On Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles went on the road and beat the Atlanta Falcons by the score of 32 to 6. If you just watched the first quarter you would have thought the game was going to be close, but for some reason, the Falcons disappeared for the rest of the game. The Eagles then dominated on both sides of the ball. The next game for the Eagles is against the San Francisco 49ers. The outcome of that game will help determine how good the Eagles actually are, because the NFC West is supposed to be one of the best divisions in football this year.
Their win on Sunday puts the Eagles in first place in their division because the other 3 teams all lost their opening games. The Washington football team lost their starting quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick, for 6 to 8 weeks due to a serious hip injury. What a brutal way to start their season. I hope his recovery is a smooth one.
In tennis, Novak Djokovic lost in the finals of the U.S. Open to be deprived of the calendar year Grand Slam. He lost in straight sets to Daniel Medvedev of the Czech Republic who is the second ranked player in the world. Throughout the tournament, Novak played four and five set matches, which I think is what came back to haunt him. He was exhausted. I think Novak will win one or two more majors before he retires. He is 34 years old now. Rod Laver's Grand Slam achievement from 1969 looks like it is safe for now.
On the women’s side, 18 year old Emma Raducanu from England became the first English player to win the U.S. Open since 1968! She also became the first qualifier to ever win the tournament, which means she won 10 straight matches over the span of three weeks. I hope she can maintain this level of play for a long time. She is a great addition to women's tennis.
Next week is Ryder Cup week in golf. This year the tournament is being played at Whistling Straits golf course in Wisconsin. I hope the weather is good because it would really help the United States team. It is important for the U.S. to win the event because the Europeans have won eight of the last ten events. The U.S. has a very young team. Dustin Johnson is the oldest player on the team at 37 years old, definitely a changing of the guard for the team. I hope they perform well.
The location for this matchup is a beautiful setting right on Lake Michigan. They have already had three PGA championships at the course in 2004, 2010 and 2015. There are hundreds of bunkers on the course. The event is being broadcast on the Golf Channel and NBC next week so you should be able to watch this great event play out. GO USA.
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A 2002 Cape grad and 2007 UD grad, Lewes resident Sumner Spence is one of the Cape area's biggest sports fans. Although he’s used a wheelchair his entire life, he has lived vicariously through his sports-playing father, brother, and friends, who gave him his love of sports. He hopes to provide new and interesting perspectives on the sports stories and issues of the day. Email Sumner at sumspence@gmail.com.
