be on the lookout for these criminals. I don't know about you but this is one police sketch that looks more like those you hire on tourist spots doing your portrait, should this not be frontal instead of "portrait pose" so they can easily be identified? But what the heck, let us leave the police work to the "experts"..........

China's olympic games preparation

BOCOG has defined the transport coordination and command mechanism. The Preliminary Strategic Plan for Olympic Security and the Plan for Olympic Games Risk Assessment have been completed. BOCOG has signed lodging agreements with 112 hotels to cater the needs of the guests at the Games-time. Food Safety Action Plan for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games has been formulated and implemented. With the support from the Ministry of Health and the Beijing Municipal Health Bureau, 21 medical institutions and a doping test centre for the 2008 Olympic Games have been designated.

Wang pointed out that work on city operations and venue operations has been officially launched.

The Beijing Municipal Government has appointed Liaison Officers for City Operations, City Look, and Culture and Entertainment. In cooperation with the municipal government, BOCOG has formulated the Concept of City Operations, which defines the goals, tasks, coordination mechanism, resources and organizational structure for the work of Games-time city operations in terms of temporary facility construction, environmental protection and energy supply.

On the other hand, work on Olympic venue operations has started. Following the founding of the Venue Management Department, the formulation of the Concept of operations for Venue Operations and the operation of a model venue, the municipal government and BOCOG jointly organized meetings on the work of Olympic venue operations and periphery support. Tasks on venue operations and periphery support have been assigned to relevant districts, counties and municipal departments in Beijing.

Updating the press on the current conditions in Beijing, Wang said spurred by the preparation of the Olympic Games, the social and economic development in the city has maintained dynamic and sound momentum.

People's living standard has seen constant improvement. In 2005, the GDP of Beijing increased by 11.8 percent and the GDP per capita reached US$5,457. A large number of transport infrastructure projects have started. Six roads around the Olympic venues have been built, and the construction of another 25 roads as well as Subway Line 5, Line 10 and Line 4 is speeding up. Beijing's environment quality has greatly improved."Blue sky" days in Beijing accounted for 64.1 percent of the total days in 2005, 15.7 % higher than in 2000. The forest coverage rate of the city has reached 50.5 percent, meeting the target set for 2008 two years in advance.

In addition, the increasingly dynamic cultural exchanges have enriched people's life. Various events including the Beijing International Tourism Cultural Festival have boosted the cultural exchange between China and the rest of the world. Scope and depth of the Sino-foreign cultural exchange in Beijing has reached an all-time high. Civility and moral awareness of the residents is constantly improving. Campaigns to create a sound social environment for the Olympic Games have been launched. A healthier and more harmonious society and cultural environment are taking shape. The city's GDP grew 12.3% in the first half of this year. "Beijing is getting ready for hosting a successful Olympic Games in 2008," Wang said.

From 2007 onwards, preparation for the Olympic Games will enter the test stage. BOCOG will follow the guidelines on Games preparation laid down by the Chinese Government and intensify its work in all functional areas so as to lay solid foundations for Beijing to stage a "high-level Olympic Games with distinguishing features, he concluded."

Wang and Jiang Xiaoyu, another BOCOG executive vice president answered questions on opening and closing ceremonies, volunteers, Olympic torch relay route, Equestrian Committee, Beijing's transport and city planning.

Moriones Festival in the Phillipines

Moriones Festival, Marinduque, Philippines
One of the Philippines most Colorful Festival

One of the most colorful festivals celebrated in the island of Marinduque is the Moriones Festival. Morion means "mask" or "visor," a part of the medieval Roman armor which covers the face. Moriones, on the other hand, refers to the masked and costumed penitents who march around the town for seven days searching for Longinus. This week-long celebration starts on Holy Monday and culminates on Easter Sunday when the story of Longinus is reenacted in pantomime. This is a folk-religious festival that re-enacts the story of Longinus, a Roman centurion who was blind in one eye.

Legend has it that Longinus pierced the side of the crucified Christ. The blood that spurted forth touched his blind eye and fully restored his sight. This miracle converted Longinus to Christianity and earned the ire of his fellow centurions. The re-enactment reaches its climax when Longinus is caught and beheaded.

The festival is characterized by colorful Roman costumes, painted masks and helmets, and brightly-colored tunics. The towns of Boac, Gasan, Santa Cruz, Buenavista and Mogpog in the island of Marinduque become one gigantic stage.

The observances form part of the Lenten celebrations of Marinduque. The various towns also hold the unique tradition of the pabasa or the recitation of Christ's passion in verse. The Via Crucis is also reenacted and flagellants, known as antipos, inflict suffering upon themselves as a form of atonement. After three o'clock on Good Friday afternoon, the Santo Sepulcro is observed, whereby old women exchange verses based on the Bible as they stand in wake of the dead Christ.

Did you know that

Morion means mask, which is part of the medieval Roman centurion’s helmet. Moriones are the masked penitents who take part in the reenactment of the legend of Longinus, and Passion of the Christ.

Tiger Woods at his Best

Tiger Woods (born Eldrick Tont Woods,[1][2][3] December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Currently the World No. 1, Woods was the highest-paid professional athlete in 2007, having earned an estimated $122 million from winnings and endorsements. According to Golf Digest, Woods made $769,440,709 from 1996 to 2007,[4] and the magazine predicts that by 2010, Woods will become the world's first athlete to pass one billion dollars in earnings.[5]

Woods has won fourteen professional major golf championships, the second highest of any male player, and 65 PGA Tour events, third all time. He has more career major wins and career PGA Tour wins than any other active golfer. He is the youngest player to achieve the career Grand Slam, and the youngest and fastest to win 50 tournaments on tour.

Woods has held the number one position in the world rankings for the most consecutive weeks and for the greatest total number of weeks. He has been awarded PGA Player of the Year a record nine times, the Byron Nelson Award for lowest adjusted scoring average a record eight times, and has tied Jack Nicklaus' record of leading the money list in eight different seasons. He has been named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year a record-tying four times, and is the only person to be named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year more than once.

Woods, who is multiracial, is credited with prompting a major surge of interest in the game of golf. Woods dramatically increased attendance and TV ratings and generated interest among a multicultural audience in a game that used to be considered insular and elitist.

Background and family

Eldrick Tont Woods was born on December 30, 1975 in Cypress, California to Earl (1932-2006) and Kultida Woods. He is the only child of their marriage but has two half-brothers, Earl Jr. (born 1955) and Kevin (born 1957), and one half-sister, Royce (born 1958) from the 18-year marriage of Earl Woods and his first wife, Barbara Woods Gray. Earl, a retired United States Army lieutenant colonel and Vietnam War veteran, was of mixed African American (50 percent), Chinese (25 percent) and Native American (25 percent) ancestry. Kultida (nee Punsawad), originally from Thailand, is of mixed Thai (50 percent), Chinese (25 percent), and Dutch (25 percent) ancestry. This makes Woods himself one-quarter Chinese, one-quarter Thai, one-quarter African American, one-eighth Native American, and one-eighth Dutch.[8] He refers to his ethnic make-up as “Cablinasian” (a portmanteau term he coined from Caucasian, Black, (American) Indian, and Asian).[9]

Woods is a Buddhist. He has said that his faith was acquired from his mother and that it helps control both his stubbornness and impatience.[10]

At birth, Woods was given "Eldrick" and "Tont" as first and middle names, respectively. His middle name, Tont, is a traditional Thai name.[11] He got his nickname from a Vietnamese soldier friend of his father, Vuong Dang Phong, to whom his father had also given the "Tiger" nickname. Woods became generally known by that name and by the time he had achieved national prominence in junior and amateur golf, he was simply known as "Tiger" Woods. On his twenty-first birthday, Woods legally changed his name from Eldrick to Tiger.[12]

Woods grew up in Orange County, California and graduated from Western High School in Anaheim in 1994.


Marriage

In November 2003, Woods became engaged to Elin Nordegren, a Swedish model. They were introduced during The Open Championship in 2001 by Swedish golfer Jesper Parnevik, who had employed her as a nanny. They married on October 5, 2004 at the Sandy Lane resort on the Caribbean island of Barbados and live at Isleworth, a community in Windermere, a suburb of Orlando, Florida. They also have homes in Jackson, Wyoming, California, and Sweden. In January 2006, Woods and his wife purchased a $39 million residential property in Jupiter Island, Florida, which they intend to make their primary residence.[13] Woods's Jupiter Island neighbors will include fellow golfers Gary Player, Greg Norman and Nick Price, as well as singers Celine Dion and Alan Jackson. In 2007, a guest house on the Jupiter Island estate was destroyed in a fire caused by lightning.[14]

Early in the morning of June 18, 2007, Elin gave birth to the couple's first child, a daughter, Sam Alexis Woods, in Orlando.[15] The birth occurred just one day after Woods finished tied for second in the 2007 U.S. Open.[16] Tiger chose to name his daughter Sam because his father said that Tiger looked more like a Sam.[17][18]


Career



Early life and amateur career

Woods (age 2) on The Mike Douglas Show. From left, Tiger Woods, Mike Douglas, Earl Woods and Bob Hope.Woods was a child prodigy who began to play golf at the age of two. In 1978, he putted against comedian Bob Hope in a television appearance on The Mike Douglas Show. At age three, Woods shot a 48 over nine holes at the Navy Golf Club in Cypress, California, and at age five, he appeared in Golf Digest and on ABC's That's Incredible.[19] In 1984 at the age of eight he won the 9–10 boys' event, the youngest age group available, at the Junior World Golf Championships.[20] Woods went on to win the Junior World Championships six times, including four consecutive wins from 1988 to 1991.[21][22][23][24][25]

While attending Western High School in Anaheim at the age of 15, he became the youngest ever U.S. Junior Amateur Champion, was voted Southern California Amateur Player of the Year for the second consecutive year, and Golf Digest Junior Amateur Player of the Year 1991.[26] He successfully defended his title at the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, becoming the first multiple winner, competed in his first PGA Tour event, the Nissan Los Angeles Open and was named Golf Digest Amateur Player of the Year, Golf World Player of the Year and Golfweek National Amateur of the Year in 1992.[27][28]

The following year, he won his third consecutive U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, and remains the event's youngest-ever and only multiple winner.[29] In 1994, Woods became the youngest ever winner of the U.S. Amateur Championship. He was a member of the American team at the 1994 Eisenhower Trophy World Amateur Golf Team Championships and 1995 Walker Cup.[30][31] Later that year, he enrolled at Stanford University, and won his first collegiate event, the William Tucker Invitational. He declared a major in Economics and was nicknamed "Urkel" by his college teammates.[32] In 1995, Woods defended his U.S. Amateur title, and was voted Pac-10 Player of the Year, NCAA First Team All-American, and Stanford's Male Freshman of the Year (an award that encompasses all sports).[33][34] He participated in his first PGA Tour major, The Masters, and tied for 41st as the only amateur to make the cut. At age 20 in 1996, Woods became the first golfer to win three consecutive U.S. Amateur titles and won the NCAA individual golf championship.[35] In winning the Silver Medal as leading amateur at The Open Championship, Woods tied the record for an amateur aggregate score of 281.[36] He left college after two years and turned professional.

Professional career

Tiger Woods giving a driving demonstration aboard the USS George Washington.
1996-98: Early years and first major win
With the announcement, "Hello World," Tiger Woods became a professional golfer in August 1996, and signed endorsement deals worth $40 million from Nike, Inc. and $20 million from Titleist.[37][38] He played his first round of professional golf at the Greater Milwaukee Open, tying for 60th place, but went on to win two events in the next three months to qualify for the Tour Championship. For his efforts, Woods was named Sports Illustrated's 1996 Sportsman of the Year and PGA Rookie of the Year.[6] He began his tradition of wearing a red shirt during the final round of tournaments, a link to his college days at Stanford and a color he believes symbolizes aggression and assertiveness.[39][40]

The following April, Woods won his first major, The Masters, by a record margin of 12 strokes, becoming the youngest Masters winner and the first winner of African-American or Asian-American descent.[41] He set a total of 20 Masters records and tied 6 others. He won another three PGA Tour events that year, and on June 15, 1997, in only his 42nd week as a professional, rose to number one in the Official World Golf Rankings, the fastest-ever ascent to world No. 1.[42] He was named PGA Player of the Year, the first golfer to win the award the year following his rookie season.

While expectations for Woods were high, his form faded in the second half of 1997, and in 1998 he only won one PGA Tour event. Woods answered critics of his "slump" and what seemed to be wavering form by maintaining he was undergoing extensive swing changes with his coach, Butch Harmon, and was hoping to do better in the future.[43]


1999-2002: Domination and the Tiger Slam

In June 1999, Woods won the Memorial Tournament, a victory that marked the beginning of one of the greatest sustained periods of dominance in the history of men's golf. He completed his 1999 campaign by winning his last four starts, including the PGA Championship, and finished the season with eight wins — a feat not achieved in the past 25 years. He was voted PGA Tour Player of the Year and Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the second time in three years.

Woods started 2000 with his fifth consecutive victory and began a record-setting season, where he would win three consecutive majors, nine PGA Tour events, and set or tie 27 Tour records. He went on to capture his sixth consecutive victory at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am with a comeback for the ages. Trailing by seven strokes with seven holes to play, Woods finished eagle-birdie-par-birdie for a 64 and a two-stroke victory. His six consecutive wins were the most since Hogan in 1948 and only five behind Byron Nelson’s record of eleven in a row. In the 2000 U.S. Open, Woods broke or tied a total of nine U.S. Open records with his 15-shot win, including Old Tom Morris's record for the largest victory margin ever in a major championship, which had stood since 1862, and became the Tour's all-time career money leader. He led by a record 10 strokes going into the final round, and Sports Illustrated called it "the greatest performance in golf history."[44] In the 2000 Open Championship at St Andrews, which he won by eight strokes, Woods set the record for lowest score to par (−19) in any major tournament, and he holds at least a share of that record in all four major championships. At 24, he became the youngest golfer to achieve the Career Grand Slam.[45]

His major championship streak was seriously threatened at the 2000 PGA Championship, however, when Bob May went head-to-head with Woods on Sunday at Valhalla Golf Club. Woods played the last twelve holes of regulation seven under par, and won a three-hole playoff with a birdie on the first hole and pars on the next two. He joined Ben Hogan (1953) as the only other player to win three professional majors in one season. Three weeks later, Woods won his third straight start on Tour at the Bell Canadian Open, becoming only the second man after Lee Trevino in 1971 to win the Triple Crown of Golf (U.S., British, and Canadian Opens) in one year. Of the twenty events he entered in 2000, he finished in the top three fourteen times. His adjusted scoring average of 67.79 and his actual scoring average of 68.17 were the lowest in PGA Tour history, besting his own record of 68.43 in 1999 and Byron Nelson's average of 68.33 in 1945, respectively. He was named the 2000 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, becoming the first (and only) athlete to be honored twice.[46] Woods was ranked as the twelfth best golfer of all time by Golf Digest magazine just four years after he turned professional.[47]

The following season, Woods continued dominating. His 2001 Masters Tournament win marked the only time within the era of the modern Grand Slam that any player has been the holder of all four major championship titles at the same time, a feat now known as the "Tiger Slam." It is not viewed as a true Grand Slam, however, because it was not achieved in a calendar year. Surprisingly, Woods was not a factor in the three remaining majors of the year, but finished with the most PGA Tour wins in the season, with five. In 2002, Woods started off strong, joining Nick Faldo (1989-90) and Jack Nicklaus (1965-66) as the only men to have won back-to-back Masters Tournaments.

Two months later, Woods was the only player under par at the U.S. Open, and resurrected buzz about the calendar Grand Slam, which had eluded him in 2000. All eyes were on Woods at the Open Championship, but his third round score of 81 ended Grand Slam hopes. At the PGA, Woods nearly repeated his 2000 feat of winning three majors in one year, but bogeys at the thirteenth and fourteenth holes in the final round cost him the championship by one stroke. Nonetheless, he took home the money title, Vardon Trophy, and Player of the Year honors for the fourth year in a row.


2003-04: Swing adjustments

The next phase of Woods's career saw him remain among the top competitors on the tour, but lose his dominating edge. He did not win a major in 2003 or 2004, falling to second in the PGA Tour money list in 2003 and fourth in 2004. In September 2004, Woods's record streak of 264 consecutive weeks as the world's top-ranked golfer came to an end at the Deutsche Bank Championship, when Vijay Singh won and overtook Woods in the Official World Golf Rankings.

Many commentators were puzzled by Woods's "slump," offering explanations that ranged from Woods's rift with swing coach Butch Harmon to his marriage. At the same time, Woods let it be known that he was again working on changes to his swing, this time in hopes of reducing the wear and tear on his surgically-repaired left knee, which was subjected to severe stress in the 1998-2003 version of his swing.[43][48] Again, Woods anticipated that once the adjustments were complete, he would return to his previous form.


2005-08: Resurgence

In the 2005 season, Woods quickly returned to his winning ways. He won the Buick Invitational in January and in March he outplayed Phil Mickelson to win the Ford Championship at Doral and temporarily return to the Official World Golf Rankings number one position (Singh displaced him once again two weeks later).[39] In April, Woods finally broke his "drought" in the majors by winning the 2005 Masters Tournament in a playoff, which regained him the number one spot in the World Rankings. Singh and Woods swapped the number 1 position several times over the next couple of months, but by early July, Woods had established an advantage, propelled further by a victory at the 2005 Open Championship, a win that gave him his 10th major. Woods went on to win six official money events on the PGA Tour in 2005, topping the money list for the sixth time in his career. Woods's 2005 wins also included two at the World Golf Championships.


Woods on the green at The Masters in 2006.For Woods, the year 2006 was markedly different from 2005. While he began just as dominantly (winning the first two tournaments he entered on the year) and was in the hunt for his fifth Masters championship in April, Woods never mounted a Sunday charge to defend his title, allowing Phil Mickelson to claim the green jacket.

On May 3, 2006, Woods's father/mentor/inspiration, Earl, died after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. Woods took a nine-week hiatus from the PGA Tour to be with his family. When he returned for the 2006 U.S. Open, the rust was evident — he missed the cut at Winged Foot, the first time he had missed the cut at a major as a professional, and ended his record-tying streak of 39 consecutive cuts made at majors. A tie for second at the Western Open just three weeks later showed him poised to defend his Open crown at Hoylake.

At the 2006 Open Championship, Woods staged a tour de force in course management, putting, and accuracy with irons. Using almost exclusively long irons off the tee (he hit driver only one time the entire week — the 16th hole of the first round), Woods missed just four fairways all week (hitting the fairway 92 percent of the time), and his score of −18 to par (three eagles, nineteen birdies, 43 pars, and seven bogeys) was just one off of his major championship record −19, set at St Andrews in 2000. The victory was an emotional one for Woods, who dedicated his play to his father's memory.

Four weeks later, at the PGA Championship, Woods again won in dominating fashion — making only three bogeys, tying the record for fewest in a major. He finished the tournament at 18-under-par, equaling the to-par record in the PGA that he shares with Bob May. In August 2006, he won his 50th professional tournament at the Buick Open, and at the age of thirty years and seven months, became the youngest golfer to do so. He ended the year by winning six consecutive PGA Tour events, and won the 3 most prestigious awards given by the PGA Tour (Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Byron Nelson Awards) in the same year for a record seventh time.

At the close of his first eleven seasons, Woods's 54 wins and 12 major wins had surpassed the all time eleven-season PGA Tour total win record of 51 (set by Byron Nelson) and total majors record of 11 (set by Jack Nicklaus). He was named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for a record-tying fourth time.[49]

Woods and tennis star Roger Federer, who share a major sponsor, first met at the 2006 U.S. Open tennis final. Since then, they have attended each other's events and have voiced their mutual appreciation for each other's talents.[50][51][52][53]

Woods began 2007 with a two-stroke victory at the Buick Invitational for his third straight win at the event and his seventh consecutive win on the PGA Tour. The victory marked the fifth time he has won his first tournament of the season. With this win, he became the third man (after Jack Nicklaus and Sam Snead) to win at least five times in three different events on the PGA Tour (his two other events are the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and WGC-CA Championship). Woods earned his second victory of the year at the WGC-CA Championship for his third consecutive and sixth win overall at the event. With this victory, he became the first player to have three consecutive victories in five different events.

At the 2007 Masters Tournament, Woods was in the final group on the last day of a major for the thirteenth time in his career, but unlike the previous twelve occasions in the final group, he was unable to win. He finished tied for second two strokes behind winner Zach Johnson.

Woods earned his third victory of the season by two strokes at the Wachovia Championship, the 24th different PGA Tour tournament Woods has won. He has collected at least three wins in a season nine times in his 12-year career. At the U.S. Open, Woods was in the final group for the fourth consecutive major championship, but began the day two strokes back and finished tied for second once again. His dubious streak of never having come from behind to win on the final day of a major continued.

In search of a record-tying third consecutive Open Championship, Woods fell out of contention with a second-round 75, and never mounted a charge over the weekend. Although his putting was solid (he sank a 90-footer in the first round), his iron play held him back. "I wasn't hitting the ball as close as I needed to all week," Woods said, after he finished tied for twelfth, five strokes off the pace.[54]

In early August, Woods won his record 14th World Golf Championships event at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational by 8 strokes for his third consecutive and sixth victory overall at the event. He became the first golfer to win the same event three straight times on two different occasions (1999-2001) and (2005-2007). The following week, Woods won his 2nd straight PGA Championship by defeating Woody Austin by two strokes. He became the first golfer to win the PGA Championship in back-to-back seasons on two different occasions: 1999-2000 and 2006-2007. He became the second golfer, after Sam Snead, to have won at least five events on the PGA Tour in eight different seasons.

Woods earned his 60th PGA Tour victory at the BMW Championship by shooting a course record 63 in the final round to win by two strokes. He sank a fifty-foot putt in the final round and missed only two fairways on the weekend. He led the field in most birdies for the tournament, and ranked in the top five in driving accuracy, driving distance, putts per round, putts per green, and greens in regulation. Woods finished his 2007 season with a runaway victory at the Tour Championship to capture his fourth title in his last five starts of the year. He became the only two-time winner of the event, and the champion of the inaugural FedEx Cup. In his 16 starts on Tour in 2007, Woods's adjusted scoring average was 67.79, matching his own record set in 2000. His substantial leads over the second, third, and fourth players were similar in 2000 (1.46 (Phil Mickelson), 1.52 (Ernie Els), 1.66 (David Duval)) and 2007 (1.50 (Els), 1.51 (Justin Rose), 1.60 (Steve Stricker)).

Woods started the 2008 season with an eight-stroke victory at the Buick Invitational. The win marked his 62nd PGA Tour victory, tying him with Arnold Palmer for fourth on the all time list. This marked his sixth victory at the event, the sixth time he has begun the PGA Tour season with a victory, and his third PGA Tour win in a row. The following week, Woods was trailing by four strokes going into the final round of the Dubai Desert Classic, but made six birdies on the back nine for a dramatic one-stroke victory. It marked his fourth straight official win, and his second win at the event. Woods took home his 15th World Golf Championships event at the Accenture Match Play Championship with a record-breaking 8 & 7 victory in the final. It was his fourth straight PGA Tour win, and fifth straight worldwide.

In his next event, the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Woods got off to a slow start, finishing the first round at even par and tied for 34th place. After finishing the third round in a five-way tie for first place, Woods completed his fifth consecutive PGA Tour victory with a dramatic 24-foot putt on the 18th hole to defeat Bart Bryant by a stroke. It was also the fifth career victory in this event for Woods. Geoff Ogilvy stopped Woods's run at the WGC-CA Championship, a tournament Woods had won in each of the previous three years. Woods remains the only golfer to have had more than one streak of at least five straight wins on the PGA Tour.

Despite bold predictions that Woods might again challenge for the Grand Slam, he would never mount a serious charge at the 2008 Masters Tournament, struggling with his putter through each round. He would still finish alone in 2nd, three strokes behind the champion, Trevor Immelman. On April 15, 2008, he underwent his third left knee arthroscopic surgery in Park City, Utah, and missed two months on the PGA Tour. The first surgery he had was in 1994 when he had a benign tumor removed and the second in December 2002.[55] He was named Men's Fitness's Fittest Athlete in the June/July 2008 issue.[56]

He returned for the 2008 U.S. Open in one of the most anticipated golfing groupings in history[57] between him, Mickelson and Adam Scott. Woods struggled the first day on the course, notching a double bogey on his first hole. He would end the round at +1 (72), four shots off the lead. He scored -3 (68) his second day, still paired with Mickelson, managing 5 birdies, 1 eagle and 4 bogeys. On the third day of the tournament, he started off with a double bogey once again and was trailing by 5 shots with six holes to play. However, he finished the round by making 2 eagle putts, a combined 100 feet in length, and a chip-in birdie to take a one shot lead into the final round. His final putt assured that he would be in the final group for the sixth time in the last eight major championships.

On Sunday, Woods began the day with yet another double bogey, and trailed Rocco Mediate by one stroke after 71 holes. Needing a birdie at the final hole, Woods pulled a rabbit out of the hat again in a 12-foot putt to force an 18-hole playoff with Mediate on Monday.[58][59] Despite leading by as many as three strokes during the playoff, Woods needed to birdie the 18th to force sudden death with Mediate, and did so once again. He made par on the first sudden death hole, while Mediate missed his par putt, giving Woods his 14th major championship. [60]




When Woods first joined the professional tour in 1996, his long drives had a large impact on the world of golf.[61][62] However, when he did not upgrade his equipment in the following years (insisting upon the use of True Temper Dynamic Gold steel-shafted clubs and smaller steel clubheads that promoted accuracy over distance),[63] many opponents caught up to him. Phil Mickelson even made a joke in 2003 about Woods using "inferior equipment" (meaning outdated technology), which did not sit well with either Nike, Titleist or Woods.[64][65] During 2004, Woods finally upgraded his driver technology to a larger clubhead and graphite shaft, which, coupled with his prodigious clubhead speed, made him one of the Tour's lengthier players off the tee once again.

Despite his power advantage, Woods has always focused on developing an excellent all-around game. Although in recent years he has typically been near the bottom of the Tour rankings in driving accuracy, his iron play is generally as accurate as any player ever to play (including Jack Nicklaus and Ben Hogan)[citation needed], his recovery and bunker play is very strong, and his putting (especially under pressure) is possibly his greatest asset. He is largely responsible for a shift to higher standards of athleticism amongst professional golfers, and is known for putting in more hours of practice than most.[66][67][68]

Early in his professional career, Woods worked almost exclusively with leading swing coach Butch Harmon, with whom he started in 1993,[69] but since March 2004, he has been coached by Hank Haney. In June 2004, Woods was involved in a media spat with Harmon, who works as a golf broadcaster, when Harmon suggested that he was in "denial" about the problems in his game, but they publicly patched up their differences.[70]

While he is considered one of the most charismatic figures in golfing history, Woods's approach is, at its core, cautious. He aims for consistency. Although he is better than any other Tour player when he is in top form, his dominance comes not from regularly posting extremely low rounds, but instead from avoiding bad rounds. Woods plays fewer tournaments than most professionals (15–21 per year, compared to the typical 25–30), and focuses his efforts on preparing for (and peaking at) the Majors and the most prestigious of the other tournaments. Woods' manner off of the course is cautious as well, as he carries himself in interviews and public appearances with a carefully controlled demeanor reminiscent of the corporate athlete persona developed between Nike and Michael Jordan.[71]


Career achievements
Main article: List of career achievements by Tiger Woods
As of June 2008, Woods has won 65 official PGA Tour events, an additional 22 individual professional titles, owns two team titles in the two-man World Golf Championships-World Cup, and won the inaugural FedEx Cup playoffs. He has successfully defended a title 21 times on the PGA Tour, has finished runner-up 24 times, third place 17 times, and has won 29% (65 out of 222) of his professional starts on the PGA Tour. He has hit a combined total eighteen holes-in-one in the course of his lifetime — his first at the age of six.[72] He has a 31-6 record when leading after 36 holes in Tour events, and a 44–3 record when leading after 54 holes. Woods is 14-0 when going into the final round of a major with at least a share of the lead, and he has never lost any tournament when leading by more than one shot after 54 holes. He has been heralded as "the greatest closer in history" by multiple golf experts.[73][74][75] He owns the lowest career scoring average and the most career earnings of any player in PGA Tour history.

He has been the PGA Player of the Year a record nine times, the PGA Tour Money Leader a record-tying eight times (with Jack Nicklaus), the Vardon Trophy winner a record seven times, and the recipient of the Byron Nelson Award a record eight times. He has spent over nine years atop the world rankings in his 12-year career. Woods is one of five players (along with Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player) to have won all four professional major championships in his career, known as the Career Grand Slam, and was the youngest to do so. Bobby Jones won all four of what were in his era considered major championships. Woods is the only player to have won all four professional major championships in a row, accomplishing the feat in the 2000-2001 seasons. Woods' win at the 2005 Open Championship made him only the second golfer (after Nicklaus) to have won all four majors more than once. Woods holds at least a share of the scoring record in relation to par in all four majors, and also holds the margin of victory record in two majors, The Masters and the U.S. Open.

At the 2003 Tour Championship, Woods set the all-time record for most consecutive cuts, starting in 1998, with 114 (passing Nelson's previous record of 113) and extended this mark to 142 before it ended on May 13, 2005 at the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. Many consider this to be one of the most remarkable golf accomplishments of all time, given the margin by which he broke the old record (and against stronger fields in terms of depth than those in Nelson's day) and given that during the streak, the next longest streak by any other player was usually only in the 10s or 20s.[76][77][78][79] With his victory at the 2006 WGC-American Express Championship, he became the first player in PGA Tour history to win at least eight times in three seasons. His victory in the Buick Invitational in January 2007 placed him 2nd for the longest PGA Tour win streak at 7 straight, trailing only Byron Nelson's streak of 11 wins in 1945.

At the 2008 Arnold Palmer Invitational, Woods became the first golfer to win four PGA Tour events five or more times. In winning the U.S. Open in 2008, Woods became only the sixth person to win it three or more times, the first person to win a PGA Tour tournament on the same course seven times, and the first person to win two tournaments at the same golf course in the same season.

When Woods turned pro, Mike "Fluff" Cowan was his caddie until March 8, 1999.[80] He was replaced by Steve Williams, who has become a close friend of Woods and is often credited with helping Woods with key shots and putts.

Pierce - 2008 NBA Final's MVP

BOSTON — The Boston Celtics didn't need Paul Pierce's scoring in Game 6 on Tuesday.
Make no mistake though, the Celtics needed Pierce in the NBA Finals. He's a major reason why the Celtics are NBA champions.

Pierce contributed across the board — points, rebounds, assists and defense — in every Celtics victory, including 17 points, 10 assists and two steals in Boston's series-clinching win against the Los Angeles Lakers.


CELTICS WIN: Boston claims 17th NBA title

Pierce earned the Finals MVP award after averaging 21.8 points, 6.3 assists and 4.5 rebounds.

FIND MORE STORIES IN: California | Los Angeles Lakers | Kobe Bryant | Game | Boston Celtics | Ray Allen | Doc Rivers | Paul Pierce | Forum | Inglewood | NBA Finals MVP | Cousys | Havliceks
"This is unreal just where we came from a year ago, where I was at, to be here today celebrating with my teammates, putting a stamp on what a great year it was," Pierce said.

The championship and Finals MVP is a dream come true for Pierce, who played high school basketball in Inglewood, Calif., and grew up close to the Forum, where the Lakers won five titles during the 1980s. The guy from the Los Angeles area playing for Boston helped the Celtics beat the Lakers for the NBA title.

"I'm just happy that Doc, the ownership, my teammates, the city stuck with me throughout all the hard times," he told the crowd after accepting the MVP trophy. "I know we didn't have a lot of great years, but you guys stuck with me and now we bring home a championship to you."

If Kevin Garnett is Boston's soul and Ray Allen is its brain, Pierce is the heart of the Celtics. He has spent his 10-year career with Boston, never advancing past the Eastern Conference finals until this year.

"It means so much more because of the (John) Havliceks, the Bill Russells, the (Bob) Cousys. These guys started what's going on today with those banners," said Pierce, pausing as tears emerged. "They don't hang up any other banners but championship ones, and now I'm a part of it. And just all the years talking to Bill and John, Cousy, finally I feel like we've come out of that shadow now and created our own, and now we can stand up and look them eye to eye and say, 'Hey, we accomplished it, too.' "

Pierce, who injured his knee in Game 1 and will have it examined to determine if surgery is required, may have cemented MVP honors with his 38-point performance in the Game 5 loss.

Pierce also played defense. In Boston's Game 4 victory, Pierce asked to guard Lakers star Kobe Bryant. "Paul was only viewed upon as a scorer, and now I think people see him as a complete basketball player," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said.

Kobe Bryant - 2008 NBA MVP

Kobe Bean Bryant[1] (born August 23, 1978(1978-08-23)) is an American All-Star shooting guard who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association. Bryant is the only son of former Philadelphia 76ers player and former Los Angeles Sparks head coach Joe "Jellybean" Bryant. His parents named him after the famous beef of Kobe, Japan, which they saw on a restaurant menu.[2]

Bryant rose to national prominence in 1996 when he became the first guard in league history to be drafted out of high school. Bryant and then-teammate Shaquille O'Neal led the Lakers to three consecutive NBA championships from 2000 to 2002. Since O'Neal's departure following the 2003-04 season, Bryant has become the cornerstone of the Lakers franchise, and was the NBA's leading scorer during the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons. In 2006, Bryant scored a career high 81 points against the Toronto Raptors, the second highest number of points scored in NBA history.[3] He was awarded the season's MVP in the 2007-08 NBA season after leading his team to the 2008 NBA Playoffs as the first seed in the Western Conference.[4]

In 2003, Bryant made headlines when he was accused of sexual assault at a ski resort in Eagle, Colorado by a hotel employee. Bryant admitted an adulterous sexual encounter with the accuser, but denied the sexual assault allegation. In September 2004, prosecutors dropped the case after his accuser informed them that she was unwilling to testify.[5] Bryant's accuser brought a separate civil suit against him that was ultimately settled out of court.



On May 27, 2007, ESPN reported that Bryant stated that he wanted to be traded if Jerry West did not return to the team with full authority.[19] Bryant later confirmed his desire for West's return to the franchise, but denied stating that he would want to be traded if that does not occur.[20] However, three days later, on Stephen A. Smith's radio program, Bryant expressed anger over a Lakers "insider" who claimed that Kobe was responsible for Shaquille O'Neal's departure from the team, and publicly stated, "I want to be traded." Three hours after making that statement, Kobe stated in another interview that after having a conversation with head coach Phil Jackson, he has reconsidered his decision and backed off his trade request.[21] On December 23, 2007 Kobe became the youngest player (29 years, 122 days) to reach 20,000 points, in a game against the New York Knicks, in Madison Square Garden.[22]

Despite an injury, described as "a complete tear of the radial collateral ligament, an avulsion fracture, and a volar plate injury at the MCP joint" of his shooting hand's small finger, that occurred in a game against the New Jersey Nets on February 5, 2008, Bryant played all 82 games of the regular season instead of opting for surgery. Regarding his injury, he stated, "I would prefer to delay any surgical procedure until after our Lakers season, and this summer's Olympic Games. But, this is an injury that myself and the Lakers' medical staff will just have to continue to monitor on a day-to-day basis."[23]

Leading his team to a West best 57-25 record, they swept the Nuggets in the first round and on May 6, 2008, Bryant was officially announced as the NBA Most Valuable Player award, his first for his career.[24] He said, "It's been a long ride. I'm very proud to represent this organization, to represent this city."[25] Jerry West, who was responsible for bringing Kobe to the Lakers was on hand at the press conference to observe Bryant receive his MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern. He stated, "Kobe deserved it. He's had just another great season. Doesn't surprise me one bit."[26] In addition to winning his MVP award, Bryant was the only unanimous selection to the All-NBA team on May 8, 2008 for the third straight season and sixth time in his career.[27] He would then headline the NBA All-Defensive First Team with Kevin Garnett, receiving 52 points overall including 24 first-place nods, earning his eighth selection.[28]

On May 16, 2008, Bryant and the Lakers defeated the Utah Jazz in 6 games, and moved on to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2004. [29]

On May 29, 2008, Bryant tallied 39 points (17 in the fourth quarter) as the Lakers defeated the Spurs 100-92 in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals to advance to the NBA Finals for the fifth time in his career and the first time without Shaquille O'Neal. [30]

Efren Reyes - A true Legend in billiards

Billiard Super Star Efren Bata Reyes
Uploaded by InsidePoolMag

Efren "Bata" Reyes a.k.a "The Magician"

EFREN REYES was born Aug. 26, 1954, in Mexico, Pampanga. He is the middle son of nine children - five boys and four girls.

His family was poor and his father worked as a barber. When Efren was five years old, his family sent him to stay with his uncle, who owned the Lucky 13 pool hall in Avenida, Manila. Efren was put to work as a billiard attendant. This is where he picked up the nickname "Bata" (The Kid).

Efren did not actually pick up a pool cue until he was eight years old, but for the first three years at the Lucky 13, he still learned a lot about the game. Not only from watching the hustlers, the movie stars, and the celebrities that frequented his uncle's place, but also from his dreams. Efren's bed was the pool table.

"When I slept on the table, I dreamt about pool," he said. "I learned about pool from my dreams."

Then at eight years old, he began living out the dreams.

"Just to be able to shoot," he said, "I stacked cases of Coke three high so I could play pool." After a shot, he would move the cases around the table so he could take another shot. Even though his uncle did not want him to play pool, Efren would play two hours in the morning and two hours in the evening, when nobody was around. "I liked sleeping on the table because when I woke up I could play pool."

He started gambling at nine years old. At 12, several of his rich Chinese friends, whom Efren met at the Lucky 13, tagged him along to different places like Bulacan, Olongapo, and Angeles for vacations. While there, they would pick up games. The friends would finance Efren against some of the best players in the Philippines. Once he beat the number two guy in the country.

"I watched all the good players and the weak players, too," he said. He practiced every shot. He had no teacher. "I learned the simple shots from the good players. English, draw, follow, how to put the cue ball in position. But what about the other shots? The good players don't know the invisible shots. A lot of times the weak players make these impossible shots. I learned a lot of trick shots from watching bad players."

Efren dropped out of high school after two years in order to support his family by playing pool. He had financiers and he would play for maybe P100. Another source of income was the American GIs on nearby Clark Air Base. But he had developed a reputation and nobody would bet high with him.

Because he had trouble finding competition, he stopped playing pocket billiards in 1976 to take up carom (three cushion billiards), which used to be popular in the Philippines. But he became so good at carom that, like pool, nobody wanted to play him. So he returned to pocket billiards.

He found a sponsor in 1979 and made his first trip abroad to Japan, where he won $3,000 hustling and playing in tournaments. Six years later he made his first trip to America.

His sponsor then was a local Filipino with connections in the States. He wanted Efren to hustle. By then, however, the word about Efren Reyes had reached the pool halls of America. But nobody in America knew what Efren looked like. So while in the States, Efren used the name of his friend, Cezar Morales.

He played in and won the Red 9-Ball Open in Houston, Texas, which netted him a few thousand dollars. Then over the next three weeks, playing big money against all comers, Efren won $81,000. But he never saw his promised 50% share. His financier stole the money.

In 1986, he returned to America at the invitation of another financier, a Filipino from Chicago. This man also cheated Efren. In 1987, he had another financier, but they did not get along. In 1988, Efren was financed by an American named Archibald Mitchell. This time Efren finally made money.

"The American didn't cheat me," Efren said laughing. "Only the Filipinos."

It was about this time that Efren teamed up with long-time friend, Rolando Vicente, his manager until this day. "Efren's a gifted guy," Rolando said. "Maybe the guy upstairs gave it to him. Efren's the kind of guy who creates shots that nobody knows how he did it. Also many people cannot do in a game what they do in practice. Efren is different. He can play in a game the way he practices.

"He's better when he plays for money than he is at tournaments. In tournaments, you can be beaten because you play only one set. But for money, over the long run, Efren's the best."

Efren explained that what makes him and so many other Filipinos so good in pool, especially under pressure, is the gambling.

"Because Filipinos like to gamble and play for money. They don't practice. The practice is gambling. A lot of pool players don't have jobs. Their job is playing pool."

It was not until 1989, however, that Efren finally stepped beyond the world of hustling and on to the international stage. Jose Puyat, the former congressman who, among several family businesses, also owns and operates the AMF-Puyat billiard and bowling centers in Manila, became Efren's first real sponsor. Puyat's sponsorship has nothing to do with gambling. He pays the expenses for Efren, Rolando and sometimes other members of the Philippine team, which Puyat formed, to travel from tournament to tournament in the United States. Puyat has also promoted several billiard events in the Philippines, pitting Efren against such superstars as Nick Varner and Johnny Archer, and Team Philippines against Team America. Efren still gambles, but when he does, he puts up his own money.

Manny Pacquiao a true Champion

Who is Manny???



Emmanuel "Manny" D. Pacquiao (born December 17, 1978), aka "Pacman" and "The Destroyer" is the reigning WBC International Super Featherweight Champion (2005–present), former RING People's Featherweight Champion (2003 to 2005), former IBF Super Bantamweight Champion (2001 to 2004), and former WBC Flyweight Champion (1998 to 1999). He has a record of 41 wins, 3 losses, and 2 draws, with 34 wins coming by way of knockout.


Biography
Pacquiao was born in the province of Bukidnon in the Philippines. It is not certain whether he started selling bread called "pan de sal" on the streets or made it as a bread maker or a "panadero" who makes different kinds of breads including the "pan de sal". There are news items that link him to being cocky in bars, starting fights but that part of his personality may have faded as evident of his closeness to God (as a Catholic) on recent interviews as well as his religious gestures before and after a fight.

[edit]
Career
The boxer, who hails from General Santos City, Philippines is also dubbed "The Destroyer" by his peers in the boxing world. He has ended many of his fights with his left punch.

The 27-year-old Pacquiao started his professional boxing career in 1995 at 106 pounds. He bounced in weight from 106 to 113 pounds before losing in his 12th fight against Rustico Torrecampo via third round technical knockout. Shortly after the Torrecampo fight Pacquiao settled in at 112 pounds, winning the WBC Flyweight title only to lose it in his second defense against Medgoen Singsurat by third round knockout. Theoretically speaking, Pacquiao may have lost the belt at the scales by not being able to make weight of 112 lb (51 kg).

Following the loss to Singsurat, Pacquiao again jumped in weight, this time stopping at the Super Bantamweight division of 122 lb (55 kg) where he picked up the WBC International title, defending it five times before his next world title fight came. Pacquiao’s big break came on June 23rd, 2001, against IBF Super Bantamweight champion Lehlohonolo Ledwaba. Pacquiao stepped into the fight as a late replacement and walked out of the fight the newly crowned IBF Super Bantamweight champion. Pacquiao scored three knockdowns before the end of the fight was called in the fifth round.


Pacquiao wobbles Erik Morales.Manny went on to defend his title four times before the match that many consider to have defined his career, against his childhood boxing idol, Marco Antonio Barrera of Mexico came. Pacquiao rose from an official knockdown in the first round, and won the fight by technical knockout, when Barrera’s corner stopped the fight in the eleventh round. With this victory, the "Pacman" captured the WBO and Ring Magazine People's Featherweight Title, as Barrera had beaten Naseem Hamed previously for that belt. Pacquiao's performance established himself, according to many critics, fans and boxing magazines alike, as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world, and put the Philippines on the boxing world's map again where he follows in the
footsteps of past Filipino boxing stars such as "Flash Elorde", Ben Villaflor, and
Pancho Villa, among others.


Pacquiao knocks down Erik Morales.Only six months removed from his win over Marco Antonio Barrera, Pacquiao went on to challenge another respected Mexican boxer, Juan Manuel Marquez, holder of the WBA and IBF Featherweight Title. Experts predicted that Marquez, a dangerous counter-puncher, would prevail over Pacquiao because of his apparently superior boxing skills. The fight turned out to be one of the greatest Featherweight clashes in the history of boxing. Pacquiao's handspeed and punching power was displayed early as he stormed Marquez with jabs and straight lefts that sent the Mexican Champion to the canvas three times in the first round alone. It looked as if Pacquiao was on his way to a quick victory, but things changed as Marquez started to take control in the second, arguably dominating the fight and getting better with each passing round. When the bell to end the 12th round sounded, the fight was scored a draw (tie).

In a fight held in the Philippines, Pacquiao fought against Fahsan (3K-Battery) Por Thawatchai. Pacquiao sent Por Thawatchai to the canvas three times en route to a knockout in the fourth round. A left uppercut to the jaw knocked down the Thai fighter that lifted his two feet off the canvas and ended the fight.


Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao posing with the WBC International Super Featherwight title after the second Morales fight.Pacquiao once again jumped in weight, this time to the Super Featherwight division and squared off against former three-time division champion Erik Morales on 19th of March, 2005. However, Pacquiao lost the 12 round match with a unanimous decision from the judges. Pacquiao had to fight with a cut in his eye for most of the fight against Morales. Despite the loss, Pacquiao gained further credibility as a fighter who could fight back under adversity.

On September 10, 2005, Manny Pacquiao knocked out Hector Velazquez, capturing the WBC International Super Featherweight Title in the process.

Pacquiao defeated Erik Morales by TKO in a rematch on January 21, 2006 in Las Vegas at Thomas and Mack Center, United States. Pacquiao nearly dropped Morales in round two and wobbled him again in the sixth. Pacquiao floored Morales twice in round 10 before the fight was stopped at 2:33. It was the first time the 29-year-old Morales, a former world champion in three weight classes, was stopped in his career. With this win Pacquiao is now ranked the top contender in the WBC superfeatherweight rankings and is now eligible to face Marco Antonio Barrera again for the WBC Belt. A third fight with Morales is possible but the future for it is unclear.

Top Island Tourist Destination in the Philippines

To ensure a 100% satisfaction-guaranteed summer vacation, here's a list of island tourists destinations in the Philippines. For a wonderful and unforgettable summer experience, whether you're a local or a tourist, check this out.





1.) Boracay





The palm-studded island of Boracay – with its white, talcum-fine beach, balmy weather, and warm, crystalline waters – is like a hypnotic magnet. In this tiny, butterfly-shaped island at the northwestern tip of Panay in Western Visayas, days can be spent simply lazing on the beach while nights are for indulging in the tropical party lifestyle.

The best part of the island is the four-kilometer White Beach hailed as the “finest beach in the world.” The surrounding water is shallow and the sand is finer and brighter than most beaches in the archipelago. White Beach is so, soooo fine, it feels like treading on miles of baby powder!

The code in Boracay is strictly informal. There is an undeniably easy atmosphere in the island, where walking barefoot than shod is the rule rather than the exception. Even swinging discos have the beach for a floor, giving dance a new twist. There are no hang-ups here. During the day, tourists having a soothing massage under the shade of a coconut tree beside the shoreline is a common sight. And from dusk to dawn, Boracay turns into one big party place where everyone is welcome to join in. But first, let’s toast that sunset cocktail!

Diversions are not a problem, with leisure activities calendared throughout the year and amenities offered by some 350 tourist establishments. There is plenty to do other than beachbumming and partyhopping. For the adventure-driven, there is ""Mambo Number 5"" – a little bit of boating and wind surfing, a little bit of scuba diving, a little bit of trekking, a little bit of mountain biking, and a little bit of golf. On the eastern side of the island is Bulabog Beach, a boardsailor’s mecca that draws enthusiasts from all over the world, especially during the peak season from November to March. In January, it is the site of an International Funboard Cup.

Sailboating and kayaking are popular sporting activities, with Boracay playing host to the annual Paraw Regatta, an international sailboat race that makes use of the native outrigger. Dive sites surround the island and are learning venues to both novice and professional divers, guided by competent instructors of the many dive shops that operate in the area.

Trekking and mountain biking can also bring the intrepid to the island's quaint interior villages and to the edges' scenic rocky cliffs, discovering along the way many hidden coves with isolated beaches far from the tourist crowd. And for golf bugs, Fairways and Bluewater Resort Golf and Countryclub has an 18-hole championship course.
Geography
Boracay Island belongs to the Western Visayas island-group, Region 6 of the Philippines, along with the western part of the province of Negros, the island of Panay, and many smaller islands. The westernmost island in Western Visayas, Boracay borders the provinces of Mindoro to the northwest and Romblon to the north.
Languages/Dialects
Other than Tagalog/Filipino and other local dialects, English is widely spoken in Boracay. Akeanon is predominantly spoken in Aklan, the gateway to the island.
Climate
March to June are the summer months in Boracay, with temperatures reaching as high as from 28 to 38 degrees Celsius. November to February are spent with pleasant winds, cool nights, and occasional rain showers. July to October are the wettest months.

Mortgage Meltdown

MORTGAGE MELTDOWN
Interest rate 'freeze' - the real story is fraud
Bankers pay lip service to families while scurrying to avert suits, prison

Sean Olender

Sunday, December 9, 2007
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New proposals to ease our great mortgage meltdown keep rolling in. First the Treasury Department urged the creation of a new fund that would buy risky mortgage bonds as a tactic to hide what those bonds were really worth. (Not much.) Then the idea was to use Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy the risky loans, even if it was clear that U.S. taxpayers would eventually be stuck with the bill. But that plan went south after Fannie suffered a new accounting scandal, and Freddie's existing loan losses shot up more than expected.

Now, just unveiled Thursday, comes the "freeze," the brainchild of Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. It sounds good: For five years, mortgage lenders will freeze interest rates on a limited number of "teaser" subprime loans. Other homeowners facing foreclosure will be offered assistance from the Federal Housing Administration.

But unfortunately, the "freeze" is just another fraud - and like the other bailout proposals, it has nothing to do with U.S. house prices, with "working families," keeping people in their homes or any of that nonsense.

The sole goal of the freeze is to prevent owners of mortgage-backed securities, many of them foreigners, from suing U.S. banks and forcing them to buy back worthless mortgage securities at face value - right now almost 10 times their market worth.

The ticking time bomb in the U.S. banking system is not resetting subprime mortgage rates. The real problem is the contractual ability of investors in mortgage bonds to require banks to buy back the loans at face value if there was fraud in the origination process.

And, to be sure, fraud is everywhere. It's in the loan application documents, and it's in the appraisals. There are e-mails and memos floating around showing that many people in banks, investment banks and appraisal companies - all the way up to senior management - knew about it.

I can hear the hum of shredders working overtime, and maybe that is the new "hot" industry to invest in. There are lots of people who would like to muzzle subpoena-happy New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to buy time and make this all go away. Cuomo is just inches from getting what he needs to start putting a lot of people in prison. I bet some people are trying right now to make him an offer "he can't refuse."

Despite Thursday's ballyhooed new deal with mortgage lenders, does anyone really think that it can ultimately stop fraud lawsuits by mortgage bond investors, many of them spread out across the globe?

The catastrophic consequences of bond investors forcing originators to buy back loans at face value are beyond the current media discussion. The loans at issue dwarf the capital available at the largest U.S. banks combined, and investor lawsuits would raise stunning liability sufficient to cause even the largest U.S. banks to fail, resulting in massive taxpayer-funded bailouts of Fannie and Freddie, and even FDIC.

The problem isn't just subprime loans. It is the entire mortgage market. As home prices fall, defaults will rise sharply - period. And so will the patience of mortgage bondholders. Different classes of mortgage bonds from various risk pools are owned by different central banks, funds, pensions and investors all over the world. Even your pension or 401(k) might have some of these bonds in it.

Perhaps some U.S. government department can make veiled threats to foreign countries to suggest they will suffer unpleasant consequences if their largest holders (central banks and investment funds) don't go along with the plan, but how could it be possible to strong-arm everyone?

What would be prudent and logical is for the banks that sold this toxic waste to buy it back and for a lot of people to go to prison. If they knew about the fraud, they should have to buy the bonds back. The time to look into this is before the shredders have worked their magic - not five years from now.

Those selling the "freeze" have suggested that mortgage-backed securities investors will benefit because they lose more with rising foreclosures. But with fast-depreciating collateral, the last thing investors in mortgage bonds ought to do is put off foreclosures. Rate freezes are at best a tool for delaying the inevitable foreclosures when even the most optimistic forecasters expect home prices to fall. In October, Goldman Sachs issued a report forecasting an incredible 35 to 40 percent drop in California home prices in the coming few years. To minimize losses, a mortgage bondholder would obviously be better off foreclosing on a home before prices plunge.

The goal of the freeze may be to delay bond investors from suing by putting off the big foreclosure wave for several years. But it may also be to stop bond investors from suing. If the investors agreed to loan modifications with the "real" wage and asset information from refinancing borrowers, mortgage originators and bundlers would have an excuse once the foreclosure occurred. They could say, "Fraud? What fraud?! You knew the borrower's real income and asset information later when he refinanced!"

The key is to refinance borrowers whose current loans involved fraud in the origination process. And I assure you it was a minority of borrowers whose loans didn't involve fraud.

The government is trying to accomplish wide-scale refinancing by tricking bond investors, or by tricking U.S. taxpayers. Guess who will foot the bill now that the FHA is entering the fray?

Ultimately, the people in these secret Paulson meetings were probably less worried about saving the mortgage market than with saving themselves. Some might be looking at prison time.

As chief of Goldman Sachs, Paulson was involved, to degrees as yet unrevealed, in the mortgage securitization process during the halcyon days of mortgage fraud from 2004 to 2006.

Paulson became the U.S. Treasury secretary on July 10, 2006, after the extent of the debacle was coming into focus for those in the know. Goldman Sachs achieved recent accolades in the markets for having bet heavily against the housing market, while Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Bear Sterns, Merrill Lynch and others got hammered for failing to time the end of the credit bubble.

Goldman Sachs is the only major investment bank in the United States that has emerged as yet unscathed from this debacle. The success of its strategy must have resulted from fairly substantial bets against housing, mortgage banking and related industries, which also means that Goldman Sachs saw this coming at the same time they were bundling and selling these loans.

If a mortgage bond investor sues Goldman Sachs to force the institution to buy back loans, could Paulson be forced to testify as to whether Goldman Sachs knew or had reason to know about fraud in the origination process of the loans it was bundling?

It is truly amazing that right now everyone in the country is deferring to Paulson and the heads of Countrywide, JPMorgan, Bank of America and others as the best group to work out a solution to this problem. No one is talking about the fact that these people created the problem and profited to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars from it.

I suspect that such a group first sat down and tried to figure out how to protect their financial interests and avoid criminal liability. And then when they agreed on the plan, they decided to sell it as "helping working families stay in their homes." That's why these meetings were secret, and reporters and the public weren't invited.

The next time that Paulson is before the Senate Finance Committee, instead of asking, "How much money do you think we should give your banking buddies?" I'd like to see New York Sen. Chuck Schumer ask him what he knew about this staggering fraud at the time he was chief of Goldman Sachs.

The Goldman report in October suggests that rampant investor demand is to blame for origination fraud - even though these investors were misled by high credit ratings from bond rating agencies being paid billions by the U.S. investment banks, like Goldman, that were selling the bundled mortgages.

This logic is like saying shoppers seeking bargain-priced soup encourage the grocery store owner to steal it. I mean, we're talking about criminal fraud here. We are on the cusp of a mammoth financial crisis, and the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Treasury are trying to limit the liability of their banking friends under the guise of trying to help borrowers. At stake is nothing short of the continued existence of the U.S. banking system.