Bird Caught In A Webb

Webb Simpson will forever be known as a US Open champion. He'll forever be known as a major championship winner who made a great comeback in the final round to reach this feat.

Problem is, he'll also be known as the US Open champion who got interview-bombed by a fella affectionately known as the Bird Man. We can talk all we want about how rude it was for Bird Man to jump in front of the camera and make bird noises while Webb Simpson was trying to soak in the moment, but the look on Bob Costas' face when Bird Man took over the show was priceless.

By now you've seen the video, but what's sad for Simpson is years down the line if he wins more major championships, anytime people go to YouTube to catch highlights of his first major win, the video at the top of the search results will forever be the Bird Man Interview-Bomb.

I suppose it's safe to say we won't forget who won the 2012 US Open, but not for the reasons we should.

Tiger, Tiger Woods, Ya'll

Forbes released their list of highest paid athletes this week and once again Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson were present. This time, however, they found themselves a little further down the list. While Woods normally has a stranglehold on the No. 1 spot and Mickelson usually comes it at No. 2, Woods dropped to No. 3 behind Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.

Interesting how a sport that is virtually dead has the two highest paid athletes in the business. You can chalk Tiger's fall on the list to an unproductive couple of years, but if you look at everything he has.. err.. hasn't accomplished, the fact that he's still third on the list says everything you need to know about the marketability of Tiger Woods.

He's recession proof and horrible-play-means-you-make-less-money-all-around proof. Forbes list makes this a fact.

Speaking of Tiger, we were all witness to another roller coaster of golf play from him at the US Open. He held a share of the lead going into the weekend and ended up finishing  T21 +7. The constant "Is Tiger Back?" conversation usually changes from week-to-week or month-to-month, but he accomplished being back and then being far from winning a major in the span of two days. He had a little bit of a slide on Saturday and then completely blew apart Sunday.

All in all, that's classic Tiger these days. It's a far cry from the "Eye of the Tiger," intimidate and win Tiger we know and love. I was dumb enough to pick him to win, but then again, so were a lot of other people. I was right for two rounds and in gambling, 50% isn't bad, right? Just imagine if I'd have hedged and went with Webb starting Saturday. BIG BUCKS!.... except I don't gamble outside of this golf blog.

A few other notes on the US Open before we put it to bed for 2012:

- The only way to describe what Jim Furyk did on Sunday was that he choked. No other adjective applies. I love Furyk, but that was a classic meltdown. He got way too into his own head and it cost him.

- Unfortunately, Casey Martin didn't make the cut after being well within contention after the first round. His is a great story and I certainly hope he'll make another run at it next year or in other tournaments down the line if his leg can handle it.

- If you want to find out how well Mickelson did this weekend, go ahead and check out the leaderboards posted online and get your scrolling hand ready. Really, Phil... +16? Don't bring yourself down to the level of we common men/women golfers. It's bad for your look.

- The final round viewership went up 30% this year from last with over 8 million viewers. With Tiger in contention, in prime time, that's no surprise.

Travelers Championship

I typically tune into the Travelers every year simply because it's a well run tournament on a great course but I'm taking a mini vacation this week so updates will be minimal and most likely on Twitter if they do come along. Here's my picks anyway:

1. Ryan Moore
2. Webb Simpson
3. Hunter Mahan
4. Frederik Jacobson
5. Brendan Steele

Round 1 Tee Times

The Field